How much does Thumbtack charge for leads?

Thumbtack ties the price to the job's value, and you choose how competitive to be: "Our goal is to make the cost match how valuable the job is. Prices will vary since a job's value can change based on things like the type and size of the job, how many pros are available, and your market."

How your lead price works, in Thumbtack's words:

• The price is exact. "Thumbtack uses exact lead prices. This means the price you set for a lead is the exact amount you'll pay." You pay that amount "unless a discount or promotion is applied."
• Price signals what you want. "Your lead prices tell us which jobs are your top priority. Setting a higher price for a specific service makes you more competitive for those leads."
• Price isn't the only factor. Thumbtack says lead prices are "one of several factors" in how many leads you get, along with your profile, "Your star rating and reviews", "How quickly you respond to new leads" and "Local demand for your services".
• Minimums can move. "If your lead prices are at or near the minimum, they may increase automatically when the minimums change. We'll always let you know if this happens."

Where to find your range: a Thumbtack moderator explained in January 2025 that it sits on your max lead prices page, under your services tab, next to your budgets. When a pro questioned one price, another moderator suggested "revisiting your max lead price settings."

It depends on how the lead reaches you. Thumbtack's help center says: "When a customer reaches out to you directly from search results and their job matches your job preferences, you auto-pay for the lead." Opportunities, also called open leads, "show prices upfront," and "You only pay the price shown if the customer responds to you."

The two kinds side by side:

• Direct leads are customers who contact you for work that matches your preferences. The charge happens when they reach out, before you've quoted or won anything.
• Opportunities are jobs you choose to answer first. A moderator wrote that they "are sent out if a pro hasn't responded to the initial request" or when "there weren't enough pros in that area/category," and added that "opportunities have a very low response rate." You pay the price shown only if the customer replies.

So a direct lead costs money whether or not the customer hires you, which makes your services and job preferences your first spending control.

With two settings: a lead price for each service and a weekly budget for the total. Thumbtack puts it this way: "Your lead prices tell us how much you're willing to spend per lead, but your budget controls your total weekly spending." And: "Once you reach your limit, you'll stop getting leads until the next week."

Ways owners use those controls:

• Price by profit, not by habit. Set lower prices on small jobs and higher prices on the work you want most.
• Change them often. A moderator wrote in 2024 that you "aren't locked into it for any amount of time" and recommended "revisiting your Max Lead Prices often."
• Turn off services you don't want, so they don't arrive as direct leads.
• Lower the budget when the schedule is full, and raise it when you have open days.

Sometimes. Thumbtack's refund policy says some cases are refunded automatically and others "on a case-by-case basis," that "All refunds are made at our sole discretion," and that for most situations "you can request a refund within 45 days of the charge." A customer who hired another pro doesn't qualify.

What about a customer who goes quiet? Thumbtack's refund policy doesn't list a customer who goes quiet, and a moderator wrote in 2025 that nothing in it covers non-responsive customers. Its spending guide does promise "Fair Shot Refunds," so "you're only paying for serious customers," without defining them, so ask Thumbtack about a silent lead within 45 days.

What to do with a lead you think is fake or wrong:

1. Report it in the app. Thumbtack refunds some leads automatically, "if a lead is flagged by our Trust and Safety department."
2. Request it within 45 days. Thumbtack says "you can request a refund within 45 days of the charge," and you'll "usually get an answer within 24 – 48 hours."
3. Check your payments page. Refunds go to your Thumbtack balance by default, and "Approved refunds temporarily increase your budget for the current week."
4. Know what usually qualifies: a job that changed significantly, such as moving outside your travel area; an invalid phone number; a duplicate lead from the same customer; a fixed-date job on a date you'd blocked. A customer who hired someone else doesn't qualify.

Lead quality is the complaint owners raise most about lead platforms in the forum and review comments we've collected, with phrases like "fake names and phone numbers." An invalid phone number is on Thumbtack's list of leads that "will most likely qualify." Report bad leads every time, so Thumbtack has a record of each one.

Four lines matter, from the Terms of Use last updated July 10, 2026. Fees are final and non-refundable except as the Terms or the Refund Policy say. Pros can pay to rank higher in search results. Thumbtack may change its prices and fees. And if your account is suspended or closed, you lose any prepaid packages and promotional credits.

In Thumbtack's words:

• Refunds: "Except as otherwise expressly described herein or in our Refund Policy, all sales on the Platform and Fees paid by You to Thumbtack are final and non-refundable."
• Paid placement: "Service Professionals may compensate Thumbtack to highlight themselves in search results and therefore rank higher."
• Price changes: "Thumbtack may also change prices and Fees (if any) for access to or use of the Platform."
• If your account ends: "You will not be entitled to a refund of any Fees," and you can no longer redeem "Prepaid Packages or credits received from a Promotion."

The detailed budget and fee rules sit in a separate document, Thumbtack's Budget, Fees, Payments and Taxes Terms. Read it before you buy any prepaid package; Thumbtack's refund policy says credit packages aren't refundable to a card.

