Book a handyman for small, varied jobs and general repairs. Book a plumber or electrician when the job is specialist, certified, or hidden behind a wall. The deciding question isn’t how hard the job looks — it’s whether the work legally requires a registered trade, and whether you need a certificate at the end.
Quick comparison
| Handyman | Plumber | Electrician | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Lists of small jobs, repairs, mounting, assembly | Leaks, boilers, heating, soil pipes | Circuits, fuse boards, rewires |
| London hourly | £80 – £100 | Typically higher | Typically higher |
| Multiple unrelated jobs | Yes — the main advantage | No | No |
| Issues a certificate | No | Gas Safe for gas work | Part P / EICR |
| Legally restricted work | Cannot do gas or notifiable electrical | Gas Safe required for gas | Competent-person scheme for notifiable work |
Handyman vs plumber
Handyman: changing taps and washers, fitting a toilet seat, resealing a bath or shower, unblocking a trap, replacing waste pipes under a sink, fitting a new shower head.
Plumber: boiler faults and servicing, central heating and radiators, soil pipes, mains pressure problems, anything requiring Gas Safe registration, and any pipework buried in a wall or floor.
Rule of thumb: if it’s visible, isolated and doesn’t involve gas or heating, a handyman can usually handle it. If water is coming from somewhere you can’t see, call a plumber.
Handyman vs electrician
Handyman: like-for-like swaps of sockets, switches, light fittings and ceiling roses on existing circuits, outside bathrooms.
Electrician: new circuits, consumer unit replacement, EV chargers, outdoor wiring, electric underfloor heating, and all electrical work in bathrooms and shower rooms. This is notifiable work under Part P and needs certification — see what electrical work a handyman can legally do.
When the handyman is the cheaper choice
The saving isn’t usually the hourly rate — it’s the number of visits. A flat with a leaking tap, a wobbly shelf, a sticking door and a TV to mount would otherwise need a plumber and a carpenter across two appointments, each with its own call-out. One handyman clears the lot in a half day for £280–£380.
Where a specialist is genuinely required, a handyman is not cheaper — they simply can’t do the work, and you’d pay twice.
The two questions that decide it
Forget how difficult the job looks. Ask these instead:
- Does it legally require a registered trade? Gas work needs Gas Safe registration. Notifiable electrical work needs a competent-person registered electrician. If yes to either, the decision is made for you.
- Do you need a certificate afterwards? If you’ll need paperwork for a sale, a mortgage, an insurer or a tenancy, book the trade that can issue it.
If both answers are no, a handyman is almost always the faster and cheaper option — especially with more than one job on the list.
Common jobs and who should do them
| Job | Who | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Dripping tap | Handyman | Washer or cartridge change |
| Leak under the sink | Handyman | Visible, isolated pipework |
| Leak from a wall or ceiling | Plumber | Hidden pipework, needs tracing |
| Radiator not heating | Plumber | Heating system, may need balancing |
| Boiler fault or service | Gas Safe engineer | Legal requirement |
| Replace a light fitting | Handyman | Non-notifiable, existing circuit |
| New socket on a new circuit | Electrician | Notifiable under Part P |
| Any bathroom electrics | Electrician | Notifiable under Part P |
| Fuse board replacement | Electrician | Notifiable, needs certifying |
| Blocked sink or trap | Handyman | Accessible waste pipework |
| Blocked main drain | Drainage specialist | Needs jetting or camera survey |
| Cracked wall tiles | Handyman | Replace and regrout |
| Full bathroom refit | Multi-trade / contractor | Several trades, sequenced |
| Removing a wall | Builder + structural engineer | Structural, needs sign-off |
The hidden cost of booking the wrong one
Booking a handyman for work that legally needs an electrician doesn’t save money — you pay twice, once for the attempt and once for the electrician who has to put it right and certify it. Worse, uncertified notifiable work can surface years later during a sale, at which point fixing it is significantly more expensive than doing it correctly first time.
The reverse is also wasteful. Calling a plumber out at a specialist rate to change a tap washer, or an electrician to swap a light fitting, means paying premium rates for work a handyman handles routinely — and you’ll still need someone else for the other five jobs on your list.
Where multi-trade genuinely wins
The real advantage of a handyman isn’t a lower hourly rate — specialists aren’t dramatically more expensive per hour. It’s that one person, in one visit, covers jobs that would otherwise need three appointments with three call-out charges and three days at home waiting.
A flat with a dripping tap, a wobbly shelf, a sticking door, a TV to mount and a bath that needs resealing spans plumbing, carpentry and general fixing. Booked separately that’s several visits. Booked as one half day it’s £280–£380 and a single morning.
A good handyman tells you when to call someone else
This is worth saying plainly, because it’s the clearest signal of a trade worth using. Anyone willing to take on gas work, or notifiable electrical work, to keep hold of your job is telling you something important about how they operate. The right answer to “can you also move this socket into the bathroom?” is no, and here’s who you need.
Frequently asked questions
Is a handyman cheaper than a plumber?
For small jobs a handyman is usually cheaper per visit, and much cheaper if you have several unrelated tasks. For specialist plumbing — boilers, heating, hidden pipework — a plumber is the correct and ultimately cheaper choice.
Do I need a contractor or a handyman?
A handyman for maintenance, repairs and small installs. A contractor for structural work, extensions, full rewires or anything needing building control sign-off.
Can a handyman fix a leaking tap?
Yes. Tap and washer changes are standard handyman work. If the leak turns out to be in pipework inside the wall, that’s a plumber’s job.
Is a handyman a tradesman?
Yes, in the general sense — a skilled multi-trade worker. But “handyman” is not a protected or licensed title in the UK, which is why insurance, experience and reviews matter more than the label.
Can one handyman do plumbing and electrical in the same visit?
Yes, within the limits above — basic plumbing and non-notifiable electrical swaps can be done on the same visit, which is exactly where a handyman saves you money.
Not sure which you need?
Describe the job and we’ll tell you honestly — including when you need a plumber or electrician instead of us. Call 0800 102 6422, message us on WhatsApp, or request a quote online.
Related: what a handyman can do · hourly rates · day rates.