Guide · Getting work

HomeStars, Houzz, Yelp:
are lead sites worth it.

Every contractor in Ontario gets the pitch sooner or later: sign up, get leads, grow. Whether it pays depends less on the platform than on how it charges you and what you do with the work it sends. Here is how each one bills, taken from their own pages in September 2026, and a simple way to judge them.

Published 2026-09-21 · Formory Group

The short answer.

A paid lead site is worth it if the jobs it produces cost you less to win than jobs from anywhere else, and you can only know that by counting. None of these platforms can promise you work. Some charge only when a homeowner picks you. Others charge a monthly subscription whether the phone rings or not.

What none of them give you is something you own. The profile, the reviews and the customer's first impression all live on their site, under their rules. That is the reason to treat them as a supplement to your own website and Google listing, not a replacement.

HomeStars: pay when you are shortlisted.

HomeStars' footer describes it as part of the Instapro Group and Angi family. Its sign-up page for pros says the profile is free. You receive leads that match your trade and area and can express interest in as many as you like.

The homeowner then looks at your profile, work history and reviews and decides whether to share contact details with you. According to HomeStars' support centre, that shortlist is the only point you are charged, and there are no joining or membership fees.

The lead fee is not flat. HomeStars says it is set from what the homeowner entered, such as surface area, quantity and material, shown to you before you respond, and not changed afterwards. It also says plainly that it cannot guarantee you will make contact, get to quote, or be hired. You pay for the introduction, not the job.

Read the Professional User Agreement before signing up. The sign-up page notes it contains limits on your legal rights and remedies and mandatory arbitration.

Houzz Pro: a software subscription, with ads on top.

Houzz Pro is sold mainly as business software: estimates, proposals, invoicing, project management, 3D floor plans. The pricing page, shown in Canadian dollars when we checked in September 2026, listed plans at $139, $279 and from $559 a month, plus a free plan with limited tools.

Advertising is a separate package, listed from $685 a month. That is what buys better placement in the Houzz directory and matching with homeowners. The FAQ says the paid plan starts as an annual subscription at the end of a 30-day free trial, so cancelling after month two is not the same as cancelling a phone plan.

Houzz makes the most sense for design-led work where homeowners browse photos: kitchens, baths, custom builds. For a drain-cleaning business it is the wrong audience.

Angi, Yelp and Nextdoor.

Angi. HomeStars' own site lists Angi and HomeAdvisor as the US brands in the same family, so in Ontario the familiar Angi-family marketplace is HomeStars. Separately, Angi's pro support centre says its Angi Services app is active in most major cities in the US and Canada, with screening and identity checks before you can take work. If someone pitches you Angi, ask which product it is and how you are charged, and get that in writing.

Yelp. The business page is free. Yelp Ads are pay per click: you set a monthly budget, and Yelp's support page says you will never be charged more than that budget. The price of each click changes with competition, inventory and demand, so it is not published. Yelp's ads page says there are no term contracts for self-serve advertisers.

Nextdoor. The business page is free, and you can post updates to neighbours without paying. Nextdoor opened self-serve advertising to Canadian businesses in April 2026, so you can now set up and run neighbourhood-targeted ads yourself on a budget you choose. Its reach depends on how active Nextdoor is in your particular neighbourhoods, which varies.

How to tell if one is paying off.

Keep a simple sheet for each platform, month by month: what you paid, how many leads, how many you quoted, how many you won, and the value of the jobs. Divide what you paid by jobs won. That number, cost per job won, is the only one that matters. Cost per lead flatters every platform.

Give each platform a fair trial, then compare it with the same number for your other channels: Google, referrals, repeat customers, and any ads you run yourself. If you are in a trade Google covers, Local Services Ads in Canada are another pay-per-lead option worth measuring alongside these.

Also count the hours. Responding to every lead quickly, chasing homeowners who never reply, and quoting jobs you were never going to win all cost time that does not show up on the invoice.

Why your own site and listing still matter.

On a lead site, you are one profile in a list the platform controls, next to competitors it also charges. It sets the fees, the ranking and the rules, and it can change them. The reviews you collect there stay there.

Your own website and Google Business Profile work the other way. Reviews on Google show up when people search your name. Your site can show your licence, insurance, service area, past jobs and prices in your own words, without a competitor's profile beside it. A homeowner who found you on HomeStars may search your name before calling, and if they do, your own site should be what they find.

If you do not have a site yet, it is worth knowing what one costs before you commit to a monthly lead subscription. Our guide on what a website costs in Toronto sets out the ranges.

Sources.

Straight answers.

Does HomeStars charge a monthly fee?

According to its support centre, no. HomeStars says there are no joining or membership fees and you pay a lead fee only when a homeowner shortlists you and shares contact details.

Is Angi available in Canada?

Partly. HomeStars, which operates in Canada, is part of the Angi family, and Angi says its Angi Services app for pros is active in most major US and Canadian cities. Check coverage for your own area.

How much do Houzz Pro ads cost?

In September 2026 the Houzz Pro pricing page, in Canadian dollars, listed advertising packages from $685 a month on top of the software plans. Check the page for current pricing.

Should I stop using lead sites once I have a website?

Not necessarily. If a platform's cost per job won is lower than your other channels, keep it. Just do not let it be the only way customers can find you.

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HomeStars, Houzz, Yelp:are lead sites worth it.