Because the price you set is the price you pay, your lead price should be your ceiling: what you'll spend to win the job, times the share of Thumbtack leads you book. Work it out for each service. If the range Thumbtack shows starts above your ceiling for a service, that service won't pay on Thumbtack.

An example with made-up numbers, not Thumbtack's prices: a fence repair leaves $400 in gross profit, and you're willing to spend 20% of that, $80, to win it. You book 1 in 4 Thumbtack leads for repairs. Your ceiling is $80 × 1/4 = $20 per lead. If the range for fence repair in your area starts at $35, Thumbtack loses money on that job at your booking rate, however busy it keeps you.

Two ways to change the answer: book more of the leads you get, or put your budget on bigger jobs, where the same lead price is a smaller share of the profit. Our cost per lead entry explains why the lead price alone misleads.

By cost per booked job: what Thumbtack charged you in a month, minus refunds, divided by the Thumbtack jobs that went on your schedule. A lead that doesn't become a job still cost you, so the lead price flatters the platform. On Thumbtack, three habits keep that number honest.

1. Track direct leads and opportunities separately. Only direct leads are charged before the customer replies, so they carry most of the risk; opportunities cost you only when someone answers.
2. Log every refund request inside the 45-day window. Because "Approved refunds temporarily increase your budget for the current week," a refund can show up as extra leads that week, which hides spend if you only look at weekly totals.
3. Track your reply time. Thumbtack lists "How quickly you respond to new leads" among the factors in how many leads you get, so slow replies cost you twice: fewer leads and fewer wins.

The formula, and why it's the fair way to compare sources, is in our home-service lead generation guide.

Thumbtack, Angi and Google Local Services Ads all charge per lead, but they set prices and trigger charges differently. On Thumbtack you choose the exact lead price inside a range. With Local Services Ads, your bid is the most you'd pay and competing bids set the price. Your own Business Profile and website charge nothing per call.

Your Thumbtack profile can also be read by AI tools. When Mindflow asked ChatGPT (the OpenAI API with web search) about named contractors in 50 US metros in October 2026, Thumbtack was cited in 258 of 11,982 answers, against 1,472 for HomeAdvisor and 1,105 for Angi. Keep the profile accurate and consistent with your other listings. More in what ChatGPT checks before recommending a contractor.

Mindflow builds the owned side: SEO with AI search optimization included, your Business Profile, a review program and conversion work. Paid ads are case by case. When paid ads fit your market and goals, we scope Google Ads, Local Services Ads or ChatGPT ads in your proposal. Ad spend is paid to the platform and isn't part of our fee.

Does Thumbtack charge a monthly subscription? Not to join. Thumbtack's pro page says "There's no charge to join, no annual fees and no membership fees," and lists "No subscription cost." You pay for direct leads at the lead prices you set and for opportunities at the price shown upfront, if the customer responds, within your weekly budget.

Are Thumbtack leads shared with other pros? Not with an unlimited number. Thumbtack says every lead is backed by "a competition limit that keeps you from competing with an unlimited number of pros for leads," but the help pages we read don't give the number. Opportunities also go to more pros when the first ones haven't responded, so reply fast.

Do I pay if the customer never replies? For a direct lead, usually yes: Thumbtack charges when the customer reaches out, and a moderator wrote that nothing in its refund policy covers non-responsive customers. Thumbtack's "Fair Shot Refunds" may apply; ask within 45 days. For an opportunity, no: you pay only if the customer responds to you. That's why your job preferences matter most.

Can Thumbtack change what I pay? Yes. Its Terms say "Thumbtack may also change prices and Fees," and its help center says that if your lead prices are "at or near the minimum, they may increase automatically when the minimums change," with notice. You can change your own lead prices at any time.

Is Thumbtack worth it for a new contractor? It can be, if you reply to leads within minutes and your jobs leave enough profit to cover the leads you won't win. It can bring customers while your reviews are few, though Thumbtack counts your rating and reviews too. Track cost per booked job from the first month, and build your own reviews so you depend on paid leads less.

All pages read November 1, 2026. Thumbtack Community posts are by staff with the role "Administrator, Moderator"; year shown where the page gives one.

• Thumbtack Help, How much do I pay for leads and opportunities?
• Thumbtack Help, How to set my lead prices
• Thumbtack Help, Here's a guide to spending on Thumbtack
• Thumbtack Help, Refund policy for pros
• Thumbtack Help, Budget, Fees, Payments and Taxes Terms (linked, not quoted)
• Thumbtack, Thumbtack for Pros
• Thumbtack, Terms of Use (last updated July 10, 2026)
• Thumbtack Community, Why doesn't Thumbtack make its fee structure public? (moderator replies October 2024, January 2025)
• Thumbtack Community, Are Opportunity Leads prominently seen by the customer?
• Thumbtack Community, Thumbtack's Refund Policy (February 2025)
• Thumbtack Community, How Leads are priced
• Google Local Services Help, How bidding works for Local Services Ads
• Mindflow, what ChatGPT checks before recommending a contractor, study data file, October 2026; owner comments collected from contractor forums and review sites

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