Thumbtack Reviews 6,448

I joined thumbtack before it was bought out several years ago.
At that time, the terms were pretty straight forward. Someone is interested in you, and they contact you. If you respond, you get charged advertising fees.
This was fair and it was a very great deal.

But have you noticed that the recent reviews given by small business owners who have used the service to get lead have been very negative?
Perhaps, this is because they have been having the same experience as I have.

Since I first joined the service, they have come up with other options such as direct leads where you are charged when someone contacts you no matter what, and even though this feature is always turned off on my account, it miraculously gets automatically turned on during random times. When this happens, money is automatically taken out of my account without my knowledge or permission.
I've been able to contest it in the past, but the last time it happened they refused to refund me, even though the representative I spoke to admitted fault.
Here is a quote from the thumbtack representative who did an investigation on my behalf:

"I apologize as it seems our call got disconnected earlier. I’m writing to give you an update on your concern."

"We’ve confirmed that your Targeting Preferences were turned off back in October 2024, which means you are not supposed to be receiving any Direct Leads."

"In the event that your pending refund request is denied, please respond to this email so I can personally assist you with disputing that decision."

I told the agent that my request was automatically denied, and he told me to contact their dispute team.
When I did, I was refused a refund even though the company had initially admitted fault.

According to the recent reviews, thumbtack has a new business model. They never issue refunds even if they are at fault, and when you have the power to just take random amounts of money out of someone's account, that is the same as stealing. With no ethical backing, this company can be very dangerous

Beware, thumbtack has changed, and it is now being run by scammers.

They are automatically responding to 1 star reviews to "educate" the customers who they stole money from. One lady said she had to take out a loan because they stole over 800 dollars from her, and they have the nerve to respond to her review while still refusing a refund. Their response says this shouldn't be happening, but they refuse to refund me. How disgraceful! Taking accountability means refunding your customers when you are at fault. Sending AI responses mean nothing if you refuse to give back the money you've stolen.
This company is going down.

Next Level Renovation of Asheville rocks! It does incredibly beautiful work. The bathroom tile sparkles with professionalism and beauty. Every tile is positioned just right on the wall, every tile cut is exactly the way it's supposed to be, and the grout lines are smooth and blend right in. The contractor was meticulous and fastidious in his execution as well as thorough. He worked diligently, in a fast and timely manner, never losing a beat. I'd hire him again and again and again for other work, such as crown moulding and painting.

I would noy use Thumbtack again. It seems like anyone who can get a business license can be a contractor or service provider on Thumbtack. There is no way to contact Thumbtack to file a complaint. Stay far away from this company and its contractors. Find someone local and avoid the headaches.

I was able to hire a couple of good professionals from the Thumbtack app, but my account was deactivated with no warning or reason given. When I asked why, the support team told me my request would not be considered and didn't provide any reason. Also, beware of pros who use an automated reply to answer your request within one minute so that their company is listed higher on the algorithm. I found great pros by chatting with individuals who cared about doing the work over booking the work.

He did a job for Rachel Keyes. He enclosed our open screen porch for the coming storms. He did an excellent job - asked questions of my wants and needs. Job is beautiful!! Would use his services again
Anna Golletz
Brooksville

Thumbtack presents itself as a fair marketplace, but in reality, its business model is built on misleading both customers and professionals.

Here is how it works: when a customer submits a request, Thumbtack asks for permission to “send your request to three top pros.” Customers are not informed that this action automatically creates a paid lead fee for professionals. In other words, the customer thinks they are just clicking a free option, but Thumbtack instantly turns this into guaranteed revenue — by charging the professionals, without the customer’s knowledge.

This means:
• Customers give consent without realizing their action triggers charges.
• Professionals are forced to pay for unqualified leads, even if the customer never reads the profile, prices, or policies.
• More than 95% of my clients have admitted they had no idea Thumbtack works this way.

The result is a system where Thumbtack profits no matter what, while professionals are exploited. We are paying for “leads” that are not transparent, not genuine, and often not even reviewed by the customer.

Thumbtack needs to:
1. Clearly disclose to customers that their request will generate a paid charge.
2. Stop automatic monetization through hidden mechanics.
3. Protect professionals from being charged for uninformed or low-quality leads.

Until Thumbtack introduces transparency and fairness, I strongly advise both customers and professionals to reconsider using this platform.

