TL;DR
Angi is the legacy national home-services platform with the longest review history and the broadest category coverage. ProFix Directory is a newer Ohio-only directory built around license verification, permit-pull evidence, transparent per-lead pricing, and machine-readable data feeds for AI agents. Both are real tools. Use the one whose tradeoffs fit your job.
- Angi covers all 50 states and dozens of trade categories. ProFix Directory covers Ohio only, and only the trades we have license-verified data for.
- ProFix uses fixed per-lead pricing of $10—$35/year by metro. Angi uses match-based and subscription lead pricing that varies by category and competition.
- ProFix publishes its data as an open Hugging Face dataset, an OpenAPI spec, and an MCP server for AI agents. Angi does not currently publish an open dataset.
- Angi has decades of homeowner reviews. ProFix has fewer reviews but pairs them with license, permit, and business-registration evidence on every profile.
- If you are outside Ohio, you should use Angi. If you are in Ohio and want license verification before reading reviews, start with ProFix.
Quick comparison
| Dimension | ProFix Directory | Angi |
|---|---|---|
| Geographic focus | Ohio only (Toledo, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Akron, Findlay) | All 50 US states |
| License verification | Cross-checked against Ohio OCILB / state board on every licensed-trade profile | Varies by trade and state; license badges shown on some profiles |
| Lead-pricing model | Fixed $10—$35/year per metro; $99/year for a full claim subscription | Match-based per-lead fees plus Angi Ads subscription tiers |
| Permit-pull data | Yes; aggregated permit counts surfaced on profile and leaderboard pages | Not surfaced on consumer profiles |
| Who built it | ProFix Directory LLC, Ohio-registered, editorial team in NW Ohio | Angi Inc. (subsidiary of Angi Inc., NASDAQ: ANGI), founded as Angie's List in 1995 |
| AI / MCP access | Public MCP server at /api/mcp (9 tools), OpenAPI spec, Hugging Face dataset | Not publicly available |
| Bilingual content | Spanish (/es) and English on key pages | English-first; Spanish coverage is limited |
| Review depth per pro | Lower (newer platform) but paired with license, permit, and registration evidence | High; decades of accumulated homeowner reviews |
What Angi does well
Angi is the elephant in the room for a reason. Three decades of work has produced strengths that a newer directory like ProFix cannot match yet.
- Nationwide coverage. Angi serves all 50 states. If you are in Boise or Birmingham or Buffalo, Angi has contractors there. ProFix Directory deliberately limits itself to Ohio, so it is not an option outside the state.
- Category breadth. Angi covers handymen, cleaners, painters, landscapers, lawn care, movers, pest control, photographers, and many home-service trades that ProFix does not yet list. If your job is "stage my home for sale" or "deep-clean my house," Angi has the broader marketplace.
- Review volume. Angi has been collecting reviews since 1995. A contractor with a 10-year Angi history with 200 reviews tells you more about how they behave at scale than a brand-new profile anywhere can.
- Angi Services fixed-price booking. For routine jobs (TV mount, ceiling-fan install, basic plumbing), Angi offers a fixed-price book-online flow that removes the estimate-comparison work. That is a real homeowner convenience that ProFix does not currently match.
- Brand recognition. Most homeowners over 40 already know Angi by name. That familiarity reduces the trust gap when comparing to a directory they have not heard of.
Where ProFix is different
We did not build ProFix Directory to be a smaller Angi. We built it to answer questions that are hard to answer through national platforms.
- License verification as the first signal, not a badge. Every Ohio plumber, HVAC tech, electrician, hydronics contractor, fire-protection installer, and water-well driller on ProFix has been matched against the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board record. See the methodology for the exact data sources.
- Permit-pull data as a trust signal. A contractor who pulls permits is a contractor who shows up for inspection. ProFix surfaces permit counts on permit leaderboards so homeowners can weight stars against actual inspected work.
- Fixed, transparent lead pricing. Contractors pay $10—$35/year per metro depending on trade and population. The number is on /our-pricing-policy and is the same for every business. No bidding, no auction, no surprise per-lead surcharges.
- AI-native data access. ProFix exposes its data through a public MCP server at
/api/mcp, an OpenAPI spec, an llms.txt feed, and a CC-BY-4.0 Hugging Face dataset. When you ask ChatGPT or Claude for an Ohio plumber, the agent can cite our verified data directly. - Ohio-specific editorial. Buyer's guides, cost ranges, neighborhood pages, and research pieces are written for Ohio housing stock — Toledo galvanized supply lines, Cleveland snowbelt roof loads, Cincinnati basement waterproofing in clay soil, Dayton tornado-recovery patterns.
