Checkatrade vs Bark vs MyBuilder for landlord certificates: 2026 comparison

Checkatrade is a vetted directory. Tradespeople pay an annual membership fee to be listed and Checkatrade verifies trade-body memberships, public liability insurance and a baseline of customer reviews before approval. Landlords browse and contact members directly.

Bark is a quote-marketplace. Landlords post a job and Bark sells the lead to up to five professionals in the area. Those professionals pay Bark per lead (called credits). You receive replies from interested traders within minutes, typically with rough quotes attached.

MyBuilder sits between the two. Tradespeople apply to your job posting and you choose who to invite to quote. Reviews are tied to completed jobs, and there is no annual membership fee for traders, only a fee when a job is awarded.

For a straightforward EICR on a one-bedroom flat in a major UK city, **Checkatrade** is the easiest win. The directory exposes NICEIC and NAPIT membership clearly on each profile and you can filter by trades-body accreditation. You get a fixed price up front, normally within 24 hours.

For larger HMOs and older properties where remedial work is likely, **MyBuilder** often produces better quotes because you can describe the property in detail and traders bid against each other. Plan to spend 24-48 hours reviewing applicants and reading their past job feedback.

Bark works well if you need someone urgently and are happy to compare quotes within an hour. It is less suited to detailed jobs because the form is brief and the responses are pitched fast.

All three platforms list Gas Safe registered engineers, but only Gas Safe registration is the legal requirement — trade-body membership is not. **Bark** typically returns the fastest results for CP12 because it is a small, well-defined job and engineers can quote within minutes. Expect £60-£100 in most UK cities.

**MyBuilder** and **Checkatrade** both work for combined CP12 + boiler service bookings, where a longer relationship with the engineer makes sense. Profile reviews on both platforms tend to be more meaningful for these multi-visit relationships.

EPC assessors are accredited Domestic Energy Assessors (DEAs), not general traders. Coverage on all three platforms is decent in major cities but thinner in rural areas.

**Checkatrade** and **MyBuilder** both list EPC assessors with clear accreditation badges (Elmhurst, Stroma, Quidos, RICS). Bark also covers EPC but the average response is slower because the EPC pool is smaller.

Pricing is fairly flat across the three: £45-£90 plus VAT for a standard residential survey. Combining EPC with a property inventory or sales report from the same provider can save money if you are renewing tenancy and listing the property.

HMO licence applications often require multiple certificates plus a fire risk assessment, all to a tight council deadline. None of the three platforms is purpose-built for this, but **MyBuilder** is the closest because you can describe the full scope in your job post and find a contractor who can bundle EICR, PAT testing and fire risk assessment.

Some HMO landlords prefer to work with specialist multi-discipline firms outside these platforms, particularly for larger HMOs. We list direct providers on the HMO licensing hub.

**Checkatrade**: pricing is sometimes higher because traders pass the annual membership cost on. Reviews can be sparse for newer members.

**Bark**: the lead-credit model means traders chase volume. Quotes can be rough and the same job is sold to multiple people, leading to inbox spam if you are not ready to compare quickly.

**MyBuilder**: the bidding process takes time and slow responders may not bid. If you need someone today, this is not the platform.

For most UK landlords managing one to four properties, the optimal stack is: **Checkatrade** as the default for repeat compliance work where vetted trade-body membership matters, **Bark** for urgent same-week jobs, and **MyBuilder** for any multi-discipline job (HMO renewals, post-remedial-work re-tests, or any property where you want a small bidding round).

Test all three for your first round of certificates and stick with the platform that produces the engineer you trust. Long-term, repeat use of a single platform tends to give you better access to your preferred trader's calendar.