Tradie Guide · Updated May 2026
HiPages, Oneflare, and Airtasker all charge per lead — you pay every time you quote, whether you win the job or not. BackOnTools charges a flat monthly fee and doesn’t care how many calls come in. This guide runs the real numbers so you can make the right call for your business.
Bottom line up front: for most established tradies, flat-fee wins on ROI. Pay-per-lead platforms are worth it for new businesses with zero inbound traffic.
On HiPages, you pay a monthly subscription ($109–$200/month depending on tier) plus credits to reveal or respond to individual leads. Each lead costs roughly $20–$80+ depending on job type and location. On Oneflare it’s purely credit-based.
Here’s the part that matters: you pay those credits whether you win the job or not. If 5 tradies respond to the same lead and you lose it to the cheapest quote, you spent $40 and got nothing. The homeowner pays nothing. You pay.
| Scenario | Monthly spend | Jobs won | Cost per job |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 quotes @ $40/lead, 1:5 win rate | $400 + $150 sub = $550 | 2 jobs | $275/job |
| 10 quotes @ $40/lead, 1:3 win rate | $400 + $150 sub = $550 | 3 jobs | $183/job |
| 10 quotes @ $40/lead, 1:2 win rate | $400 + $150 sub = $550 | 5 jobs | $110/job |
If your average job is worth $400, even the best scenario above ($110 cost-per-job) is 27.5% of job revenue. On a $2,000 job it’s 5.5%. The maths get worse the smaller your average job value.
Flat-fee means you pay one fixed amount every month, regardless of how many calls come in or how many jobs you book. With BackOnTools, the AI answers every call, qualifies the job, and books it — at $197/month on the Starter plan.
The model only works if you already have inbound demand — people calling you from Google, referrals, or repeat customers. If you have zero inbound, a flat-fee answering service can’t manufacture leads for you.
| Scenario | Monthly fee | Extra jobs captured | Cost per extra job |
|---|---|---|---|
| Captures 1 previously-missed call/month | $197 | 1 job | $197/job |
| Captures 2 previously-missed calls/month | $197 | 2 jobs | $98.50/job |
| Captures 5 previously-missed calls/month | $197 | 5 jobs | $39.40/job |
The breakeven point is roughly 1 recovered job per month. Most tradies who test it find they were missing far more than 1 call a week.
Choose flat fee if:
Choose pay-per-lead if:
The smarter play for most tradies
Use both. Fix the missed-call problem first (flat fee, low risk). Then add a lead platform as a secondary channel once you know every inbound call is being captured. You won’t be paying for leads that the AI immediately answers and books.
Call our demo line. Hear the AI answer. If you think it could recover even two jobs a month for your business, the maths work. Book 20 minutes with us to find out.
$197/month · 7-day setup · No lock-in · Australian trades only