As a Gas Safe registered engineer, you've got a constant decision to make about where to invest your marketing budget. Checkatrade is the obvious choice — everyone knows it — but is it actually the best use of your money? And how does it compare to having your own website?
Let's break it down honestly.
How Checkatrade Works for Gas Engineers
Checkatrade is a directory. You pay a monthly fee, build a profile with your services and reviews, and homeowners searching on the platform can find you alongside other gas engineers in your area.
What's good:
- Instant visibility to homeowners actively looking for a gas engineer
- Vetting and review badges build trust
- Simple to set up — no technical skills needed
- Recognised brand that homeowners trust
What's not so good:
- You're listed right next to competing gas engineers
- Customers can compare quotes from multiple engineers on the same page
- You pay monthly regardless of how many leads you get
- Limited control over how your credentials are presented
- Your Gas Safe registration is just one detail among many, not the centrepiece
That last point matters more than you might think. Gas Safe registration isn't a nice extra — it's a legal requirement, and it's the single biggest trust factor for homeowners choosing a heating engineer. On Checkatrade, it's a small badge on a busy profile. It deserves better than that.
How Your Own Website Works
Your website sits on Google. When someone searches "gas engineer near me," "boiler repair in [your town]," or "emergency boiler breakdown," a well-built website appears in the results. They click through and land on your site — just you, your credentials, your services, your reviews.
What's good:
- Full control over how you present your Gas Safe credentials
- Your registration number and logo front and centre on every page
- No competitors anywhere on your site
- SEO builds compound traffic — the longer your site is live, the more visible it becomes
- You can rank for high-value searches: "boiler installation," "emergency boiler repair," "landlord gas safety certificate"
- One-time investment with minimal ongoing costs
- Works as a landing page for Google Ads during peak season
What's not so good:
- Takes time to build organic Google rankings (3-6 months typically)
- Requires an upfront investment
- Benefits from occasional content updates
The Gas Safe Credential Advantage
Here's why a website is particularly valuable for gas engineers compared to other trades.
In most trades, a website is about showcasing your work. For gas engineers, it's about showcasing your credentials and trustworthiness. Homeowners aren't just picking someone to do a job — they're letting someone into their home to work on equipment that can be dangerous if handled by an unqualified person.
On Checkatrade, your Gas Safe registration appears as a small verification badge alongside other profile information. It's there, but it doesn't dominate. The customer's eye is drawn to your review score, your pricing, and — crucially — the profiles of your competitors listed below you.
On your own website, you control the hierarchy. You can:
- Display your Gas Safe registration number in the header of every page
- Include the official Gas Safe Register logo prominently
- Link directly to the Gas Safe Register so customers can verify your credentials themselves
- Create a dedicated page about your qualifications — your training, certifications, years of experience, and specialisations
- Mention it naturally throughout your content — "As a Gas Safe registered engineer, we..." reinforces trust on every page
For a trade where credentials are the primary buying factor, controlling how they're presented is hugely valuable.
Emergency Searches: Where Websites Win
Gas and heating has something most trades don't: genuine emergency demand. When a boiler breaks down in December, the homeowner doesn't browse Checkatrade leisurely. They grab their phone and search Google urgently.
Common emergency searches:
- "Emergency boiler repair near me"
- "No hot water gas engineer"
- "Boiler broken down [town]"
- "Gas engineer emergency call out"
These searches happen on Google, not on Checkatrade. The person clicks one of the top results, sees a professional website with Gas Safe credentials prominently displayed and a click-to-call button, and calls immediately. That's a lead your Checkatrade profile never even had a chance at.
A gas engineer website optimised for emergency keywords catches these high-intent, high-value leads that directory platforms simply miss. One emergency boiler replacement in winter can be worth over a thousand pounds — that single job can pay for your website several times over.
Cost Comparison
Let's look at real numbers.
Checkatrade:
- Monthly membership: approximately £60-£120/month depending on area and categories
- Annual cost: £720-£1,440
- Every lead is shared with other gas engineers on the platform
Your own website:
- One-time build cost: from £497 (hand-coded, SEO optimised)
- Domain renewal: £10-15/year
- Hosting: included in the build
- First year total: approximately £510
- Every year after: approximately £15
Over three years, Checkatrade costs between £2,160 and £4,320. A website costs approximately £540 total for the same period. That's a significant difference, and your website is growing stronger on Google every month while Checkatrade charges the same fee for the same listing.
Lead Quality: Exclusive vs Shared
Checkatrade leads are shared. A homeowner requests quotes and multiple gas engineers receive the same enquiry. You're competing on price and response time before you've even had a conversation. For commodity services like annual boiler servicing, this often drives prices down.
Website leads are exclusively yours. Someone has searched on Google, found your site, seen your Gas Safe credentials, read about your services, and decided to contact you. They've already chosen you — the call or form submission is a confirmation, not the start of a bidding war.
These exclusive leads convert at a higher rate, and customers tend to be less price-sensitive. They've seen your credentials, read your reviews, and trust you before they ever pick up the phone.
The Long Game
Checkatrade is renting. You pay monthly for a listing. Stop paying, and you vanish. Nothing you built carries over.
A website is owning. Your investment creates an asset that appreciates over time. Google recognises your site as authoritative for local gas engineering searches. Blog posts about boiler maintenance written this winter will bring in leads next winter. Your domain gains authority month after month.
After a year, your website is significantly more powerful than it was at launch. After two years, it's established in Google's index as a trusted local result. Checkatrade after two years is identical to Checkatrade on day one — same monthly fee, same profile format, same competition.
The Smart Strategy
If your budget allows it, use both — but be strategic:
- Build your gas engineer website first — it's the foundation
- Display your Gas Safe credentials prominently — this is your biggest trust signal
- Link your website from your Checkatrade profile — engineers with websites get more clicks
- Optimise your site for emergency keywords — "emergency boiler repair" searches are gold during winter
- Use Google Ads in winter — send paid traffic to your website during peak season for maximum return
- Let SEO build organically — within 6-12 months, organic traffic may reduce your need for Checkatrade entirely
The Verdict
For gas engineers, a website is an especially strong investment for two reasons: it showcases your Gas Safe credentials properly, and it captures emergency searches that never touch Checkatrade.
Homeowners choosing a gas engineer care about credentials above all else. A website puts your Gas Safe registration front and centre. Checkatrade buries it in a busy profile alongside your competitors.
If you can only choose one, choose the website. It costs less over time, every lead is exclusively yours, and it captures the high-intent emergency searches that are the bread and butter of the heating trade.
Want a professional gas engineer website that puts your credentials front and centre? We build them from £497. Hand-coded, SEO optimised, and designed to win the trust of homeowners who need a reliable, registered engineer.
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