697 reviews
AI reviews summary
Bark.com presents a starkly divided user experience, functioning as an efficient lead-generation tool for consumers while drawing heavy criticism from service providers. While clients praise the platform for its speed and the variety of quotes received, professionals frequently report significant financial losses due to predatory credit policies and poor lead quality. A major transition to a "Marketplace" subscription model in late 2025 has triggered a surge in complaints regarding the sudden expiration of paid credits and automated charges.
Pros
Cons
Verdict
Bark.com is a highly effective tool for consumers seeking quick, competitive quotes for various services. However, for service providers and small businesses, the platform represents a high-risk investment due to aggressive credit expiration terms and inconsistent lead legitimacy.
Jim did an amazing job transforming my garden, which had been neglected for the past two years. When he first visited, he carefully assessed everything and explained all the work that needed to be done. The results exceeded my expectations. He was always punctual, polite, and professional. It's clear that gardening isn't just his job—it's his… Read more
passion. He also enjoys getting to know his clients, making the whole experience friendly and personal. Jim is honest, practical, and very fair with his pricing. He's not only a fantastic gardener but also a great dad, a great boss, and genuinely a kind person. I highly recommend Jim to anyone looking for a reliable, hardworking, and skilled gardener.
COPY OF COMPLAINT TO THE ACCC: I was interested in BARK.com services. I decided to check them out at Product Review (PR) and found serious issues with Australians dealing with BARK: https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/barkcom?sortBy=ratingLowest If I was going to deal with BARK, I needed to know their AU business registration details… Read more
because I could not find it on the public record.
I opened a BARK account and sent BARK emails via 'emma.thompson@cmail.bark.com' and 'team@bark.com' requesting the following information:
• The registered name of the legal entity of 'Bark', for trading in Australia;
• The registered address in Australia of that entity;
• The principle place of business in Australia for that entity;
• A copy of the current ASIC registration for that entity or where the details can be found on the public record.
Both the emails bounced and returned the message that falsely accused me of SPAM.
I then requested the information by way of Form Mail on BARK website.
Subsequent to getting the runaround, I was told to contact BARK Legal Team at: legalteam@bark.com
I did so and received the following: "Please confirm the reason for this request and which organisation you represent".
By this stage, I wasn't going to waste my time anymore trying to find out what should be on the public record, or at least the BARK website .
The complainants on PR would likely have zero chance of any lawful claim against BARK, that appears to operate out of London, with no (apparent) legal presence in Australia.
I leave it to the ACCC to figure out if the complaints on PR, are caused by potential misleading or deceptive conduct by BARK.
C.C. BARK Legal Team.
NEXT DAY - SUCCESS:
Finally, after accusing me of being a SPAMMER twice, and the BARK veil of secrecy, BARK legal provided the following details:
Entity Name is: BARK.COM GLOBAL LIMITED [ Registered UK]
ABN: 83 642 968 947 - Main business location: "9999".
Australian Registered Business Name is: 'BARK.COM (Australia)' which shows an ASIC renewal date of 8/09/2025. I presume the renewal has not been paid.
Address for service of documents: PO BOX 7219 Warringah Mall NSW 2100
BARK shares a Virtual Principle Place of Business with a number of other businesses at: Suite 55 / 117 Old Pittwater Rd Brookvale NSW 2100.
A search of Google reveals that: "Bark grew exponentially over 7 years and by 2022 had revenue of £70million and profits of £15million. In April 2022 whilst Kai was 30 years old, the business was acquired for £240million".
After all that, and the scathing PR reviews, I think I will give dealing with this multi-million pound company, a big miss.
A good site to attract clients as a civil celebrant. I have achieved a number of client appointments. My only issue is there is no where on the site that clients are advised a Notice of Intended Marriage must be lodged bin later than 1 month and 1 day out from their wedding. Bark is still accepting clients seeking weddings under this legal… Read more · 1
requirement which encourages unscrupulous behaviour by some celebrants. They often back date the document, which is illegal.
