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Price transparency
0%How clearly the company publishes pricing (rates, flat fees, or ranges) on its own website.
Independent Advisor·100% Impartial · For Homeowners
Know what your chimney needs before you hire in Seattle
We don't pick your contractor. We explain what your Pacific-Northwest home needs, then show you every company's record — measured the same way for everyone. You decide.
A $49 sweep is a door-opener, not a price — the real number arrives once someone is already on your roof.
What's happening with your chimney?
Tell us what you notice — we'll tell you what it usually means here.
Why now
A booming market you can't read from the outside
Some of them are excellent. Some are a website and a badge. From your couch, they look identical.
What every chimney site here tells you
- “Five-star rated”Out of how many? Left when?
- “Licensed & insured”Still active? Insured for how much?
- “Family owned since 1998”Same owner? Same crew?
- “Free estimates”And the bill, once they're on your roof?
Four claims, no receipts. Going and getting the receipts — the licence, the dates, the complaints, the published price — is the whole job. See what we check
Why we exist
Choosing a chimney pro shouldn't be a gamble
Most homeowners pick from a stack of near-identical quotes and hope for the best. We do the digging instead — pulling every review, licence, complaint and price onto one honest scale that never bends — so the safe, warm hearth in your home comes from a pro you can actually trust.
- No company can pay for a better placeWe're not one of the companies bidding — nothing is for sale, no lead is auctioned.
- Every number has a dated, public sourceGoogle, BBB, WA L&I — open any company and check the receipts yourself.
- We measure, we don't chooseThe same eight measures for everyone, set before we looked at anyone. Including our own.
What we found
Best chimney companies in Seattle
Every company held to the same eight public measures — including the ones we have a stake in. Open any company to see every number and where it came from.
- 1Mad Hatter Chimney SweepPricing published · same-day response0/100Excellent
- 2Seattle Chimney ProsFull pricing published · same-day response0/100Excellent
- 3Emerald City ChimneyFull pricing published · 4.6★ (46 reviews)0/100Excellent
- 4Powers Chimney & Masonry4.7★ (51 reviews) · A+ BBB rating0/100Good
- 5Evergreen Chimney ProsSame-day response · licensed & insured0/100Good
- 6Ed's Chimney Sweep & MasonryFull pricing published · 4.7★ (124 reviews)0/100Good
- 7South Sound SweepsA+ BBB rating · licensed & insured0/100Good
- 8Next Level Chimney4.9★ (416 reviews) · A+ BBB rating0/100Good
- 9Chimney Pro SolutionsA- BBB rating · licensed & insured0/100Good
- 10ChimCareFull pricing published · 4.9★ (317 reviews)0/100Good
- 11The Right Choice Chimney ServiceA+ BBB rating0/100Good
- 12Professional Chimney SolutionsLicensed & insured0/100Good
- 13Safe Chimney5★ (550 reviews) · pricing published0/100Good
- 14The Chimney Specialists4.7★ (114 reviews) · A+ BBB rating0/100Good
- 15Pristine Sweeps4.9★ (57 reviews) · A+ BBB rating0/100Good
- 16Excel Chimney & Fireplace4.5★ (51 reviews) · A+ BBB rating0/100Good
- 17Midtown Chimney Sweeps4.9★ (96 reviews)0/100Fair
- 18Everett Fireplace & ChimneySame-day response · A+ BBB rating0/100Fair
How we know
Eight measures, published in full
We fixed these before we looked at a single company, and we never bend them to favor one — including our own. If a competitor scores higher, it places higher. Here they all are.
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Google rating
0%Average Google review rating, weighted by review volume.
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Technician quality
0%Field-technician quality inferred from the text of Google reviews (professionalism, cleanliness, competence).
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Public complaints
0%Volume and severity of publicly available complaints across the web. Every complaint cites a dated, linked source.
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BBB rating & resolution
0%Better Business Bureau letter grade and complaint-resolution record.
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Response time
0%Response/turnaround time the company advertises on its website.
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License & insurance
0%Verified WA L&I license and active insurance. Also drives the PASS/FAIL badge.
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Website accessibility
0%How usable the company's website is for people with disabilities — alt text, keyboard navigation, colour contrast and labelled forms (WCAG).
How it works
1. Tell us what you're seeing
Describe the symptom, not the service. Working out what you need is our job, not yours.
2. Understand the problem
We explain what it usually means on a Pacific-Northwest home — and what really decides the outcome.
3. See the record
Every company's numbers on what matters for your job, each with a dated source you can open.
4. Decide for yourself
You choose and contact them directly. No lead auction, nobody taking a cut in between.
Local expertise
Built for the Seattle climate
Seattle's damp air and long wet winters are hard on chimneys. The maintenance that actually protects a Pacific-Northwest home isn't the same as a dry climate — so we weight the criteria that matter here.
- 01~150 rainy days a yearDamp flues keep smoke cooler, so creosote condenses and builds up faster than in dry climates.
- 02Freeze–thaw cyclesWater soaks into porous masonry, then expands as it freezes — cracking crowns, caps and mortar joints.
- 03Moss & spalling brickConstant Pacific-Northwest moisture invites moss and flaking brick that only a thorough sweep catches early.
The point of it all
A chimney is a fire-safety system, not a photo op.
So we score the things you can't see from the driveway — the flue, the liner, the crown — and publish every number with its source.
Buyer beware
Deceptive practices to avoid
The cheapest quote is often the most expensive. Here’s what separates a real chimney pro from a sales trap.
The $49 “special”
A rock-bottom sweep price is bait. The real bill lands once they “find” problems mid-visit.
No license shown
If they won’t give a WA L&I number, walk away — it’s public and free to verify in a minute.
Pressure to reline everything
A full reline is rarely urgent. Beware fear-based upsells pushed on the very first visit.
Cash only, no invoice
No paper trail means no accountability — and no warranty if something goes wrong later.
No photos, no report
A real pro documents the flue before and after. “Just trust me” is not documentation.
Manufactured urgency
Real emergencies exist. High-pressure “sign today or else” tactics almost never do.
Popular chimney cleaning
Whatever your home needs, we measure every local company against the same criteria so you can compare like for like.
Chimney Cleaning
Remove soot, debris, and creosote for a safer home.
Chimney Repair
Fix cracks, leaks, and structural issues.
Chimney Inspection
Professional inspections for peace of mind.
Chimney Cap Installation
Protect your chimney from the elements.
Chimney Liner Installation
Improve efficiency and prevent hazards.
Questions
Everything you might be wondering
Yes. We don't sweep chimneys and we don't sell your job to the highest bidder. No company can pay for a higher rank — the score is the only thing that moves it.
Eight public criteria with fixed weights — price transparency, Google rating, technician quality, complaints, BBB, response time, license & insurance, and website accessibility. We set the weights before scoring anyone; they total 100 and never bend.
Public sources — Google, the BBB, WA L&I and review sites — with a dated link on every figure. Open any company and you can check the receipts yourself.
Completely free, with no obligation. You compare on the numbers, then contact whichever pro you want — we never charge you or gate the ranking.
Then it ranks lower — and we flag any relationship right on its row. The scale doesn't bend for anyone, ourselves included.