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Keeping a home well tended is a big job , and for in use homeowners — even those who are comfortable rent on fixing undertaking and tumid jobs — the exploit and Energy Department necessary to be after , purchase supplies , execute , troubleshoot , and cleanse up from some projects is just too much to fit into the rhythm of daily life . And for larger task or those that require specialized skills and knowledge , rent a professional is simply the best pick from the get - go . But how does onefind a contractoror other professional who is reliable , trusty , low-cost , and has the skill to do the job justly ? Anyone can search the internet , but there are services that put this character of information all in one piazza . HomeAdvisor is one of those services . HomeAdvisor is basically a database of home avail professionals organized and searchable by undertaking category and ZIP code that promises to take a few question and connect customers to vetted master . By tying the research , contractor search , quote and hiring outgrowth , and defrayment together in a straightforward system at no guardianship to the client , HomeAdvisorpromises to aid customer rule the best professional for their needs . But is HomeAdvisor legit ? And if so , is HomeAdvisor any good ? I conducted two lookup , one for cooling and one for railyard drain service , to find out .
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At a Glance
HomeAdvisor
Our Verdict : HomeAdvisor offer a helpful serial of enquiry to guide homeowner who are less sure of what they need through the process of searching for and hire a professional . It bring home the bacon a weapons platform that is educational and organize to streamline the hiring and defrayment processes . While client who know exactly what they need and simply require to range vet pro can do so , this choice is n’t as easy to find as it could be , and the intensity and immediateness of contact from professionals — even before requesting a inverted comma — may be off - put for some customer . The Fixed - Price Service option further streamline the process and may be attractive for customers who are n’t concerned in seeking and liken quotes and contractors , and just want the task completed as quickly as potential .
HomeAdvisor Review: Claims
HomeAdvisor claim that it can match customer with screened local pro and centralise the entire cognitive process of complete a task all on one website . The situation also call to provide data about various projects so customers can educate themselves about what they really want done and how much it ’s going to be . HomeAdvisor offers connections nationwide and in parting of Canada , and it will make these connections free of flush for customer . customer can choose to join a loyalty program housed under the umbrella of ANGI Homeservices , the parent company of both Angi and HomeAdvisor , for a small yearly fee . This clear them access to discounts and other table service not otherwise usable .
service of process professionals can choose to join HomeAdvisor ’s Pro connection . Accounts are innocent to create and allow professional person to produce an informational profile that will be get into into the database . In purchase order to become a HomeAdvisor Pro , Robert William Service professionals pay a subscription fee and defer to a background check . In addition , a tiered fee schedule is applied to each “ lead , ” or connection to a client whose request has match the professional ’s serving offerings , that HomeAdvisor leave . The fees are based on the classification and exclusivity of the tip , and are guided by argument that the professional selects in their bill options .
HomeAdvisor vs. Angi
HomeAdvisor was founded in 1998 with a finish of bringing service professionals and client together while providing key information to help customers make decisions about products and services . In 2017 , Angie ’s inclination acquired HomeAdvisor . The merger result in both companies falling under a parent company called ANGI Homeservices , Inc. , capitalizing on the name recognition of Angie ’s List . In 2021 , Angie ’s List rebranded as Angi , and HomeAdvisor ’s landing varlet rebranded as HomeAdvisor power by Angi . Angi the web site is still considered a disjoined service .
HomeAdvisor ’s loyalty platform end in 2018 and is now Angi Key , part of the Angi net . Several of the links a customer might click for more selective information , such as links under “ About HomeAdvisor ” and many of the link for service professionals , country on pages that are branded as Angi , not HomeAdvisor power by Angi . In addition , the HomeAdvisor mobile app is the Angi app — the stigmatization does not point that it ’s a HomeAdvisor - connected product . Because the networks are combined , this is n’t a problem in terms of service , but it may be jarring for client who are searching through HomeAdvisor or choose to research for the HomeAdvisor app and short rule themselves in an Angi - brandmark area . This form of overlap is to be expected in a troupe where two brand have do together . While it makes more good sense to simplify the anatomical structure of a website so selective information is easier to find rather than to clutter the landscape with repetitious pageboy differing only in the branding , it ’s important that client do it that Angi and HomeAdvisor are part of the same parent company .
What You Can Book on HomeAdvisor
Name a family - and - garden service or improvement , and there ’s a good luck HomeAdvisor has a list of professionals ready to help . association and quote are available for indoor project large and belittled , exterior improvements and replacements , and out-of-door piece of work , as well as hardscaping and landscape gardening , pocket billiards installation , and maintenance such as lawn maintenance and housecleaning .
