Is Bark worth it for tradespeople? The lead-fee maths (2026)

Bark sells leads. You buy credits, spend them to unlock a customer's contact details, and then compete with the other professionals who bought the same lead. You pay whether or not you win the work.

Typical lead prices run £5 to £40 depending on category and job size.

The break-even maths

The only number that matters is: cost per lead ÷ conversion rate = cost per won job. Compare that to your margin.

Cost per lead	You win 1 in 5	1 in 10	1 in 20
£8	£40 per job	£80	£160
£15	£75	£150	£300
£30	£150	£300	£600

On a £120 cleaning job with a £60 margin, a £15 lead at a 1-in-10 conversion costs you £150 to win £60. You lose money on every job and the volume makes it worse.

The model works if, and only if:

your average job value is high (several hundred pounds or more), and
you answer within minutes, every time, and
your close rate on answered leads is genuinely above 20%.

Most sole traders meet none of those conditions, which is why the recurring complaint from professionals is buying leads that were never real: customers who do not answer, jobs already booked, or details that go to five other pros the same minute.

What to check before you spend anything

Ask for the conversion rate in your category and postcode, in writing, before buying credits.
Buy the smallest pack possible and track every lead in a spreadsheet: date, cost, answered yes/no, quoted, won, value.
Stop at 20 leads and do the arithmetic above. Do not let a sunk-cost feeling carry you past that.
Check the refund policy for leads with wrong numbers, and how long you have to claim.

The alternative model

Commission-on-win platforms invert the risk: you pay nothing to quote, and a percentage only when you are actually paid. On Taskerama the service fee falls as your earnings rise, and customers you bring yourself carry no commission at all. The point is not the headline rate, it is that a job you do not win costs you nothing, so a quiet month cannot put you out of pocket. See the fees.

Directory subscriptions (Checkatrade, around £30, £60 a month) are a third model: a fixed cost regardless of volume, which suits established trades with steady enquiries and suits nobody who is starting out.

Quick comparison

	Pay per lead	Commission on win	Subscription
Cost when you lose	Full lead price	Nothing	Fixed monthly
Cost when you win	Full lead price	10% (capped)	Fixed monthly
Risk sits with	You	The platform	You
Good for	High-value jobs, instant responders	Everyone else	Steady, established trades

Frequently asked questions

How much does Bark cost per lead?

Typically £5 to £40 in credits depending on category and job value. You pay whether or not the customer responds or you win the work.

Is there a free alternative to Bark for tradespeople?

Quoting is free on commission-on-win marketplaces, including Taskerama, where you are charged only when you are actually paid for a job. That removes the risk of paying for leads that never answer. Directory subscriptions such as Checkatrade charge a fixed monthly fee regardless of how much work you win.

Can you get a refund on a Bark lead?

Bark operates a credit-return process for some invalid leads. Check the current policy and the claim window before buying credits, and log every lead so you can evidence a claim.