TradeKind vs MyBuilder: Which Is Better for Finding Work in Sussex?

Imagine that a homeowner in Worthing posts a bathroom job.

On MyBuilder, relevant tradespeople may be alerted. Those interested can respond, and the homeowner decides who they want to speak to. When the homeowner’s contact details are shared with a tradesperson, MyBuilder charges that tradesperson a shortlist fee.

The fee is charged for making the connection. It is not dependent on the tradesperson winning the work.

TradeKind starts from a different place. A Sussex business creates a public profile showing its services, photographs, reviews, FAQs and areas covered. Homeowners can request that particular business or post a job for relevant local trades. Under TradeKind’s current core model, the business does not pay to receive the request.

That difference shapes almost everything else.

MyBuilder is designed to help tradespeople pursue individual jobs. TradeKind is designed to help Sussex tradespeople establish a local profile through which suitable homeowners can find and request them.

Neither approach is automatically right for every business.

How a MyBuilder job reaches a tradesperson

The MyBuilder process begins with a homeowner posting a job.

The homeowner explains what work is needed and can add photographs. MyBuilder then identifies tradespeople whose services and working area appear relevant.

A tradesperson can review the opportunity and express interest. Depending on the particular lead, contact details may be shared immediately or after the homeowner confirms that they want to connect.

Once the homeowner’s contact details are shared, the shortlist fee becomes payable.

The tradesperson can then:

• Contact the homeowner
• Discuss the work
• Ask further questions
• Arrange a visit
• Provide a quotation
• Attempt to win the job

The important point is that shortlisting creates the charge, not the completed job.

A tradesperson can therefore pay the fee and still find that:

• The homeowner does not reply
• The job has changed
• The budget is unsuitable
• Another business is chosen
• The work is postponed
• The property is outside the practical working area
• The job is not what the original description suggested

That does not make the lead worthless. It means the business is paying for an opportunity to quote rather than purchasing guaranteed work.

How a homeowner reaches a trade through TradeKind

TradeKind gives homeowners more than one route.

They can:

• Browse Sussex trade profiles
• Search by trade and town
• Request a particular business
• Post a job for relevant tradespeople

An approved trade profile can display:

• The business name and description
• Services offered
• Sussex towns and areas covered
• A logo and cover image
• Gallery photographs
• Frequently asked questions
• Reviews
• Team members
• Independent partner trades
• A link to the business’s own website
• A private Request This Trade button

The homeowner can learn about the business before sending a request.

TradeKind does not publicly display the tradesperson’s private phone number or email address. Initial contact is made through the platform.

There is currently no setup fee, subscription, commission or charge for receiving an ordinary homeowner request through the core TradeKind profile.

Create a free Sussex trade profile.

Is MyBuilder free for tradespeople?

Opening a MyBuilder account and setting up a professional profile is free.

Tradespeople can receive information about local jobs that match their skills and working area. MyBuilder makes its money when a connection progresses to the point where the homeowner’s contact details are shared.

This is called a shortlist fee.

The fee:

• Is displayed before the relevant action is taken
• Varies between jobs
• Is calculated using factors including the likely size, value and location of the work
• Is stated excluding VAT
• Is payable when the contact details are shared
• Does not depend on the tradesperson being awarded the job
• Is generally non-refundable, except where MyBuilder’s policies allow a credit

MyBuilder’s current terms also allow it to offer optional sponsored profile placement for an additional monthly fee.

It is therefore more accurate to describe the standard model as free to join and pay when connected, rather than simply free or subscription-based.

The real cost is your shortlist-to-job conversion rate

Looking at one shortlist fee in isolation does not tell you whether MyBuilder is expensive.

The result depends on how often paid connections turn into profitable work.

Suppose a business pays for ten homeowner connections.

Those ten connections might produce:

• Seven useful conversations
• Five site visits
• Four quotations
• Two completed jobs

The two jobs must generate enough profit to cover all ten shortlist fees, along with the time spent dealing with the eight opportunities that did not become work.

The calculation to watch is:

Total shortlist fees and VAT ÷ number of completed jobs = acquisition cost per completed job

You can then compare that figure with the gross profit generated by those jobs.

A lead source may be worthwhile even with a modest conversion rate when the jobs are valuable. A stream of cheap-looking leads can still lose money when the jobs are small, distant or difficult to secure.

What MyBuilder offers that TradeKind cannot yet match

MyBuilder is an established national marketplace.

It already has homeowners posting jobs, reviewing tradespeople and using the platform to compare interested businesses. That existing demand is its clearest advantage.

For a Sussex tradesperson with gaps in the diary, MyBuilder may provide access to work that the business would not have found through its own website or recommendations.

