Leads for HVAC contractors arrive in three shapes and are usually sold in one bundle: a system that has stopped, a system the homeowner is thinking of replacing, and somebody shopping for maintenance. They convert at different rates, are worth different amounts and need different follow-up, and the one source that publishes an HVAC price separates at least the first two.
The published split
Repair leads are published at $100 with an exclusive range of $80 to $120; full replacement leads at $150 with an exclusive range of $100 to $180. A fifty per cent premium for an enquiry worth several times more is, on its face, the better buy for any contractor with the crews to install. The catch is that replacement enquiries are scarcer and slower, so a feed that promises them at volume is worth interrogating before it is worth buying.
HVAC service leads and the response clock
A no-heat call in February goes to whoever answers, which makes an HVAC service lead worth almost nothing to a contractor who returns calls at the end of the day. Before paying for service leads at all, measure your genuine median time to first contact. If it is over five minutes, exclusivity is buying you the time you lack and is worth more than the arithmetic suggests; if it is under sixty seconds, the shared tier will do most of the same work at roughly half the price.
Buying a mix you can serve
The commonest expensive mistake in this trade is buying volume in the wrong season and the wrong job type. Replacement leads in the shoulder months convert slowly and tie up cash; service leads in a heatwave arrive faster than any crew can attend and are wasted at full price. Buy to the capacity you actually have that month, and treat any volume discount that requires you to commit past your capacity as the more expensive option that it is.
Questions people ask about hvac contractor leads
What do HVAC contractor leads cost?
The one published table puts repair leads at $100 with an exclusive range of $80 to $120 and full replacement leads at $150 with an exclusive range of $100 to $180.
What is an HVAC service lead?
An enquiry about a system that has stopped or is faulty, as distinct from somebody considering a replacement. It is the cheaper of the two published tiers and the one most sensitive to how fast you answer.
Should HVAC contractors buy replacement leads separately?
If a source can separate them, yes. A blended feed at the replacement price means paying replacement rates for repair enquiries, which is the standard way to be disappointed by an HVAC lead contract.
How many HVAC leads should I buy a month?
As many as your crews can attend that month and no more. Every published price ladder falls with volume, which is precisely why a first order should not chase the discount.