How to buy leads is really five questions asked in the wrong order by most contractors. Price comes fifth. The four questions before it move the effective cost per booked job further than any negotiation on the rate, and none of them is answered on a published page anywhere in this record.
First: what unit are you buying
A form submission, a connected call, a booked appointment and a qualified enquiry are four different products routinely sold under one phrase. Every published price in this record prices a form-style lead, from $100 for an HVAC repair enquiry to $225 and above for siding. Nothing published prices calls or appointments, so those quotes have no benchmark and must be compared against each other.
Second and third: exclusivity and speed
How many contractors receive the same enquiry decides roughly half the price on every published tier. How fast it reaches you decides most of its value in any urgent trade, and a lead delivered by email digest is a worse product than the same lead by text at the same price. Both are negotiable and neither is published.
Fourth and fifth: what counts, and what it costs
What counts as a valid lead and what happens when one is not are the clauses that decide how much of your invoice is wrong numbers. Only then does the rate matter, and by that point you will know which of the published bands your quote should be compared against. Buy the smallest batch two sources will sell, measure for a month, then negotiate volume.
Questions people ask about how to buy leads
How do I buy leads as a contractor?
Settle the unit, the exclusivity, the delivery speed and the definition of a valid lead first. The rate is the fifth question and the least informative on its own.
What should I pay for a lead?
Published fresh exclusive tiers run $100 to $225 by trade, shared versions roughly half, and aged records $0.15 to $10. Which band applies depends on the unit you settled first.
Should I buy in volume to get the discount?
Not on a first order. Every published ladder falls with volume, which is exactly why a first purchase should be the smallest a source will sell.
How long before I know if a source is working?
About a month of records, run through the same intake with the same script, compared on cost per booked job rather than cost per lead.