MyBuilder also offers a focused job-seeking process:

1. Receive opportunities matched to the trade and area.
2. Review the description before deciding whether to respond.
3. Send the homeowner job-specific information.
4. Include an estimated price, availability or relevant photographs where appropriate.
5. Connect when the homeowner shares their details.
6. Quote for the work.
7. Build reviews when jobs are completed successfully.

A tradesperson can be selective rather than accepting every available opportunity.

This can be especially useful when:

• A new business needs its first customers
• A sole trader has unexpected availability
• A company has taken on another employee
• A quieter season has left gaps in the diary
• The business wants to move into a different type of work
• The average job value can comfortably absorb acquisition costs

TradeKind is newer and cannot claim MyBuilder’s existing national flow of posted jobs.

What TradeKind offers that MyBuilder does not

TradeKind’s main advantage is not a larger volume of current leads.

It is the ability to establish a detailed Sussex business profile without paying every time a homeowner makes contact.

A TradeKind profile is intended to remain useful between enquiries.

It can be shared through:

• The business’s own website
• Facebook
• WhatsApp
• Email
• Quotation documents
• Invoices
• Printed materials
• Other local marketing

Approved profiles can also link to the business’s own website.

That matters because the business is not only competing for one advertised job. It is building a public page around its own name, services, working area and reputation.

TradeKind also includes Fleet information.

A Fleet can show:

• Team members who work inside the business
• Independent Sussex trades the business regularly works with
• Partner businesses with their own TradeKind profiles

This gives homeowners more context about who may be involved in a project and allows local trade relationships to be shown openly.

TradeKind’s current strengths are therefore:

• No core fee to create the profile
• No charge for ordinary homeowner requests
• Sussex-only geographic focus
• A public website link
• Detailed service and coverage information
• Team and partner-trade visibility
• A shareable permanent profile
• No need to publish private contact details

A profile and a job opportunity are not the same product

This is where comparisons between TradeKind and MyBuilder can become misleading.

MyBuilder is strongest when judged as a route to specific available jobs.

TradeKind is strongest when judged as a public local-business presence that can also generate requests.

A MyBuilder opportunity may have immediate value because a homeowner has already described work they want completed.

A TradeKind profile may have longer-lasting value because it remains online and can be found, shared and revisited.

The disadvantages follow the same distinction.

With MyBuilder, the trade risks paying for contact that does not become work.

With TradeKind, the trade does not pay for the request but may wait longer for enquiries while the newer network and its audience develop.

One asks the business to risk some advertising money.

The other asks the business to invest time in creating a strong profile without promising immediate demand.

Which model gives the tradesperson more control?

MyBuilder gives tradespeople control over which listed jobs they pursue.

You can assess the description, location and displayed shortlist fee before deciding whether the opportunity appears worthwhile.

That control is useful, but it only works when decisions are disciplined.

It is easy to express interest because the diary is quiet and then discover that:

• The journey is longer than expected
• The job value is too low
• Several quotes are being gathered
• The customer’s timescale is unrealistic
• The work falls outside your strongest service
• The fee is difficult to recover from the likely profit

TradeKind gives control in a different form.

The business chooses:

• Which services appear on the profile
• Which Sussex towns it covers
• How its work is presented
• Which common questions are answered
• Which website visitors are directed towards
• Whether a particular homeowner request is suitable

The business does not need to chase every available job. It can present a clear offer and let homeowners decide whether that offer fits what they need.

How do profiles and reviews compare?

MyBuilder profiles help homeowners assess interested tradespeople.

They can include company information, photographs, work history and customer reviews. MyBuilder also marks profiles it has verified.

After work is completed, homeowners can leave feedback about their experience. A strong review history can make a significant difference when several tradespeople express interest in the same job.

MyBuilder has the advantage of being established. Many active tradespeople have accumulated substantial review histories that a new platform cannot immediately reproduce.

TradeKind profiles can also show reviews, work photographs, services and business information, but the review system is newer.

Its profile has a wider local-business emphasis, including:

• Sussex coverage areas
• Frequently asked questions
• Website links
• Team members
• Partner trades
• Founding Trade status where awarded
• Private direct requests

A business does not have to choose one review presence.

It can build an accurate reputation across TradeKind, Google, its own website and any other platform it genuinely uses.

What checks does MyBuilder carry out?

MyBuilder describes tradespeople on its platform as verified and says its checking process includes identity and skills checks.

For regulated or specialist work, relevant certification may also be checked.

However, verification on any platform should not be treated as a replacement for the checks required for a specific job.

Homeowners may still need to confirm:

• Public liability insurance
• Trade-specific qualifications
• Gas Safe registration
• Electrical scheme registration
• Waste carrier registration
• Planning or Building Regulations requirements
• Written quotations and payment terms
• References for larger projects

TradeKind manually reviews profiles before they appear publicly.