HomeAdvisor is not limited to with child - shell projects . While professionals are available for swelled undertaking such as improver , full remodels , and whole - lawn grading and replanting , there are lot of choice for jobs that a tenant or householder might prefer not to handle themselves but may not think to take someone to take care of , such as wall - mount a television receiver , removing a modest shrub , or update and join a computing equipment net .
How It Works
customer can make a free account with HomeAdvisor , but they do n’t have to to search . The HomeAdvisor site offers three options to search for pro , and the first two options play similarly . The first option rent customer enter their aught computer code , then they can take to graze a directory of pro organized by the character of service . For the 2d pick , customer can type in the kind of service they ’re seeking and be guided through a series of questions to let HomeAdvisor ’s ProFinder Technology identify the best and most qualified professionals for their needs . Once the type of line of work has been identified through one of these options , customers must input their phone routine and email address , and then HomeAdvisor render a list of contractors with basic contact entropy and relevant qualifications , along with link to brushup of each contractor that have been carry by late customer .
Customers can then select contractors from whom they ’d like to receive quote , and can bear a telephone call or email ( or both ) in scant order . The client ’s interaction with the professional is handled via email or phone . For customers who use HomeAdvisor ’s Angi app , payment can be made through the app as well .
The third option is HomeAdvisor ’s Fixed - Price Services . This is an ideal choice for client who do n’t want to meet different professionals and haggle over the cost : The customer plainly chooses the service they call for and fills out additional information about the job . HomeAdvisor will recommend the amount of time needed to complete the problem , which the client can adjust , and then the client pick out the date and time they ’d like the professional to come do the employment . The customer will then be give a price and can penetrate to reserve the service flop then . get - Price Services are streamlined and warm to congeal up , but they do n’t offer the customer the ability to choose the company that will provide the military service .
Photo: homeadvisor.com
Contractor Background Checks, Insurance, Training, and Certification
HomeAdvisor protects its customer by finish a background bridle on the owner or principal of every line of work in its electronic internet . The screen background check is perform by a third - party seller and includes a criminal records search in the land in which the professional does concern . HomeAdvisor lean a chain of mountains of offenses that will bar businesses from its internet , including violent crime , prop crimes , any felony judgment of conviction within the past 7 years , and contracting without a permit in the retiring 7 year . HomeAdvisor ’s explanation notes that so as to meritoriousness exclusion , the felonious condemnation must rise to the level of a felony . It also points out that the background check is limited by state restrictions , notice that felony revelation in particular is curb in sure states . In addition , HomeAdvisor verifies local and land licensing and state business registration . Once a business has accrued customer military rank on HomeAdvisor ’s site , it must maintain an average valuation of two out of five stars or higher to persist in the web .
HomeAdvisor notes that while all professional are screen in this way , only the owner or principal is screened ; single workers will not be screen , though all workers are take to abide by HomeAdvisor ’s Code of Conduct . The company recommends that customers do their own research to add on the screening unconscious process before engage a professional .
Membership and Cost
HomeAdvisor is free for customers , and while it ’s strongly paint a picture , client do n’t need to create an story to use the service . For those who expect hiring several professionals over prison term , signing up for the free membership will allow customers to keep all of their quotes and information about various jobs in one place . HomeAdvisor ’s reward political platform is pass through Angi and is called Angi Key . For $ 29.99 per twelvemonth , Key members receive member - only perks and discount rate , a stock 20 percentage deduction on all Fixed - Price Services , and access code to a personalized Home Specialist via schoolbook message for assistant with questions , hiring , programming , and other job . Key members are also covered by the Happiness Guarantee : For service booked and paid for through HomeAdvisor , the problem is covered up to the full leverage price plus limited damage compensation if there are problem and a call is charge befittingly .
HomeAdvisor is partner with Affirm , a company that allows customers to finance payment for their projects over sentence . HomeAdvisor unite directly to Affirm ’s website , which takes canonical fiscal information and leave a real - metre decision on financing options without formally requesting a recognition report , so there ’s no effect on the client ’s credit entry rating . Projects finance through Affirm and book through HomeAdvisor also qualify for the Happiness Guarantee .
Customer Service
A robust suite of Frequently Asked Questions ( and answers ) is link at the bottom of every page as customers work their agency through the HomeAdvisor summons . Customer service is accessible through a toll - free telephone number . The Customer Service landing place page also provides bodied tangency selective information and medium contact selective information via telephony , email , and post . Also at the bottom of each page is a series of resource links , cost guide , and data about how HomeAdvisor ’s service and applied science work .
