System keeps you as a slave
They grab your money and give one lead to 3 to 5 pros. In the last five days I have spent 278$ and yesterday I have assembled a piece of furniture, I have asked for 250$ and the guy gave me 300$. So I have made 12$ in 5 days. Very sad.
BE VERY CAREFUL BEFORE ADDING YOUR CREDIT CARD
I’m extremely disappointed with Thumbtack. Nearly $500 was charged to my credit card, and I did not feel the pricing and lead-charging system was clearly or adequately disclosed before the charges started adding up.
The biggest issue is that paying for a lead does NOT mean you’re getting a job. You’re paying simply for the opportunity to communicate with a potential customer—with absolutely no guarantee they will hire you.
When I realized how much I had been charged, I requested my money back. Instead of refunding the charges to my credit card, Thumbtack credited the money to my Thumbtack balance. In other words, the money I wanted returned to my card remained on their platform. I have found the process of trying to get my actual money back incredibly frustrating.
For contractors considering Thumbtack: understand exactly what you can be charged for, how quickly those charges can accumulate, and what their refund policy means before providing your credit card information.
Nearly $500 later, I regret signing up. Based on my experience, Thumbtack is absolutely not worth the cost, and I would not recommend it.
The biggest issue is that paying for a lead does NOT mean you’re getting a job. You’re paying simply for the opportunity to communicate with a potential customer—with absolutely no guarantee they will hire you.
When I realized how much I had been charged, I requested my money back. Instead of refunding the charges to my credit card, Thumbtack credited the money to my Thumbtack balance. In other words, the money I wanted returned to my card remained on their platform. I have found the process of trying to get my actual money back incredibly frustrating.
For contractors considering Thumbtack: understand exactly what you can be charged for, how quickly those charges can accumulate, and what their refund policy means before providing your credit card information.
Nearly $500 later, I regret signing up. Based on my experience, Thumbtack is absolutely not worth the cost, and I would not recommend it.
Show more
I hate that!
Again that happened. I received lead(probably scam)
Customer don’t answer me on my messages
When I tried to call him, he picked up the phone and said that I had the wrong number
I requested a refund by reason “customer provided wrong phone number “
But Thumbtack rejected that!
I spent 95$ for this lead!
I hate that!
why don't you do anything? so many complaints come from Pro’s
Customers should to pay for their request too!
Customer don’t answer me on my messages
When I tried to call him, he picked up the phone and said that I had the wrong number
I requested a refund by reason “customer provided wrong phone number “
But Thumbtack rejected that!
I spent 95$ for this lead!
I hate that!
why don't you do anything? so many complaints come from Pro’s
Customers should to pay for their request too!
Show more
No leads
I have spent a significant amount of money responding to leads that never reply, never answer calls, and completely disappear after initial contact attempts. This has become a recurring issue and is negatively affecting my trust in the platform.
Works but it feels predatory
I’ve made money on here but the amount of dead leads, wrong leads and scams are insane.
Scam
A completely waste of money. The leads are mostly useless.
fake leads generating app
Thumbtack seems to generate fake leads and charge professionals for absolutely nothing. Even when a customer never responds or there is no real interaction, you still get charged and have almost no chance of getting your money back.
Even worse, if the customer chooses another professional, Thumbtack still keeps your money. They charge you for the lead, provide no guarantee of actual business, and then stay silent when you try to dispute the charge.
It feels like professionals are paying for leads whether they are real opportunities or not.
Even worse, if the customer chooses another professional, Thumbtack still keeps your money. They charge you for the lead, provide no guarantee of actual business, and then stay silent when you try to dispute the charge.
It feels like professionals are paying for leads whether they are real opportunities or not.
Show more
Clunky and costly
The app fails to let me select message filters, and I lose leads I have to pay for if I don't respond right away to unread messages. If I view a message from a lead that didn't accept me yet, I better respond or I never will be able to respond in the future.
Also, a lot of leads are people that won't hire anyone (looking for prices), or folks who will never pay anyone more than $20 to get something done. Paying for leads is not fun when nobody responds or the app makes it hard for pros to respond.
Also, a lot of leads are people that won't hire anyone (looking for prices), or folks who will never pay anyone more than $20 to get something done. Paying for leads is not fun when nobody responds or the app makes it hard for pros to respond.
