Short answer: Google reviews should be the priority for almost every UK trade, because they feed local search visibility and cost nothing. Directories like Checkatrade can generate leads and provide vetting credibility, but you are renting visibility rather than building it. Own Google first, then decide whether a directory earns its fee.
The fundamental difference
This is the point that decides the question, and it is often missed.
Google reviews are an asset you own. They attach to your business, they improve your ranking in the map pack, they are visible to everyone searching for your trade in your area, and they cost nothing but the effort of asking.
Directory reviews are visibility you rent. They exist on someone else’s platform, they benefit that platform’s search ranking rather than yours, and they disappear from view the moment you stop paying the membership.
That asymmetry is why the default answer is Google.
Honest comparison
| Trade directories | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | Typically monthly membership plus lead fees |
| Affects your local ranking | Yes, directly | Indirectly, via citation value |
| Audience reach | Everyone searching | People who chose that platform |
| Vetting credibility | None — anyone can list | Genuine, for reputable directories |
| Portable if you leave | Yours permanently | Lost |
| Lead quality | Direct, exclusive | Often shared with competitors |
| Competitor ads alongside you | Sometimes | Frequently |
What directories genuinely offer
It would be dishonest to dismiss them entirely. Real advantages:
- Vetting — insurance, references and identity checks that Google does not perform. For a new business with no track record, that badge carries weight
- Lead flow while you build — a directory can produce work in month one, whereas Google visibility takes months
- Citation value — a consistent listing supports your NAP consistency and local prominence
- Buyer segment — some homeowners genuinely prefer starting from a vetted directory
For a newly established trade with no reviews and no ranking, a directory is a reasonable bridge. The mistake is treating the bridge as the destination.
The economics worth examining
Trade directories typically charge a monthly membership, sometimes with additional per-lead costs, and leads are frequently sent to several members simultaneously. That means you are paying to compete on price against two or three others for the same job.
Run the numbers honestly: annual cost divided by jobs actually won through the platform gives you a cost per job. Compare that to the margin on those jobs. Many trades find the arithmetic less favourable than expected once they look at it directly.
Google leads, by contrast, arrive exclusively and cost nothing per enquiry.
The sensible strategy
- Build Google properly first. Complete the profile, hide the address if you are a service-area business, add photos, and start asking every customer for a review. This is free and compounds permanently.
- Use a directory as a bridge if you need leads now — particularly in the first year, or if the vetting badge matters in your trade.
- Review the directory annually against actual jobs won, not enquiries received.
- Keep listings consistent — identical name, address and phone across every platform, which supports your Google prominence regardless.
- Ask directory customers for Google reviews too. This is the step most trades miss entirely.
That last point is the highest-leverage habit in this entire discussion. A customer who found you through a directory and was pleased will happily leave a Google review if asked — converting rented visibility into owned visibility, at no cost.
Can you ask for reviews on both?
Yes, though asking for two reviews at once tends to get you neither. Pick one per customer and prioritise Google unless the directory badge is central to how you win work.
Never offer incentives on either platform — that breaches Google policy, most directory terms, and UK consumer protection law.
When directories make more sense
There are situations where the balance shifts:
- Brand new business with no reviews and no reputation
- Trades where vetting is a genuine customer concern — anything involving working unsupervised in homes
- Very rural areas where Google search volume is thin
- Specialist work where a directory has strong category authority
Even then, the recommendation is both rather than instead. Directory for now, Google for always.
Frequently asked questions
Do directory reviews help my Google ranking?
Not directly. The consistent citation helps prominence slightly, but the reviews themselves sit on their platform, not yours.
Should I cancel my directory membership?
Only after checking actual jobs won against annual cost. If it is producing profitable work, keep it — just build Google alongside rather than depending on it.
Can I display directory reviews on my website?
Usually yes, subject to their terms. Google reviews can also be displayed via widgets, and doing both is fine.
Which produces better quality leads?
Google leads are typically exclusive and higher-intent. Directory leads are often shared, which pushes the conversation toward price.
We build Google review programmes for UK trades so the platform you own outperforms the ones you rent. Book a free audit to see where your review profile currently sits against local competitors.
Related reading: How to ask customers for Google reviews · Citations and NAP consistency