That approval helps keep the platform local and relevant, but it is not a workmanship guarantee, professional accreditation or blanket verification of every claim made by a business.

Neither badge should be interpreted more broadly than the platform itself defines it.

MyBuilder may suit your business when…

MyBuilder may be the stronger option when:

• You need work now rather than general future visibility
• You are prepared to pay for the chance to quote
• You can respond to new opportunities quickly
• Your average job value leaves room for acquisition costs
• You have strong reviews and work photographs
• You are selective about location and job type
• You track which shortlists become profitable work
• You are comfortable competing with other interested tradespeople

The model can work well when the business treats it as measured marketing rather than reacting to every notification.

TradeKind may suit your business when…

TradeKind may be the stronger option when:

• You work in East Sussex, West Sussex or Brighton & Hove
• You want another public profile without a monthly bill
• You want homeowners to request your business directly
• You want to link to your own company website
• You prefer not to pay whenever contact details are shared
• You already receive work but want to strengthen local visibility
• You want to show the team or partner trades behind the business
• You are willing to join while the Sussex network is still growing

Because the current profile is free, the commercial risk is low.

The main cost is the time needed to complete it properly.

How to test MyBuilder without losing control of the cost

Do not judge MyBuilder after one excellent lead or one frustrating experience.

Set a proper trial budget and measure the result.

Choose a maximum acquisition budget

Decide what you are prepared to spend on shortlist fees over a set period.

Do not keep responding simply because the previous opportunities failed to convert.

Narrow the working area

A job that looks profitable can become poor value after repeated travel for surveys, quotations and follow-ups.

Pursue suitable work

Focus on jobs that match your experience, average project value and preferred customer type.

Record every paid connection

Track:

• The shortlist fee
• VAT
• Whether the homeowner replied
• Whether you visited
• Whether you quoted
• Whether you won the work
• The value of the completed job
• The gross profit
• Any later repeat work

Review the figures

After a reasonable test, calculate:

• Cost per conversation
• Cost per quotation
• Cost per completed job
• Total profit from MyBuilder work
• Time spent on unsuccessful opportunities

That will tell you more than the number of notifications received.

Can TradeKind and MyBuilder be used together?

Yes, and the two platforms may complement each other better than they compete.

A Sussex tradesperson could use MyBuilder to identify homeowners who have already posted specific jobs.

The same business could use TradeKind as:

• A permanent local profile
• A second place to show work
• A route to its own website
• A direct-request page
• A profile to share with potential customers
• A way to show team and partner relationships

Using TradeKind does not prevent a business from using MyBuilder, Checkatrade, Facebook, Google, recommendations or print advertising.

A sensible order for many businesses would be:

1. Create the free TradeKind profile.
2. Complete it with genuine photographs, services and useful FAQs.
3. Continue using existing sources of profitable work.
4. Test MyBuilder when the diary has space.
5. Set a maximum shortlist budget.
6. Track every connection through to completed profit.
7. Continue only when the figures support it.

The verdict for Sussex tradespeople

MyBuilder is likely to be more useful when the immediate problem is an empty diary.

It provides access to homeowners who have already described work they want completed. The trade can review opportunities, express interest and attempt to win the job.

The trade must accept that the shortlist fee buys contact—not a guaranteed quotation, booking or payment.

TradeKind is likely to be more useful when the business wants to establish another credible local presence without paying for each request.

Its current profile gives Sussex tradespeople a place to show their work, services, FAQs, reviews, website and local trade network. It will not reproduce MyBuilder’s current volume of posted jobs overnight, and it does not guarantee enquiries.

For many Sussex businesses, the practical answer is not one or the other.

Use TradeKind as the free local foundation. Use MyBuilder selectively when there is room in the diary and the likely job value justifies paying for the opportunity to quote.

Continue the TradeKind comparison series

Explore every article in this planned series:

• TradeKind vs Checkatrade: Which Is Better for Sussex Tradespeople?
• TradeKind vs Rated People: Which Is Better for Sussex Trades?
• TradeKind vs TrustATrader: Which Platform Suits Sussex Tradespeople?
• TradeKind vs Friday-Ad: Where Should Sussex Tradespeople Advertise?
• TradeKind vs Local Facebook Groups: Which Works Better for Sussex Tradespeople?
• TradeKind vs Sussex Business Directories: What Does a Trade Listing Actually Give You?
• TradeKind vs Local Print Advertising: Online Profile or Door-to-Door Reach?
• TradeKind vs Checkatrade, MyBuilder, Rated People and TrustATrader Compared
• Where to Advertise a Trade Business in Sussex: Free and Paid Options Compared

Information checked against the official TradeKind and MyBuilder websites on 25 July 2026. Fees, features and terms can change. Tradespeople should check the current shortlist fee and conditions before choosing to connect. TradeKind is independent and is not affiliated with MyBuilder.