Putting HomeAdvisor to the Test
Our abode has an strange lineament : Rather than traditional ductwork or radiator heating system , the home is heated by radiant heat in the roof of both the first and 2d floor . This heating was installed when the menage was build in 1949 , and because the heat is allow for through a internet of small bull tubes fill up with het up water supply from a boiler , it ’s long past the fourth dimension to replace it . Also , we ’d really wish to replace the aging windowpane social unit that provide summertime cooling . Our next swelled project , therefore , is HVAC , but we ’ve had a problem finding a contractor through word of rima oris who was unforced to take on the oddities of the home ’s absent ductwork , odd piping , and low ceilings . In addition , our dwelling house is located on a slope and surround by with child clay soil , so drain is a perpetual trouble . I explore professionals who could take on these very different projection .
Searching for a Professional
HomeAdvisor ’s menage Sir Frederick Handley Page steers customer immediately toward using the ProFinder Technology , with a with child search measure front and center . type in “ HVAC ” as my initial search bring me to a request for my ZIP computer code , follow by increasingly specific multiple - choice interrogation about the project . On one hand , I realized that this was make the search more specific , but in several example the option were n’t what I needed them to be : For example , I could choose either “ Air Conditioning and Cooling ” or “ Furnace and Central Heating , ” but I really need both . I opt “ Air Conditioning and Cooling ” because that ’s the greatest concern flop now , and because I assume that a declarer who is proficient with air conditioning can also address oestrus . For a customer who ’s less certain , this could be disconcert . The system asked if I was looking for installation or repair , but then again posed a question with only two answers : Do I need installation of a ductless mini - split , or do I want initiation of central air conditioning ? The problem is that , as I am not an HVAC technician , I do n’t actually recognize — that ’s why I need the professional . The next question inquired as to where I am in the cognitive process : Ready to hire ? Planning and budgeting ? When do I require the job done ? Then I was offer a schoolbook boxful in which I could typewrite specifics about the project . I did , explaining the challenge , and chatter Next , look to a list of possible professional .
HomeAdvisor had other design . I had not pick out to create an account , so I was n’t access . Before showing me the matched professionals , I require to move into my street address , speech sound telephone number , and electronic mail address . This is understandable ; HomeAdvisor is , after all , a business , and it make money by charging its listed professional a fee for membership and per lead . master wo n’t pay for rank if their information is being throw away without contact entropy . Because I necessitate the piece of work done ( and was in the process reviewing the website ) , I put in my selective information — but in all honesty , if I ’d just been nonchalantly explore to see how many company in the expanse might take on this kind of work , I would have closed the window at that tip and impress on .
HomeAdvisor returned two professional person from this search . One was Angi A / ascorbic acid religious service , which is essentially the Fixed - Price Service option . The listing noted that there was financing usable and that this contractor was indorse by the Happiness Guarantee — I could price and book the service immediately . This looks like a good choice , but because the job has some unusual requirement , I wanted to see which contractors would be awarded the job and discuss their recommendation before hiring someone . If the caper was simpler , I ’d have picked that option because of how flowing the hiring cognitive operation was . The other option was a interior bodied account , which was n’t really what I was look for , so I went back and tweak some of my answer to the interrogative and was rewarded with a few more services and professionals that were pocket-sized local businesses . I cease short of requesting quotes because I wanted to dig around a small and see if my neighbors had good word before I commit .
Photo: homeadvisor.com / Meghan Wentland
A Strange—and Concerning–Surprise
Here ’s where things got a little strange : Because I was n’t quite ready to turn over out to the contractors listed , I had n’t yet requested quote . Still , I anticipated that I would probably have a welcome electronic mail from HomeAdvisor and maybe some job - specific outreach — which I did . What I did not foretell was a near - prompt series of telephone calls and emails from the recommended contractors . This intend that before I even asked for quotes , my information was given to the professionals that HomeAdvisor recommended .
This was a concern for me on several level . plain , once you ’ve put down information into a web site , the company has it — there ’s no material illusion of privateness . On the other hand , I did not request — or earmark — that my info be passed along to the professional , and yet I had four phone calls and several e-mail in less than 3 hours , at once from the contractor . From the pro ’ position , this is also a potential worry : In addition to their annual fee , professionals compensate HomeAdvisor per lead ( the rate per lead varies free-base on the type of divine service and several other factors , let in the potential size of the chore ) . Had these professional person been charged for a lead when I had not actually bespeak a quote ? I returned the calls of two of the contractors , both of whom were favorable , felicitous to discuss the job , and willing to place someone to measure the existing organization , the space restraint , and make testimonial within a few days . Neither was able to tell apart me , when I asked at once , if they had been charge for the lead . While HomeAdvisor offers some credits to business for lead that do n’t pan out , in this spot there was no understanding to expect I ’d call back , as I had n’t yet requested a quotation . The likelihood that the lead would result in an ireful customer raging that they were being contacted was far greater than the chances the professional person would reach a receptive customer looking for data . This is a potential job , and I ’ll think carefully about whether or not I put my information into the organization going onwards .
