Allbetter vs HomeAdvisor vs Thumbtack vs Houzz vs Angi vs Yelp vs Handy

What exactly are these home improvement companies doing to have a good online reputation? Let’s take a look at what they are doing right and wrong.

The pros and cons listed below will help guide you in finding a contractor to complete your renovations, whether they be “simple” like my dear wife’s or longer and more arduous.

When evaluating these companies, I’m looking at how the companies operate and how customers can benefit from using them. More than that, I’m also taking a look at whether the platforms treat contractors fairly or take advantage of them.

1- Allbetter

Allbetter allows customers to enter the amount of their project budget so that they receive bids only from providers who are willing to work within that budget. This way, if a customer has a repair job budget of, say, $400, they receive bids from independent handypersons with low overhead who can work within that budget, and they do not have to waste time talking to providers from larger companies with high overhead that charge $2,500 for the same work.

Allbetter providers estimate their time directly with the consumer based on their conversation and pictures about the job. If the provider finds that the job will take more time, they can discuss it directly with the customer and agree on any additional hours or compensation. Allbetter does not interfere with or supervise that negotiation. The original prices are not locked — if the job changes or the customer wants to add more to it, Allbetter easily accommodates it with no additional effort.

Pros for Homeowners:

• The mobile app is user-friendly.
• You can hire contractors for emergency services or home projects.
• Chat groups allow you to communicate directly with your contractor to discuss the job.
• You can post photos associated with your project.
• Allbetter has a great referral program that pays you whenever someone you referred to the app uses it to hire a contractor.
• A portion of the referral fee goes to charity.
• Customers can name their prices.

Cons for Homeowners:

Pros for Contractors:

• The mobile app is user-friendly.
• You only pay a fee to Allbetter after you get paid by the customer for a completed job.
• Allbetter quoting and invoicing system is free to use!
• You can choose which projects to bid on.
• You can chat with customers for free.
• Because you don’t pay upfront, you can be an instant match with a new customer.
• Great way to meet new customers and drum up new business. You can work on word of mouth after that.
• Also, come with full operation software to run your business and manage your team from your phone.

Cons for Contractors:

Pros for Homeowners: Cons for Homeowners:

• The pre-screening process can lead to a false sense of security. See News Report from KOAA 5
• Once you sign up, your information is sold to a ton of other contractors, which can result in unwanted phone calls and emails.
• You can be matched up with contractors who are not local, so you might waste time talking to contractors who cannot or will not take on your project.
• The reviews are vetted by Homeadvisor, so you might not get an honest opinion.

Pros for Contractors:

• You could potentially get a lot of leads since Homeadvisor is well-known in the home improvement space. This can help get you started if you’re a new business.
• A good way to meet new customers. You can work on word of mouth after that.

Cons for Contractors:

• There is a yearly membership fee, on top of the fee you pay for each lead.
• You may pay a hefty price for leads that don’t bring about work.
• Leads are sold to an unlimited number of contractors/ business owners, which means a lot of competition.

Pros for Homeowners:

• The app is free to use.
• You can find tradespeople as well as other home services.

Cons for Homeowners:

• You may inadvertently cost a contractor/ business owner money just by reaching out to him.
• No background checks.

Pros for Contractors:

• You can connect with potential customers.
• You can pay for a leads subscription at a 20% discount.

Cons for Contractors:

• You pay a fee whether the homeowner you’ve connected with hires you or not.
• Fees are based on the job’s value, so you don’t always know what you’ll be charged for a lead.

Pros for Homeowners:

• Free to use!
• You can use Houzz’s database of pictures when planning your project.
• You can connect with contractors online.
• You can purchase products through Houzz.

Cons for Homeowners:

• Products are priced excessively high.
• It isn’t easy to return or exchange items purchased through Houzz.
• Lousy customer service.
• Reviews are biased, so you might not get an honest opinion.

Pros for Contractors: Cons for Contractors:

• Your profile can be bumped down the list if another contractor pays for advertising.
• Excessive cancellation fees for advertising contracts.
• Houzz automatically renews year-long contracts, so you might get caught if you’re not paying attention.
• Advertising can be costly.
• Houzz owns all the content in your profile.
• Contractors report getting negative views for jobs they never did.

Pros for Homeowners: Cons for Homeowners:

• You must provide personal information if you want to read reviews and get in touch with contractors.
• Customer service is lacking unless you buy a membership.
• You may receive calls from contractors even though you didn’t sign up for anything.
• Information supplied to Angie’s List also goes to Homeadvisor, so this could lead to many unwanted calls or emails.

Pros for Contractors:

• Angie’s List is the oldest company in the home improvement space, so they have a large following.
• You can pay for more visibility.

Cons for Contractors:

• You may receive leads from people who don’t want to be contacted.
• You pay for advertising, not leads, so there’s no guarantee of getting jobs.
• You must pay to have your profile show up on the first page.
• There is a lot of competition since potential projects are sent out to multiple contractors.

Pros for Homeowners: Cons for Homeowners: Pros for Contractors: Cons for Contractors:

• If you do not pay for advertising, other contractors who do pay can appear on your profile.
• Reviews are filtered, so not all positive reviews end up being seen.
• The cost per click in the self-service advertising feature can change at any time, resulting in high costs.
• There is no guarantee that your advertising dollars will lead to jobs.
• Yelp salespeople are relentless in trying to sell advertising.

7- Handy

Handy sets their hourly rates at $22/hr for cleaning and $44/hr for handyman projects. All of their providers are paid the same rate, regardless of experience or expertise. Handy charges the customer $120 for a job and pays the provider $70, retaining just over 40% of the income. Customers cannot choose a provider based on their budget.

Typically, Handy underestimates the time it will take to complete a job, causing the contractors to work overtime without getting paid for it. Even if the customer agrees to pay more, it can’t be done.

On top of this, Handy charges the customer a 15% service fee and imposes high cancellation fees, even in the case of an emergency.

If you are looking to remodel your home, chances are there will be a point in time when you have to call a contractor. If you do decide to renovate, you don’t want to randomly choose any company. You will want to get the best price and the best work at the same time. This is why I’ve created this list of top home improvement companies who do everything they can to give you the desired result and full satisfaction.

A lot of people have asked me which contractor to use. Some of my friends even asked me this after they hired the first one on HomeAdvisor or Angie’s List. My advice: Try Allbetter first. I’m a member, and you can become one too. You just tell them what kind of chore you need to do and then wait for the bids to roll in from available contractors who are interested in doing this kind of job for you.

Allbetter is the only one concerned with both the homeowner and the contractor, and that has to count for something. So the next time you are thinking Homeadvisor vs. Angie’s List? Angie’s List vs. Thumbtack? Think Allbetter!

Originally published at https://allbetterapp.com on July 7, 2021.