Show more
I like it
It's a very easy-to-use app; I love it! 😊 🫶🏼
Not worth it
They make more money than you. Send a $100 job to 4 pros for $25 a piece then race to the bottom.
This is the worst app.
I completed a job for a client, but they didn't pay me after eight hours. I'm done with this app—it's useless, and the advertising is predatory.
SCAM
This app is awful, I continually get fake leads and they make you pay for them. They have charged me hundreds of dollars on leads for people that just based on the names aren’t real. They have made me pay for leads that are across the country. When I’ve brought it to the attention of the company they don’t fix it. I’ve had my account shut off for over a year and whenever they turn it back on I’m almost immediately charged with a fake leads. Years ago the app was alright and now it’s a complete scam and I highly recommend staying away from it.
Show more
Gambling app
Thumbtack is basically a gambling app for small business owners. There is a 100% guaranteed you will lose A LOT of money from this trash company. They recently incorporated thumbtack number which defeats their claim purpose of helping you build your business. The new number system actually minimized clients from reaching back out and they know it but unwilling to admit it. It’s the small hidden physiological tactic to steal more money and to make matters worse, they increase their lead fees. Please protect your pockets and stay far away from this pathetic company. Hoping and praying this company get sue and banned for life!
Show more
Down hill fast
Started with thumbtack 2.5 years ago. Originally I was paying $7-$15 for leads and it was great. Recently I’m getting charged $25-$65 for the exact same leads, and 75% of the time the customer never responds. A shame if you ask me. I paused all of my services bc I can’t afford to be paying $150 a week when the customers don’t even respond.
Show more
Bad service
They charge money for nothing its scam
Refund
Thumbtack is a great platform to grow your business. Yes you get lead, do you land leads is the question, then the other thing that needs to improve is the amount you pay for a lead, to overpriced. Then you not sure if you get the customer because the customer reached out to 3 other pros, so now it’s a gamble. I think the lead should be refunded if the pro doesn’t respond to you at all, even if the customer reached out to another pro. The refund policy really sucks and it’s a waste of money, then the 3 day hold for a customer not to respond to none of the pros for you to get a refund SUCKS. Fix your refund policy and lead amount and this would be an Awesome App to work through. But who wants to consistently loose money and not getting hired. Makes no sense. Like let’s be honest in these hard times.
Show more
They make more money then you
They charge twice for the lead and refuse to refund the money. I spent more money on leads than my profit.
Waste of Money For Businesses
Horrible leads, policy basically guarantees no refunds, “limited competition” is more like 5-6 other contractors. Cheapest most disrespectful leads. Waste of my time and money. I will never use thumbtack again.
Great app overall
This is the best app to get leads. The lead prices are reasonable and consistent. The features are robust and usability is fairly good. It has a bit of a lag and I’m not hearing back about my refund/credit requests which is frustrating. But overall I’m pleased with the business I’m obtaining through it.
Show more
SUCH a predatory platform.
Thumbtack is hands down one of the most predatory platforms I have ever encountered as a service provider. I genuinely cannot say enough bad things about this company. Even their responses to negative reviews are filled with corporate talking points that completely miss the actual concerns being raised.
When you really look at their business model, it becomes pretty clear who their customer is: the service provider—not the customer. Yet the providers are the ones who seem to have the least protection. Their entire model depends on vendors paying for leads, and they have created a system where you can be charged repeatedly for customers who were never realistically going to hire you in the first place.
For starters, Thumbtack does not make it particularly obvious to customers that service providers can be charged simply for receiving a lead or message. Their platform also encourages customers to automatically “reach out to the top 3 pros in your area.” So with one click, Thumbtack charges three different businesses for the exact same customer inquiry. They also conveniently recently removed the ability for customers to see your actual pricing when submitting inquires to service providers upfront unless they read your profile. But with the feature to “message the top three pros” they simply do not. This means customers with budgets far below your minimum pricing can contact you anyway. They obviously aren't going to book you, but you are still be charged for the lead.
I've also had customers contact me about jobs that required special licenses or qualifications that I do not have. Thumbtack still charges for those leads and provides no meaningful protection or refund for situations like this.