Know Who You Hire
HomeAdvisor ’s home page also offers the opportunity to browse by category and click through pop task , as well as a serial publication of pick for projects popular during the current time of year . For my landscaping undertaking , I want to try browsing through professionals without the ProFinder questions , so I clicked on the landscaping category . This brought me back to ProFinder . I eventually launch the option to “ Browse Pro Directory ” at the bottom of the Thomas Nelson Page under a card title Homeowner Services . This take me to a page that bid me the option to prefer a type of service and enrol my ZIP code to browse , or tap the ProFinder . Other alternative were to press a metropolis to find review article and ratings , or to choose a category to do the same . I selected “ Landscaping ” as my category , then select my state . HomeAdvisor dwell a leaning of select landscapers in my state , along with an option to choose a specific city or get in my ZIP computer code , which I did . This exhibit a lean of Featured Service Pros , Service Pros , and Out of web Service Pros . The card for each professional include tag such as “ honorable of Winner , ” “ Warranties , ” “ Free Estimates , ” and other key to the services provided . The rating for each professional are exhibit as stars , and links to more military rating , along with a button to call for a quote , view pricing and schedule , and call the businesses directly , are aligned underneath a snippet of a rating .
In small type underneath the rating stars , HomeAdvisor includes a link to surf the business ’s full visibility — and therein lies a riches of information . This is where client can see that a concern is screen out and sanction by HomeAdvisor , the part of HomeAdvisor customer who have lease the business enterprise and would recommend that others do so as well , and how long the party has been in business , along with hours of operation , area of expertise , license , and other information such as languages spoken and cost and payment inside information . HomeAdvisor offers a serial of badges to high - execute business , and those are on display in the full profile as well . I scrolled through quite a few of these profile , request quote from several businesses through HomeAdvisor , and talk with several wondrous professionals before making a conclusion .
A notable item is that one of the tags useable in the full profile is “ Small Jobs Welcomed . ” The uptick in home projects over the last few years has led to many plate divine service professional being overbooked , and in some case , client who have smaller jobs that need to be done may have been passed over in favour of big , more profitable jobs . HomeAdvisor ’s alternative to put up businesses the selection of using this tag do it easy for customers to see which professionals are more potential to take on their modest projects in a more well-timed fashion .
Photo: homeadvisor.com / Meghan Wentland
HomeAdvisor’s Redeeming Quality
A genuinely outstanding feature on the HomeAdvisor site that is passably undersold is the toll comparing section . The nursing home page turn severely to direct customers to look for professional to engage , but while some customer may have a good idea how to value their eventual quotes and compare professional , others may not . For those who are unfamiliar with the language of the field in which they ’re hiring a professional , how will they have it away what a good price is or what enquiry to require ? approachable by dawn the three vertical dots in the upper right - hand corner of the banner , the True Cost Guide has a muckle of useful data that customers will want to study confabulate before they request quotes . Why ? Because the guides outline uncouth cost range , explain factor that affect the cost , and delimitate terminology and questions the client will require to involve professionals they ’re consider hiring before agreeing to a price , especially on larger jobs that may have a fate of unlike component . The guides are clear , nicely lay out , and written for an audience that has a rough idea of what they ’re looking for but needs assistance with the details . Whether customers choose to use HomeAdvisor to reserve their home service chore or not , the cost guides are a wild resource that are available at no toll .
Using the App
HomeAdvisor does n’t have a stigmatize app , but the website directs customers to the Angi app , which features the same connection and many of the same services . It ’s handy and is perhaps a bit easier to sail than the HomeAdvisor website , but the monetary value usher are farseeing - pattern pieces that are much easier to read on a laptop or monitor screen . The app is ideal for keeping track of projection or searching on the go , but the guides are deserving sit down to really show in a large format .
Overall , HomeAdvisor is provide a good service for customers who call for body of work done inside or outside of their home , and it ’s connect local byplay with customers and supporting little business alongside home and incarnate clients . The ProFinder Technology will invoke to some customers , while the ability to pasture in a more gratuitous - shape manner will be preferred by others , so there are options — although it would be easier to get at the graze choice if it was present up front as clearly as the aided hunt . The fact that customer information is being shared before a quotation is call for is a concern , and recognizing how expensive it could get for pro to pay for and drop prison term succeed up on lead that are n’t quite leads yet made me uneasy . However , the cost usher are a trove of utilitarian information , so this is a site worth checking out and exploring .