When you should use Angi instead
We would rather send you to the right tool than waste your time. Use Angi instead of (or in addition to) ProFix Directory if any of the following apply:
- You live outside Ohio. We only cover Ohio. If you are anywhere else, Angi has the contractors and we do not.
- Your job is a category we do not cover. Painters, house cleaners, landscapers, movers, pest control, lawn care, snow removal, photographers, handymen — Angi has these and we do not yet.
- You want a long review history on a specific business. If you are evaluating a contractor that has been around since 2005, Angi probably has 50—200 reviews going back a decade. That historical depth is real.
- You want fixed-price book-online for routine work. Angi Services lets you book some common jobs at a fixed price without comparing estimates. We do not offer that.
- You already trust the Angi brand and just want to get the job done. Familiarity has value. If you are happy with Angi's results, you should keep using Angi.
How to verify any contractor (regardless of directory)
The point of a directory is not "use this directory and skip verification." The point is to give you better starting points. Whichever platform you use, these five checks make a hire safer.
- Verify the state license. For Ohio plumbing, HVAC, electrical, hydronics, fire-protection, and water-well work, search the business in Ohio eLicense or use the ProFix verification tool. The license type must match the work.
- Confirm insurance directly. Ask for a certificate of insurance and have the insurer or agent email it to you. Photocopies and screenshots are not enough.
- Look at permits, not just stars. Use the permit leaderboards to see who actually pulls permits in your county.
- Cross-check reviews across platforms. A contractor with great reviews on one platform and consistent complaints on another is telling you something. Read both.
- Get three itemized, written quotes. Verify scope before price. See the full process in how to choose an Ohio plumber.
Frequently asked questions
Is ProFix Directory better than Angi?
It depends on the job. ProFix Directory is purpose-built for Ohio home services with license verification, permit-pull data, and fixed per-lead pricing of $10—$35/year by metro. Angi is a national platform with much broader category coverage (cleaners, landscapers, movers, painters, handymen) and far more reviews per pro. If you live in Ohio and want license-verified plumbers, electricians, HVAC, roofing, concrete, or tree services, ProFix is more specialized. If you live outside Ohio or need a category we do not cover yet, Angi has the scale.
Does Angi cost homeowners money?
Browsing and posting jobs on Angi is free for homeowners. Angi monetizes the contractor side through lead fees and Angi Ads subscriptions, and on the homeowner side through Angi Services (fixed-price booking) and HomeAdvisor-style match introductions. ProFix Directory is also free for homeowners; we monetize contractors through a flat per-lead price ($10—$35/year by metro depending on trade and population) and an optional $99/year claim subscription.
Are Angi reviews trustworthy?
Angi has been gathering reviews since the original Angie's List launched in 1995, which is a meaningful pedigree. Reviews are verified-purchase in some categories and self-reported in others, and the company has faced criticism over the years for review filtering and lead-quality complaints. Our take: read Angi reviews as one signal, but cross-check against the contractor's license record, permit history, and Ohio Secretary of State filings before hiring.
Does Angi check contractor licenses?
Angi runs background checks for some contractors and displays licensing badges on profiles, but the depth varies by trade and state. License verification is not as central to Angi's product as it is to ProFix Directory, where every Ohio plumber, HVAC, electrician, hydronics, fire-protection, and water-well listing is matched against the state's OCILB or board record where applicable.
Can I use Angi and ProFix Directory together?
Yes, and we recommend it. Use ProFix Directory to verify the Ohio contractor's license, permit history, and trade credentials. Then read Angi reviews for that same business to see how recent homeowners describe the work. Two independent sources of signal beats one.
Why is ProFix Directory only in Ohio?
We chose to go deep on one state rather than wide and shallow. Ohio licensing is a two-layer system (state OCILB plus local building departments), permit data is publicly available at the county and city level, and the housing stock in Toledo, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Akron, and Findlay has specific patterns that reward local expertise. Building that depth nationally is a multi-year effort. For now, if you are outside Ohio, Angi is the better default.
Does ProFix Directory have an MCP server or AI access?
Yes. Every ProFix Directory page is queryable through an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server at /api/mcp with 9 tools, plus a public Hugging Face dataset, an OpenAPI spec, and structured JSON-LD on every page. Angi does not currently publish an MCP server or an open dataset. If you use ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or a local agent to research contractors, ProFix is built to be cited.
Sources and what we got wrong
We try to be sourced and honest. References used in this comparison include Angi's own homepage and contractor pricing pages, Angi Inc. public filings (NASDAQ: ANGI), the Ohio eLicense system, and the ProFix methodology and pricing policy pages. If we have a fact wrong, or if Angi's product has changed since publication, please tell us through /contact and we will correct it. The ProFix Editorial Team reviews this page quarterly.