What is Completo?
Completo is a South African home-services marketplace. You post a job. Verified contractors quote. You pick one. You pay through SafePay, so the money sits in a SafePay trust account until you approve the work.
That's it. No mystery product. No "ecosystem."
We're live in Pretoria East, with Johannesburg and Cape Town to follow. Plumbing, electrical, renovations: the jobs that usually start with a deposit and end with a phone that won't ring.
Get payment-protected quotes
Compare quotes from verified contractors. Your money sits in a SafePay trust account, never with Completo, until you approve the work.
Why Completo exists
Handing a contractor a deposit and hoping for the best is how South Africans lose money.
A geyser quote. A rewire. A "small" renovation that somehow needs another R20,000 by Friday. Sometimes the work is fine. Sometimes the WhatsApp ticks go blue and stay that way. Completo was built so accountability isn't luck: it's the default.
On Completo you get:
- 1.Verified contractors: credentials checked before they can quote.
- 2.Competitive quotes: more than one price, on the record.
- 3.SafePay: your funds held in a SafePay trust account until you approve the work. Completo never holds or touches your money.
How SafePay works
SafePay is a real trust account built for home services. Not a slogan. Not "we'll look into it." Your money sits in the SafePay trust account until you say the job is done.
Post your job
Tell us what needs doing: burst pipe, COC, bathroom renovation. Takes about a minute.
Get quotes
Verified contractors in your area quote. Compare price, profile and reviews. No obligation.
Pay into SafePay
Pay the quoted amount into SafePay. Funds go into a SafePay trust account. Completo never holds those funds.
Inspect the work
Contractor does the job. You check it. There's a 5-day inspection period once work is marked complete.
Approve & release
Happy? Approve, and the contractor is paid for that milestone. Not happy? Don't approve, and the money stays in trust.
If you take no action during the 5-day inspection window, the milestone is automatically accepted and funds are released. So check the work. Look at the taps. Flick the breakers. Don't blue-tick your own house.
Free for homeowners. SafePay costs homeowners nothing extra. The 3.5% platform service fee is built into how Completo works: you see the full job price upfront.
Small jobs count too. A R1,500 drain unblock. An emergency geyser at 10pm. A mid-size kitchen job. If you're paying through Completo, SafePay is there.
Full payment-protection detail: How SafePay works →
Who holds the money?
The SafePay trust account holds the money. Not Completo. Not the contractor.
- Funds sit in a SafePay trust account
- The trust account is registered and run independently of Completo
- Completo facilitates the job and the release flow. We never hold or touch homeowner funds
That's the point. If something goes wrong with a contractor, or even with Completo as a company: your money isn't sitting in our operating account. It's in trust until you approve, both sides agree, or a binding order says otherwise.
SafePay gives you a trust account for home services without the slow attorney-trust paperwork most people never bother with until it's too late.
How Completo verifies contractors
Every contractor on Completo is verified before they can quote on your job. That's the bar.
Depending on the trade, checks typically include:
- Trade qualifications relevant to the work (e.g. electrical registration where required)
- References from previous clients
- Trade qualification certificate for plumbers where certificate work applies
- Profile and past-work review
We're also rolling out ongoing re-checks over time. Until that's fully live everywhere, the hard rule stays simple: credentials are verified before a contractor can quote.
Problems and abandonment
Every job has a 5-day inspection period after the contractor marks work complete. In that window you can approve, or flag a problem with photos, messages and what you want fixed.
- 1.The funds for that stage stay in the trust account: nothing is released while the issue is open.
- 2.Completo facilitates: we contact both sides, review evidence, and issue a non-binding recommendation. We advise. We don't sit as a court.
- 3.Both parties have 5 days to accept or reject. If both accept, the funds are released from the trust account accordingly.
- 4.If facilitation fails: under R20,000 → Small Claims Court; over R20,000 → AFSA for binding arbitration.
If the contractor disappears, the money is still in trust, not already spent on someone else's next site. Full detail on /safe-pay.
Completo vs Kandua, Procompare, Snupit
Quote marketplaces are good at one thing: finding someone. Completo is built for the part that actually hurts: paying before you're sure.
| You care about… | Quote directories | Completo |
|---|---|---|
| Lots of pros / quick discovery | Often stronger on sheer scale | Growing marketplace; verified before quote |
| Deposits & mid-job ghosting | Usually you're paying the contractor direct | Funds held in a SafePay trust account |
| Mid / large jobs | Quotes help; payment risk stays yours | Milestone release on your approval |
| Who holds the money | Typically the contractor (or nobody) | A SafePay trust account |
Use a big directory when you only need a name. Use Completo when you need the name and the money to stay safe until the geyser actually works.
When to use Completo
Good fit: deposits, staged work, anything you'd hate to chase on WhatsApp, mid-to-large jobs, emergencies where you're not thinking straight at 10pm.
Also fine: smaller jobs. SafePay isn't reserved for six-figure renovations.
Post a job is free for homeowners. Compare quotes. Pay only when you approve.
Related: milestone payments in SA, electrician costs, plumber costs, plumbers in Cape Town, plumbing services.
Completo: Frequently Asked Questions
Get payment-protected quotes
Compare quotes from verified contractors. Your money sits in a SafePay trust account, never with Completo, until you approve the work.