Short answer
6.8% of Australian trade businesses — 4,495 of 66,104 — list a public phone number that contradicts the number on their own website. 59.8% match, and the remainder could not be checked because one side or the other publishes no number.
This is a deliberately narrow measurement. It excludes businesses with no phone number and businesses we could not check. It counts only cases where a public listing gives one number and the business's own website gives a different one.
| Result | Share | Businesses |
|---|---|---|
| Listed number matches their own website | 59.8% | 39,530 |
| Listed number contradicts their own website | 6.8% | 4,495 |
| Could not be checked | 33.4% | 22,079 |
Why it happens
Usually a stale listing, or call tracking used to measure which advertising works. Both are harmless. The third explanation is a lead-generation service sitting between the customer and the tradesperson — you ring, a broker answers, and your job is sold to whoever buys it.
That last case is legal and not always bad, but the cost of buying your job is inside the quote, and you are not choosing who turns up. Most people ringing a number in a directory do not think that is what they are doing.
By trade
| Trade | Number contradicts their own site |
|---|---|
| Garage Door Specialists | 10.7% |
| Pest Controllers | 10.5% |
| Plumbers | 9.3% |
| Car Detailers | 9.3% |
| Solar Installers | 8.5% |
| Pool Services | 8% |
| Car Washes | 7.7% |
| Heating & Cooling | 7.6% |
| Mechanics | 7.3% |
| Painters | 7.3% |
| Locksmiths | 7.1% |
| Fencing Contractors | 7% |
| Electricians | 6.8% |
| Cleaners | 6.5% |
| Roofers | 6.3% |
| Builders | 6.2% |
| Arborists | 6.2% |
| Tilers | 5.9% |
| Removalists | 5.7% |
| Pet Groomers | 5% |
| Gardeners & Landscapers | 4.7% |
| Driving Schools | 4.2% |
| Photographers | 2.6% |
Garage Door Specialists top the list at 10.7%; photographers are lowest at 2.6%.
Common questions
- Why does a tradie's phone number differ between a directory and their website?
- Usually a stale listing or call tracking. Sometimes a lead-generation service sits between you and the tradesperson, in which case the cost of buying your job is inside the quote.
- How common are mismatched tradie phone numbers in Australia?
- 6.8% of 66,104 measured businesses list a number that contradicts their own website.
Read next
- When a tradie's phone number doesn't match their own website4,495 Australian trade businesses list a phone number that contradicts the one on their own website. Sometimes it is a s…
- Red flags when hiring a tradieThe warning signs that show up before the work starts — door-knocking after storms, cash-only pricing, large deposits, a…
- How we check every business, and what we get wrongThe five checks run against all 66,104 businesses in this directory, how often each one actually succeeds, and the thing…