We hired DJ Trakboy for my husband’s outdoor retirement party and was very pleased with his DJ services!! The party was awesome, and everyone had a fabulous time. Brandon’s professionalism, collaboration, and responsiveness are unmatched. We appreciated him taking the time to visit our home during the planning process to access the proper logistics to ensure a successful event. Also, his set-up and equipment are quite impressive! We highly recommend you consider DJ Trakboy for your next event!!

Thumbtack SCAMMERS
I initially signed up with the hope of growing my business, but instead, I was charged $220 for 10 leads—only two of which were legitimate. I completed just one job and didn’t even break.
Due to this poor experience, I closed my profile. However, after receiving repeated calls promising better opportunities, I decided to give it another try. In short, I reopened my account, but I didn't take any lead. On September 3rd, I noticed a charge on my account for a direct lead. I received no email or notification about this lead, and by the time I accessed the platform, the customer had already contacted four other companies. I had no realistic chance to compete for the job.
I asked for a refund, but it was denied because of your policy. I find this unacceptable. The lack of transparency, poor lead quality, and absence of timely communication have made this one of the worst business experiences I’ve had. I feel misled and taken advantage of.

Thumbtack is a predatory company. I have been a Top Pro for 5+ years, and Thumbtack is by far the greediest, most evil company I have ever worked with in my business. They charge extortionately high prices for leads, then increase your competition by encouraging leads to contact multiple pros, and charge all of those pros a ridiculously high rate. They will literally charge me $100 or more for a lead with a budget under $1,000 - 10% is a reasonable commission on an actual booking, but it is completely unreasonable to charge that much for a lead who may not even respond, ESPECIALLY when they are sending that lead to multiple pros. They do not honor their refund policy for bad leads, and their customer service is completely nonexistent. I truly hate this company with a deep passion, and I hope that they are eventually held accountable for their immoral business practices.

Thumbtack is a fraudulent company. I have never had any relationship with them — I did not sign up, did not use their services, and did not authorize any charges.

Despite this, they stole $839.79 directly from my account. This forced me to take out a loan, and I am still uncertain whether my bank may also be connected to this scam.

This experience has caused me serious financial and personal stress. I strongly warn others to be very cautious with Thumbtack. No legitimate company should operate in this way

The state a direct lead, but they are shared with 2 other providers. As a service company it seems that they are taking advantage of their providers and making hundreds of dollars off each lead. I plan on cancelling my account soon as it seems to be a bad practice for lead source

They was fast on time and very understanding and kind ty do much

This company prey on small companies.
They use fake leads and the same leads goes to 10 different companies for $19.95 each.
They make around $200 per fake leads preying on small business.
The leads provided. are Paid actors !
Someone should sue this deceiving tactics from Thumshittaks

The plumber I contacted, Joe Schumpert: ShumpGunRooter.com, came to my home on Labour Day, and there was no charge for the visit. He was so professional, courteous, and knew exactly what I wanted him to look at.

I've been using Thumbtack for several years now. I've been connected with decent vendors, but also have had terrible experiences. Many of the companies that advertise are shady and not trustworthy. Thumbtack themselves held a promotion over the summer where if you book a service, you get a hotel gift card. I did so and they looked for every excuse to not give me the gift card even though I booked a service. Overall just a crappy company.

Small business owners, beware. Thumbtack just charged me for a conversation with a client I never even booked. I spent hours creating a custom menu for a client named Susana, pouring in time, energy, and creativity. I thought we were on the same page until I discovered she went with another vendor without telling me a single word.

If I hadn’t followed up, I would have assumed the event on August 31st, 2025 was still mine. Yet Thumbtack still took money from me for my effort—profiting off my time and stolen opportunities.

This platform doesn’t support small businesses. It exploits them. Our work and expertise are treated like disposable tools, and we are financially penalized for circumstances entirely outside our control. Charging vendors for conversations that go nowhere isn’t “connecting clients,” it’s looting.

Thumbtack, you need to rethink how you treat small business owners. We are not a resource to be milked; we are professionals putting in real work and taking real risks.

Asks for money before providing any leads, not good for a new company trying to get work.

this company unethically and scrupulously collects data and funds with no return of service.

Efficient, reasonable and excellent service on a regular basis

Poor customer service, unprofessional servicemen borderline scammers and a very discriminatory platform, would never use it again. The fact that these servicemen can harass clients and customers is not a platform I would recommend to anyone. Reported the incident and the company is still up even with fake reviews and ratings.