What: Two-sided online marketplace for residential cleaning, installation, and other home services
Expected pay: $14 – $45/hour, depending on the job. (Housekeepers earn between $14 and $22; skilled plumbers earn up to $45)
Where: Most major cities nationwide
Requirements: Background check; smartphone; own or be willing to buy the tools of your trade; reliable transportation
Review:
PROS:
- If a customer cancels at the last minute, you supposedly still get paid
- Background checks
CONS:
- Lack of upfront disclosure and company policies; penalizes workers for problems like traffic or rescheduling
- Fee schedule – charges workers $15 for being late; anywhere from $10 to $50 for canceling a job or reschedule (These fees still apply regardless of cancellation reason – if the job is not as advertised or when the app assigns a job without acceptance from the contractor)
- The site itself says “a small fee” will be deducted from your pay; however no specific “fee” was listed
- Pressured into purchasing cleaning supplies and t-shirts bearing the logo
How It Works:
If you want to sign up as a worker on the site, you download the Handy app and provide your information.
Sites like Nextdoor may be a better bet.
If you are looking for jobs as a gardener or landscaper, check out GreenPal or JiffyOnDemand.
What Users Say: (From Indeed)
Handy has one priority, and that is to get as much money out of the customer as possible and pay the independent contractor as little as possible. Whatever it takes to increase their bottom line they’ll do. Whether its dubious fees, overcharging customers, or selectively enforcing certain policies that only benefit them.
Pros: flexibility
Cons: just about everything else
I honest to God really wouldn’t recommend for anyone to work for Handy. That is purely off my own personal experience with the company. TaskRabbit is better.
So working with handy you’re basically an independent contractor. When it comes to taxes, they don’t deducte from your checks so you have to separate tax money yourself and use a 1099 to pay the taxes back for those who don’t know what independent contractors are. We are responsible for our own bag or they can keep your first few jobs if you’re opting for the handy cleaning bag. The bag contains a swifter, some rags, an apron, stickers you can put on tissue which they show you how to do in orientation, a vacuum, and method supplies. I think that bag was $150, but most clients already have cleaning supplies and mops and brooms etc. I didn’t grab the bag but I always carried a book bag filled with cleaning supplies I got on sale as well as bounty and wipes.
Management was basically not there. If you cancel a job within either 24 or 36 hours you get charged $15 (they take it from your next job) I’ve had clients cancel on me 5 minutes before the job started and it was impossible to reach someone. There was also another client who had an empty house that needed to be cleaned and he was just watching me the whole time. I was very uncomfortable and I had to leave early. He gave me a one star review which was unfair because I politely told him that I worked better not being supervised so closely and he didn’t listen to me. Again I couldn’t contact anyone.
Pros: Some people leave generous tips.
Cons: As you’re making about $30 for two hours, handy is making about 70% more than that.