Recently, Thumbtack changed its refund policy so that if a customer doesn't respond to any pros within 72 hours, you may receive a refund. Sounds great, right? Not really. The customer only has to respond once—even if they don't book anyone—and you no longer qualify for a refund. So if a customer responds to you with a simple “thanks” and never hires anyone, you've still paid for that lead.
At the same time, Thumbtack significantly increased lead prices. They tell providers that they can “choose lead prices that fit within their budget,” but there is an obvious catch: if your lead prices are too low, you receive little to no leads. I recently increased my lead prices significantly, yet my leads still decreased, and I'm still being flagged as “less competitive” even with the slider set roughly three-quarters of the way toward the maximum lead price selector.
And then there is the issue of fake or bad-faith leads. What's stopping a competitor from creating a fake profile and contacting multiple competing businesses simply to make them spend money on leads? What meaningful oversight is in place to prevent this? If businesses are being charged simply because someone sends them a message, there needs to be serious fraud protection and accountability. Instead, providers are essentially told: you pay us because someone clicked a button. That is not a sustainable or fair business model for service providers.
I understand that Thumbtack is a business and needs to make money. But there is a huge difference between charging for a legitimate customer acquisition opportunity and charging businesses for inquiries that were never viable customers to begin with.
If you're a service provider considering Thumbtack, I strongly recommend doing your research first. Read the reviews across multiple platforms, understand exactly how their lead charges work, and think carefully about whether the potential return is worth the cost.
As for me, I've had enough. I genuinely hope service providers eventually have better alternatives and stop supporting a platform that, in my experience, takes far more from vendors than it gives back.
When you really look at their business model, it becomes pretty clear who their customer is: the service provider—not the customer. Yet the providers are the ones who seem to have the least protection. Their entire model depends on vendors paying for leads, and they have created a system where you can be charged repeatedly for customers who were never realistically going to hire you in the first place.
For starters, Thumbtack does not make it particularly obvious to customers that service providers can be charged simply for receiving a lead or message. Their platform also encourages customers to automatically “reach out to the top 3 pros in your area.” So with one click, Thumbtack charges three different businesses for the exact same customer inquiry. They also conveniently recently removed the ability for customers to see your actual pricing when submitting inquires to service providers upfront unless they read your profile. But with the feature to “message the top three pros” they simply do not. This means customers with budgets far below your minimum pricing can contact you anyway. They obviously aren't going to book you, but you are still be charged for the lead.
I've also had customers contact me about jobs that required special licenses or qualifications that I do not have. Thumbtack still charges for those leads and provides no meaningful protection or refund for situations like this.
Recently, Thumbtack changed its refund policy so that if a customer doesn't respond to any pros within 72 hours, you may receive a refund. Sounds great, right? Not really. The customer only has to respond once—even if they don't book anyone—and you no longer qualify for a refund. So if a customer responds to you with a simple “thanks” and never hires anyone, you've still paid for that lead.
At the same time, Thumbtack significantly increased lead prices. They tell providers that they can “choose lead prices that fit within their budget,” but there is an obvious catch: if your lead prices are too low, you receive little to no leads. I recently increased my lead prices significantly, yet my leads still decreased, and I'm still being flagged as “less competitive” even with the slider set roughly three-quarters of the way toward the maximum lead price selector.
And then there is the issue of fake or bad-faith leads. What's stopping a competitor from creating a fake profile and contacting multiple competing businesses simply to make them spend money on leads? What meaningful oversight is in place to prevent this? If businesses are being charged simply because someone sends them a message, there needs to be serious fraud protection and accountability. Instead, providers are essentially told: you pay us because someone clicked a button. That is not a sustainable or fair business model for service providers.
I understand that Thumbtack is a business and needs to make money. But there is a huge difference between charging for a legitimate customer acquisition opportunity and charging businesses for inquiries that were never viable customers to begin with.
If you're a service provider considering Thumbtack, I strongly recommend doing your research first. Read the reviews across multiple platforms, understand exactly how their lead charges work, and think carefully about whether the potential return is worth the cost.
As for me, I've had enough. I genuinely hope service providers eventually have better alternatives and stop supporting a platform that, in my experience, takes far more from vendors than it gives back.
Show more
