Does anyone here have first hand experience with Angie's List?

I joined last month and immediately asked for a refund once I spent some time exploring the site. You pay extra for medical; and then when I wanted to look for Doctors near where I work, I was told I had to pay for access to that region. I live 45 miles and 2 counties away from where I work. I think the range should be at least 60 miles – or they should inform people about this limitation, so you can be more selective about what point you want to be the center of your search, but they just asked for home address. The site was not intuitive to navigate and search, either.

The ratings that I did see – for handyman contractors, were not very helpful. As with most of the internet, some people filled out the forms and gave great details, but most provided little-to-no useful information. I’ve seen better reviews on Yelp.

Google Search and recommendations from friends work just fine for me, And it’s free.

Yes, I signed up when we were moving to a new neighborhood. I used to to choose the movers we used and for several things later with excellent results.

I have used Angie’s last for several years. I got frustrated with the incompetent contractors whom I had previously worked with. I have been satisfied with the results, though I have not checked other Internet sources.

I feel like we just had this exact question not too long ago. Maybe search for it and see if any of those answers work, too.

The only two Qs I found were from over a year ago, and as the company has grown considerably since then (or so I’ve heard) I thought some fresh perspective would be appropriate. If there is a more recent one, please let me know, @GloPro , that’s a good suggestion.

haha, I didn’t feel like looking because I’m lazy and don’t need Angie, but if I get motivated I’ll track it down.

Like @hearkat – I signed up and dropped within the same week.

Overpriced. Nickeled and dimed. My impression is that it was all about the money and not so much about good service.

I had much greater success by talking to neighbors. And, for my doctor and my dental – talking to the docs in the place I used to live and asking if they knew anyone they trusted in my part of Atlanta. The doctor did – the Dentist I asked around.

I imagine that at one point, before they got national (and greedy), Angie’s List was valuable. But sad to say…..

Another note: when I needed some home stuff done, I went to the Home Depot near me – Service desk – they have lots of contractor business cards, as well as their own referral service. I used them for some exterior painting. Their service gave multiple estimates, and all the billing was handled through HD’s mechanism.

So I was very happy with Home Depot’s referrals for handyman and painting services.

I use Yelp and have gotten excellent results, and it’s free. Look for those getting 5-star ratings with at least a dozen ratings. You can also Google whatever you’re looking for plus the word “ratings” or “reviews”. You do have to be prepared to spend time at the computer reading lots of reviews and learning how to read between the lines, but if you’re diligent, you’ll learn how to spot the more trustworthy reviews and ignore the others.

All the services that I’ve found through Yelp have been excellent, except for these housecleaners who were merely average. I’ve also used recommendations from friends and acquaintances, but these have been no better than the services I found through Yelp (in fact, not nearly as good).

For things that are going to run into quite a bit of money, I also recommend interviewing them personally, and not just over the phone, but face to face. You can tell a lot from a personal interview; trust your instincts. Make sure they have proper licenses and insurance (both liability and worker’s comp). Also, have them show you samples of their contract for services, or sample quotes, and bills. I like detail-oriented people who present clear, detailed, easy-to-understand bills, no questionable charges.

Angie’s List: why pay for something that you can get for free?

Oh, and keep in the mind that the lowest bid may not necessarily be the best. You may have to pay a bit more, but you’ll be happier with the results.

They just wanted to know if Angie’s List was reliable. They know how to hire people, they’re in their 50s and have lived in a number of different states. Just sayin’

Thanks to all who answered about Angie’s List. I appreciate it.

@canidmajor Oh, sorry about that.

rip. off. Use yelp its free

I do not have first hand experience with Angie’s List, but these people do:

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/online/angies-list.html