HomeAdvisor Reviews by Customers
HomeAdvisor rating by customers are miscellaneous , which is understandable , as any review posted by a client will include their review of both HomeAdvisor and the contractor they engage , which are not one and the same . That say , many customers complain about the overmuchness of email after requesting a quotation , sometimes even after the job has been completed , or about being contact by HomeAdvisor affiliates . Other complaints indicated that customer servicing was hunky-dory initially , but that when trouble escalated , the eminent level of customer service of process fail to come after up fittingly . Beyond that , most of the ailment on sites such asConsumerAffairs , Trustpilot , andSitejabberfocus on dealings with individual contractors and HomeAdvisor pro review , not with the service in general . For the most part , customers come out to be proud of with the simplicity of the service and the relief with which they can search for , contact , and hire professionals .
The Better Business Bureau indicates that professional who work with HomeAdvisor finger that there are frequent problem , mistake , and concerns about fees and charges . HomeAdvisor contractor reviews on the previously remark site corroborate this care : Many professional who have pay off for rank and leads do not sense they get what they were promised . It ’s illustrious that HomeAdvisor clearly devote fourth dimension and energy to responding to concerns from its customers on both sides of its platform , as each complaint lean a prompt response from HomeAdvisor and many trouble have been resolve to its customer ’ satisfaction . However , the Better Business Bureau currently has an open investigating about a Pattern of Complaint regarding charge and customer armed service issue for which it is awaiting response .
How HomeAdvisor Stacks Up to the Competition
The merger of Angi and HomeAdvisor extinguish each company ’s biggest competition , though the way each service is set up may appeal unlike customers ( we go over Angias a service directory , for comparability to HomeAdvisor ) . Porch , Thumbtack , and Houzz , and to a sealed extent Yelp , are now HomeAdvisor and Angi ’s openhanded interior rivalry . Porch and Thumbtack ’s pocket-sized web ca n’t quite compete with the compounding of Angi and HomeAdvisor , although both have secure ratings with the Better Business Bureau . Porch ’s partnership with the Better Business Bureau connects users to accurate information about the contractors on its site , so for client who are n’t thrilled with HomeAdvisor ’s admonition to make certain they do their own research , Porch ’s focus on security may be a consolation . Houzz is more focussed on product sales and inspiration than contractors , and Yelp , which does bid an chance to seek for provider , seems to have a riches of rather angry and mean - zippy reviews — and neither validates nor traverse them . Because each of the companies has a slimly different audience and intention , it ’s unmanageable to range them side by side ; for customers who are see for helpful selective information about their undertaking in the guides and resourcefulness and are willing to wade through more phone call and email after type in their link info , the gauze-like size of the HomeAdvisor powered by Angi internet is probable to gift more options than the challenger .
Should You Use HomeAdvisor?
For those interested in hiring a master to work on a home project , HomeAdvisor is a useful resource . The question is n’t so much whether you should use the overhaul , but how you should utilise it . For enquiry prior to hiring a contractor for a job , HomeAdvisor ’s entropy bank is nearly alone . The ProFinder Technology is refutable : It can guide you to think about distinctions between dissimilar categories of services , push you to debate aspects of the project you had not yet thought about , and ensue in a super - focused inclination of professional who will absolutely achieve out to you — again and again . For customer who are more conversant with what they need , the browsing function will result in a large lean of potential contractors without requiring information until you in reality bespeak a quote . If I were a serving professional looking to join HomeAdvisor ’s Pro internet , my experience as a “ lead ” along with reviews at the Better Business Bureau ’s site paint a picture that reading the price and stipulation of the rank agreement very , very carefully before sign language is a good idea . As is the case with any other avail of this type , HomeAdvisor is cater a capital opportunity for customers and serve providers ( especially smaller local ship’s company who do n’t have monumental advertising budget ) to associate , and it provides useful information to help customers make decisions about the hiring process . And as long as everyone involved understand the commitments they ’re have , the relationships that result should be fruitful .
We severally reviewed this overhaul by weighing the company ’s claim against first - hand experience with its professionals . However , due to factors such as franchising , human erroneousness , and more , please note that individual experiences with this party may vary .
This Is the class for a Kitchen Renovation
Photo: homeadvisor.com / Meghan Wentland
Whether you ’re selling or staying , everyone can get something out of a kitchen update . Learn why we consider this renovation the Most Valuable Project of 2025 and how to stay on budget .
Photo: homeadvisor.com / Meghan Wentland
Photo: homeadvisor.com / Meghan Wentland
