Most of the data people pay for is published free by government. The genuine costs sit in a short list — official copies, searches, surveys and professional advice — and knowing which is which saves more than any discount code.
Free, cheap, and genuinely worth paying for
| Item | Cost | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| Sold prices, EPC, council tax band, flood rating, recorded crime, planning records | Free | Never pay for these — they are open government data |
| INSPIRE index polygons (indicative boundaries) | Free | Open Government Licence; needs GIS software to open |
| Title register or plan, downloaded | £7 each | Buy direct from GOV.UK |
| Official copy of a title document by post | £11 per document | Only when you need an official copy |
| Conveyancing searches | Varies by council and pack | Necessary; ordered by your conveyancer |
| Survey (level 2 or 3) | Hundreds of pounds | The best money in the whole transaction on an older property |
The pattern to watch for is a service charging for a repackaged free dataset without saying where it came from. If a report will not name its sources and their dates, you cannot check it, and you are paying for presentation.
The things genuinely worth paying for share a feature: a person takes professional responsibility for the answer. A surveyor and a conveyancer carry liability; a dataset does not.
Check it yourself, free
Start with the free checks — no account, no email wall.
Sources
- GOV.UK — Search for property information
- GOV.UK — INSPIRE index polygons
- GOV.UK — About the Price Paid Data
Related
- Getting title documents: buy them direct from GOV.UK
- Free property checks here vs the official services
- The free checks to run before you offer
- All free tools
Last reviewed: 2026-09-20. We check these against the linked official sources and re-date the page when they change.