Straight answers about websites for trade businesses
No jargon, no sales fog — the questions tradespeople actually ask about websites, answered with real numbers.
What it costs
Real numbers for every route to a trade website, and the costs each route leaves out.
Updated 22 August 2026
How much does a website cost for a UK trade business in 2026?
The honest price ranges for a trade business website in 2026 — from £10 a month DIY to £5,000 agency builds — and the hidden costs each route doesn’t mention.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Monthly subscription or one-off build: which is cheaper for a trade website?
A one-off build looks cheaper until year three — and then it depends entirely on what you had to pay separately. The break-even maths, done properly.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Is a website worth it if you are a one-person trade business?
The honest answer is "usually, but not always". The jobs a website wins for a sole trader, the two cases where it genuinely does not pay, and the test for which you are.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
What does website maintenance actually cost a small trade business?
The running costs nobody quotes for: hosting, domain, SSL, backups, security updates and the small changes you will actually want. Itemised, with what is safe to skip.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
The hidden costs of a cheap website for a trade business
A cheap build is a price, not a cost. The six charges that arrive after the invoice, and the questions that surface all of them before you pay.
Read the guideDirectories and leads
Checkatrade, MyBuilder, Rated People and Bark — what they cost, what they give back, and what else works.
Updated 12 September 2026
Checkatrade alternatives: what else works for getting trade work in 2026?
Directories, Google, your own site or word of mouth: the five routes to trade work that are not Checkatrade, what each costs, and which ones compound.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Is Checkatrade worth it for a tradesperson in 2026?
Not a hit piece and not a defence: the four numbers that decide whether a directory membership pays for your business, and how to work them out this week.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Do I need a website if I am already on Checkatrade?
A profile and a website do different jobs. The four things a directory listing structurally cannot do, and why customers look you up again after finding you on one.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
How to get trade work without paying a directory
Six routes to steady work that do not involve a monthly lead subscription, ordered by how quickly each starts producing and how long it keeps producing.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
MyBuilder vs Rated People vs Bark: which is worth it for a tradesperson?
Three platforms, three lead models. How each charges, how many trades you compete with per job, and which kind of work each one actually suits.
Read the guideBuilding it yourself
Wix, Squarespace, a Facebook page or paying someone: an honest read on where DIY stops paying.
Updated 2 September 2026
Is a DIY website builder costing your trade business jobs?
Nobody tells you when a homemade website puts them off; they call the next number. The five ways it happens, and the three-question test for whether it is happening to you.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Wix or pay someone: which should a tradesperson choose?
The costs a comparison table never shows: your own hours, the months it is not finished, and the searches it never appears for.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Squarespace or a site built for your customers: which suits your trade?
Handsome is not the job — but for some trades the pictures are the pitch. Which customers a browse-first layout wins, which it quietly loses, and why.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Can I build my own trade website? The honest scope
Not one job. The real scope of building your own site, the costs that stay invisible until they bite, and the three things that decide the outcome.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Is a Facebook page enough instead of a website for a trade business?
A Facebook page is a good shop window on someone else’s street. What it genuinely does well, and the five things it structurally cannot do.
Read the guideGetting found
Google, reviews, and what an AI assistant needs to be able to recommend your business at all.
Updated 22 August 2026
What should a tradesperson’s website actually include?
The checklist we build every trade website against: seven essentials that win enquiries, the trust signals that decide jobs, and the clutter to leave out.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
How do I get my trade business to show up on Google?
Five steps in the order that actually works, with what each one costs and how long before it shows. Most trades do step four first and wonder why nothing happens.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Google Business Profile for trades: how to set it up properly
The free listing that decides most local trade searches, set up properly: service areas rather than your home address, categories, photos, and the four common mistakes.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
How long does a new trade website take to rank on Google?
Indexed in days, competitive in months. The realistic timeline for a new trade site, what makes it faster, and the promises that should worry you.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
How to get more reviews for a trade business
When to ask, how to ask, and what never to do. Reviews are the strongest converter a trade has, and almost every trade under-collects them.
Read the guideUpdated 12 September 2026
Will ChatGPT recommend my trade business? What AI assistants read
Assistants answer questions by quoting pages that answer them. What that means in practice for a trade website, and the five things that make yours readable.
Read the guide