Reviews with attachments
- +7
Brilliant transformation , both front and rear gardens Look so much bigger. Guys on site worked above and beyond . Took only days . So happy with th company , couldn’t recommend highly enough. Show 2 replies
- +7
Bark has been great by connecting me with some amazing brides and grooms and I have been able to document their day in my editorial style. I really appreciate the support as running your own business can be a lot sometimes so having someone else find clients for you is really helpful. I love being listed as a wedding photographer and videographer with Bark, Jodie McBride - Wedding photographer Show reply
- +1
We are very happy with the results! We had around 7 trees that needed removal. The team worked super fast and with great attention to details. Always communicative about their plan. They came, worked very hard and removed everything we needed as agreed. Show reply
Groundwerks, fantastic work, really good price, Nic the boss great guy , great team, can’t recommend them enough, work is faultless, clean and tidy, has really restored my faith in the building trade, local company, already getting them to price more work, Show reply
Great customer service, good connection for linking customer with supplier. Show reply
Good service and best Excellent service and recommendation worthy really Show reply
I thought I needed the house cleaned and a haircut I’m taking control of my life now with some good help. And bark has all the professional skills at you fingers thanks so much. Show 2 replies
Bill is a very nice man , he explained everything to us how the tree will grow and the best way to cut it , it looks a lot better now so thank you very much Show reply
This website is an absolute scam. They take your money and then ban you before you have even had a chance to look at any leads at all. Luckily I was able to initiate a credit card charge back but beware of this company. They accuse you of breaking their rules so they can ban you before you start using the credits.
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We have never signed up for them or ever looked at them. Somehow they have obtained our email address from our website and feel that it's ok to keep sending us crappy leads that are clearly fake as hell. Someone wants "a name", small as in 3 different places?? OK.. Stop spamming up peoples inboxes.
There new platform (late 2024) for businesses suck, in two months they (Bark)took my payment and charged $AU156 a month which gives 5 leads,(yes $30per lead) they automatically send you leads based on the criteria you setup, BUT if your booked, or it’s unsuitable or client NOT contactable they say use the app to report, which I did but no credit,… Read more
and then after calling advised to manually send in an email For each lead.. so that would take another hour of my time to type up the reasons and lead in for (I had 17 with bonuses) and being a working entertainer of Xmas/new year that was not possible.. they charge 3-5 +businesses for the leads so make $90+ and 2-4+ businesses get nothing for the investment.. DO NOT USE BARK in this current form.. at least with prior you had a choice to read and review jobs and respond in the previous form… Oh and after calling twice the customer service side pushes you to write the emails, even though I did it on the app, they could see that but wouldn’t fix the issues.. I like bark prior to this upgrade but will stick to ONE other service now
Latest follow-ups
I was looking for a videographer. Bark provided a list, so that was good. While only one videographer responded & gave me a quote, I cold called other suppliers on the list and got a second quote. My one concern about Bark was its notes about how… Read more
quickly different suppliers would respond was fictional. They don't respond at all if they're not interested. They just leave you hanging.
Follow-up · I received positive comments on the videographer's product. It was unfortunate that traffic delayed his arrival so we never got a chance to discuss the plans. Some things got missed, but not a big deal and they went to extra lengths to ensure all of the family was in the video. This supplier takes extra care.
Hi there, Thank you for taking the time to share your… Read more
I wrote to bark for help with my 87 year old mum we had a bad storm and water came through the roof and I need a person who could fix mum's roof up… Read more
I got a phone call from a guy who said he is from bark so he came to mum's place to look at the tin roof where the leak was well that was 30th of march this year now its 17th July he took the money of mum ever since and guess what $4725 later he has not been back he's been asking mum every week since so if anyone comes across a guy name [Name Removed] avoid him 110% don't trust him I've tried to talk to bark on the phone and they keep on saying it's not our problem Now he is saying that he is putting the money back in to my bank account $250 a week then he says he will send me a screen shot and send it to my phone but he lies again and he dont do it and thats all he does nothing but lies and lies none stop I remember one night he rang me on a Saturday night i rang him again the very next day and i askes what he was talking about and he said what did i do did I ring you are you sure what a lier he is.He keeps on sayhe will sendme a recipt through my email and he never does. So save mone keep away from this thief money steeler com man how can someone take money of an 87 year old lady who is now in Hospital from the shook of loseing now getting rob from a low life scum.
