Word of mouth, verified.
TradeRefer is an Australian trades directory built on the way people actually find good tradies — recommendations from someone they trust. We list local trade businesses, check them against public registers, and rank them by real community signals instead of paid placement.
What TradeRefer Is
Most lead-generation sites sell the same enquiry to multiple competing businesses and charge tradies whether or not they win the work. TradeRefer takes the opposite approach: listings are free, leads are exclusive, and the people who recommend a business — past customers, neighbours, local community members — are the ones who power the platform.
Every suburb and trade page you see on TradeRefer is built from our directory of ABN-checked Australian trade businesses, with ratings and review counts drawn from public Google review data.
How We Verify Businesses
Verification is reviewed by our Verification Team — ABN, licence and community referral checks, running since 2024.
Step 1 — ABN Check
Every listed business is checked against Australian Business Register data where available. Listings show an "ABN checked" badge only once this check has passed.
Step 2 — Licence Check
For licensed trades (plumbing, electrical, building and more) we confirm the relevant state trade licence and link to the state authority so you can verify it yourself.
Step 3 — Community Referrals
Rankings are driven by public trust signals — Google reviews and referrals from real people who know the business — never by paid placement.
Verification reduces risk but is not a guarantee. Always confirm licence details with your state authority and get written quotes before authorising work.
How TradeRefer Works
Three groups of people use TradeRefer, and the platform only succeeds when a genuine connection happens.
For Homeowners
Browse ABN-checked local businesses, compare public ratings and request free quotes. There's no cost to use TradeRefer and no obligation to hire.
Get free quotesFor Trade Businesses
List your business free — no subscription, no monthly fee and no charge per lead. You only ever pay a small fee to unlock a genuine lead, and you set the price.
List your business freeFor Referrers
Anyone can recommend a tradie they trust. Share your personal referral link and earn a reward every time your referral becomes a genuine connection.
How rewards workConnections, Confirmed in the Real World
When a tradie heads out to a job that came through TradeRefer, the customer receives a unique connection code. The tradie confirms it on arrival — proof that the two parties actually met. This keeps fake leads off the platform and means the trust signals you see on our pages reflect real jobs, not bots or bought reviews.
- Phone-verified enquiries — every lead confirms their mobile number first
- Exclusive leads — an enquiry goes to one business, never auctioned to competitors
- No pay-to-rank — position on TradeRefer can't be bought
Questions About TradeRefer?
We're an Australian platform and we answer our own support inbox. Get in touch, or read our terms and privacy policy.