Angie’s List slashes membership price in several markets

The online-ratings service Angie’s List has cut its prices in several of its more than 240 markets, according to “Cheaper Advice: Angie’s List Cuts Prices,” a report on The Wall Street Journal’s Digits blog.

New members in markets including Chicago, New York, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., will now pay about $10 for an annual membership, a 75 percent drop. Renewals will be at the same discounted price. Existing Angie’s List customers—who number about 2 million nationwide—can request the lower fee when they renew. Find out what an Angie’s List membership costs in your area.

No matter the price, before you subscribe to the 18-year-old Angie’s List, read our recent article, “The Truth About Angie’s List, Yelp, and More.” It might make you think twice about paying for what the company claims are “reviews you can trust.”

As reporter Jeff Blyskal details, “The ability of A-rated and B-rated companies to buy their way to the top of the [Angie’s List] default search results skews the results.” What’s more, the service’s “marketing materials intended for businesses say that companies that advertise get ‘an advantage of increased exposure [that] can propel you ahead of your competition.’ They get 12 times more profile views than companies that don’t buy ads.”

—Steven H. Saltzman