Follow-up · Have you reported this to the police or any consumer protection agency yes i did and they cant do anything about it as its a civil matter. What did Bark say when you contacted them they would just send me a form out to my email to fill out but each time i fill the form out wityh the person name on it they just delete the name of the person. Did… Read more
Follow-up · (1) Yes he was the scammer who took money off my old mum he got her to put money in hs bank account and kept on promsing mum and i he would be there to fix it up but never did it started out to be a $1700 job then turned out to be a $4725 job that… Read more
Hi, We're really sorry to hear about what your mother… Read more
Bark.com has provided a valued client search service since inception. The projected modification of their service model (to Marketplace) assumes a "one size fits all". The previous model (purchase lead credits and respond when leads looked suitable)… Read more
perfectly suited my business as a sole practitioner architect. The proposed new model does not. As a sole practitioner there is only so much work I can manage at any one time and I do not need to pay to be inundated with constant enquiries. Under the previous model I was able to pick and choose - ignore leads when I was too busy and accept leads when I was looking for work. And one further point - an architect is very unlikely to be able to offer a quote straight up, having little idea of the extent of work required. Even under the old bark.com model I had to purchase a lead, visit the enquirer, view the property and have the extent of work explained before a quote could be offered. To my understanding, the new Marketplace model is blind to this real-life nuance for some businesses.
Follow-up · Nothing has changed to alter my opinion that a subscription Marketplace does not adequately service the marketing needs of a small architectural practice. Refer to my earlier review. Further, when I access the website to view leads, I am now locked out of all tabs except Leads and Help. This is disappointing as the website is unmanageable. I… Read more
Hi David, Thank you for taking the time to share such… Read more
Positive reviews
Bark put me in contact with companies that I would never have found ( and some I would never use !!)but I found the company that had a good price and reviews so thank you Show reply
Its important to be specific about what you need. The more specific you are the more likely you will find the right person you need.for example I was looking for a private person as a carer but I did not make that clear and therefore carer organisations contacted me. Show reply
I have used Bark twice, once to find a landscaper, once to find a dryer repair service. Both searches were highly successful. I have great confidence in Bark and will continue to use them when looking for professional service providers.
Negative reviews
Bark is a total con. I fully tested out the leads by testing out every available one in Melbourne and not one converted or even came close. This cost me hundreds of dollars and was nothing short of a scam. They advertise prices and then add on VAT which doesn’t exist in this country and claim to have money back guarantees but don’t respond to you… Read more
when you try to claim what you are entitled to. They go so far as to offer an ‘Elite Pro’ version for even more money with extra support. Turns out it’s an AI bot that just gleans generic answers from their help section that doesn’t help with their scam techniques. I was asked twice to rate support I received which never took place so I fail to remember such an overtly obvious money grab in recent times. Will be contacting my bank to get my money back cos these guys vanish once they swindle you. STAY AWAY
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This is company is very scam company and I was thinking to get leads and I was thinking is good the place to work with but this is company is a scam and believe me or not you guys have to be careful with this company because you waste your money believe it or not
My experience with Bark is poor. The categories available to clients wanting to post their job are very limited. The new Bark business model will make it impossible to receive any potential leads.
Recent reviews
I contacted Bark to find someone who could do a one-off gardening job. Within a short space of time I had a reply, arranged an appointment and quote. Top stuff Thank you Show reply
I found what I was looking for but only had one response. I had to follow up myself if I wanted more choice. Fortunately, the first and only response was exactly what I was looking for. The service is booked for two months from now but I'm confident it will be good. Show reply
My search yielded several possibilities within a radius of 50miles. I had one prompt response, but only one. The cost was higher than I had expected, but at the time I had little choice. I am not convinced about the quality of the work because I have serious mobility issues and couldn't get up to inspect the work. Would I use those tradesmen again? NO Would I use Bark again? YES
Website easy & efficient. Fairly good response to request. I did meet with one of the gardening companies, but they were too expensive for what we were considering Show reply
I am 81 and sole carer for my wife and sole window washer! Not only am I impressed with Koala cloth but so is my fussy wife! At 81 I am still physically able to clean the windows thanks to Koala cloth. Show reply
Was explained that only 1 in 10 leads get a response and would be refunded if not. Each lead is costing me over £10 and out of 15 leads made no contact. £150 down the drain. Tried to email, call, whatsapp and SMS customers. Some blocked me. Bark is a scam operation selling false leads, promising refunds and then relying on a awful refund policy
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Hi Michael, We’re sorry to hear about your thoughts on… Read more (+2 replies)