Porch Review: Contractor Services

Porch says they can help you with "moving, improving, and everything in between." Started in 2012 as a way to make homeownership easier, this service is focused on providing solutions to the most common problems with just a click or call.

More than home improvement help

For those who want more than finding a professional to complete a home project, Porch offers a place to compare insurance quotes (via phone call), book movers, compare TV and internet deals, compare home security systems, schedule handyman services, book an inspector, and more. To utilize Porch, answer a few quick questions about the project so they can determine pricing and the right pro for your job. Then they'll match you with one of their pros or recommend someone in their network.

Porch pros do the work or refer you to their network

Porch makes it convenient to request assistance for multiple household tasks with one form, providing help at fixed hourly rates through their Porch services. These pros are all vetted and background checked, trained to complete the desired task, and licensed and insured where required. They are able to complete smaller tasks like mounting a TV, replacing a faucet, or performing lawn care. A price is quoted upfront, and all of the details are handled by Porch. For larger jobs like remodeling, electrical work, plumbing, and HVAC, Porch's home assistant guides you through the request process, permitting you to compare up to 4 pros on your larger jobs by reviewing details (licensing, reviews, response rates, years in business, and other important considerations) before hiring.

Selecting your contractor

If you're satisfied with the Porch Pro Network offering, the assistant can either book for you or give you the freedom to directly contact your pro. Unlike some companies which openly display listings, you'll have to provide your contact information to get the pro referrals. Keep in mind, Porch doesn't do any vetting of the pros in their network and suggests it's your responsibility to check on them prior to making a hiring decision. We find this to be added work and wonder about the point of the network. Why should we look at your pros if you don't bother to check them out for us?

Price matching and satisfaction guarantee

Porch promises the most competitive pricing on the market. If you get a quote from another local, background-checked professional, Porch will match it with their own pros. Their Property Protection Plan covers work performed by pros in the network. Porch will help recover costs for damage or unfinished work while allowing up to $1,000 for losses, though not covered are quality of work, project delays, payment disputes, and more (so read the fine print). When you search for a service, if this is included, it'll be noted. The Porch Guarantee Satisfaction Promise applies to services directly performed by their Porch pros. It says that if it's not right the first time, they'll fix it or refund your money. That's a lot to keep straight but essentially, if they do the work, they'll price match and guarantee your satisfaction, while jobs completed by their network pros may be covered by a protection plan.

Compare up to four bids in the network

In order to get more than one quote, Porch will provide up to 4 pros for customers to contact through their Porch Pro Network. Pros connect via phone, text, or email to discuss, and the project page on Porch's platform is a place to track conversations as well as update project status and leave reviews on the pros you hire. It's up to customers to do the comparison and vetting.

More reviews needed

An accredited business by the BBB, Porch has earned an excellent "A+" rating for their company with less than 90 complaints in the past three years. Reviews across online platforms are mixed, however, ranging from one place where under 70 reviews give them an average of 2.19 stars up to another where they average 3.8 out of 5 for 1,500 reviews. Pleased customers rave about their great customer service and professional contractors, whereas unhappy contractors blasted their leads and customers complained of no-show pros. Since they have so many different offerings, it's hard to accurately gauge their Porch services and Porch Pro Network (too many other services reviewed). Before being confident in recommending them, we'd like to see significantly more positive reviews on both of these aspects of Porch.

Might be worth a look

With so few reviews available to give us an idea of their Porch Pro services, it's hard to give a hearty recommendation of Porch as a contractor referral platform. However, we like that they review their in-house pros and provide both a price match and guarantee satisfaction. As a result, we place them above average as a choice to consider when looking for home improvement help.

On the Porch website