One Page vs Multi-Page Tradie Websites: Which Wins More Work?
One-pagers are cheap and neat. They also cap how much work Google can send you. Here's the trade-off.
One-page websites are popular because they're quick to build and easy to look at. The catch is structural: a single page can only realistically rank for one thing, and a trades business needs to rank for many.
Why one page limits you
- One title, one topic. You get a single page title and description, so you're competing for one search phrase while your competitors compete for twenty.
- No room for detail. Six services squeezed into six paragraphs can't answer anyone's actual questions.
- Nowhere to be local. Covering five towns needs five pages with genuine local detail, not five town names in a footer list.
- Nothing to link. Internal links between related pages help Google understand your site. One page has none.
Where one-pagers genuinely work
Single-trade, single-town, referral-driven businesses where the site exists to look legitimate when someone searches your name. Also fine as a deliberate first step — get online this week, add pages as you go.
The structure I'd use instead
- Home — trade, area, proof, contact.
- A page per service, each with detail and photos of that work.
- A page per main town or suburb you cover.
- About — licences, insurance, who you are.
- Reviews or past work.
- Contact.
That's usually eight to twenty pages for a trades business. How many pages a small business website needs has the reasoning, and service pages vs location pages explains how the two types differ.
Isn't long scrolling the same as separate pages?
Not to Google. Anchor links down a long page still resolve to one page with one title. They're good for navigating within a page, not for ranking for different searches.
Won't more pages cost more?
A little more to build, and nothing extra to host. It's the highest-return extra spend on a trades website, because each new page is another way to be found.
Every site I build under tradie websites is structured this way from the start, with pages added as you add services and areas.
Want to Improve Your Google Visibility?
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Talk to Mike About SEOCommon questions
- Can a one-page website rank on Google?
- It can rank for one main phrase, usually your business name and trade plus town. It can't realistically compete across multiple services and areas at once.
- Can I start with one page and add more later?
- Yes, and that's a sensible way to begin — as long as it's built so pages can be added without rebuilding the site.
Written by Mike — Web Guy Mike
I build and look after websites for Australian tradies and small service businesses. Every site is built by me — no outsourcing, no account managers. More about Mike.