GUIDE
EXCLUSIVE VS SHARED LEADS.
A shared lead is one homeowner's request sent to several contractors, so you race them to the first call. An exclusive lead is sold to one contractor only. An exclusive lead can cost more, so compare the two by what each booked appointment costs, not by the price of a lead.
What a shared lead is
A shared lead is a request more than one contractor can answer. On the big marketplaces that is how it works, by their own pages, checked in November 2026: Angi matches each request with no more than five pros, Thumbtack lets a customer contact up to five pros in the first four hours, and Modernize's consent terms let Modernize and up to four companies call the homeowner.
When several pros get the same homeowner, speed to call decides a lot, and a slow call can reach someone already talking to a competitor. Angi, for example, charges for a lead whether or not you open or respond to it, and its credits do not cover a homeowner who hired another pro first or is still gathering quotes.
Each marketplace has its own page, with what it charges and how many pros get each request: Angi, Thumbtack, Modernize and Houzz Pro.
What an exclusive lead is
An exclusive lead is sold to one contractor and nobody else. The homeowner can still look around on their own, so exclusive does not mean no competition, but no other buyer of that lead is calling them. There are two ways to get them: from a lead seller that sells each lead only once, or from your own ads, where every lead is yours.
Shared and exclusive leads side by side
| What differs | Shared leads | Exclusive leads |
|---|---|---|
| Who gets the homeowner | Several contractors, often up to five | One contractor |
| Price per lead | Can be lower, since each lead is sold more than once | Can be higher, since one contractor pays for it |
| The first call | A race against the other pros | Yours, though the homeowner can still shop around |
| Best fit | Smaller jobs, or buying one lead at a time | High-ticket jobs and a sales team that calls fast |
Compare them by cost per appointment
The price of a lead says little on its own. What matters is what each booked appointment costs, and that depends on how many leads your team reaches and books. An example:
- Shared leads at $60 each, where 1 in 12 books: $720 per appointment.
- Exclusive leads at $150 each, where 1 in 4 books: $600 per appointment.
Here the lead that costs more costs less per appointment. These are example numbers to show the math, not a quote or a promise, so run it with your own. What ADU leads cost works the same math through to signed contracts.
Questions to ask any lead source
- How many other contractors get the same homeowner?
- Is the homeowner verified: is the phone real, and do they own the home?
- Do you pay for a lead you never reach, and which bad leads get a credit?
- Can you see cost per appointment and per signed contract, not only cost per lead?
- How long is the contract, and what does it take to leave?
How BINA leads work
Every BINA lead is exclusive. We run ads for you on Meta and Google, and the moment a homeowner enters our system they go on an exclusion list, so they are never sold to anyone else. Each one is verified: the phone is real, they own the home, and they are actively looking. You pay 20% of your ad spend each month plus a one-time $1,500 setup fee, with no per-lead charges and a $5,000 monthly minimum in ad spend. How we charge has the details, Angi alternatives for contractors compares the marketplaces, and pay per lead vs a marketing agency weighs buying leads against running your own ads.
Sources
Policies change, so check each company's current terms on its own pages:
- Angi help center, on how leads are matched and charged.
- Angi help center, on which leads qualify for a credit.
- Thumbtack help center, on how many pros a customer can contact.
- Modernize consent terms, on how many companies may call a homeowner.
