Key takeaways
- There are two costs: the agency's management fee and your ad spend, which goes to Google.
- Your ad budget depends on your market, competition and goals.
- Good management includes tracking, landing pages and ongoing optimization.
- You should always own your ad account.
When businesses ask what Google Ads costs, they're really asking two questions: what the agency charges to run the ads, and how much to spend on the ads themselves. Here's how both work.
1. Two separate costs
- Management fee: what you pay the agency to set up, run and improve your campaigns.
- Ad spend: what you pay Google for clicks or leads. This should go directly to Google from your own account.
2. What affects the price
- How competitive your industry is and what clicks cost.
- How many services and areas you want to target.
- Whether you also need Local Service Ads, landing pages or call tracking.
3. What good management includes
- Campaign setup around your best services and towns.
- Call and form tracking so you know what each lead costs.
- Landing pages that match each ad.
- Regular keyword, budget and bid adjustments.
- Clear monthly reporting on leads and cost per lead.
4. Our pricing
| Package | Starting at | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Facebook & Instagram Ads | $500/month plus ad spend | Strategy, ad creative, lead alerts and instant text back |
| SEO + Website + Facebook Ads | $750/month plus ad spend | Our most popular package |
| Google Ads + SEO | $1,000/month plus ad spend | Google Ads, Local Service Ads, Google profile, basic SEO and call tracking |
Starting prices for new clients. Ad spend is paid directly to Google or Meta. Exact pricing is confirmed before any work begins. See our pricing page.
Our Google Ads package includes Local Service Ads setup and management, a Google profile buildout, basic SEO and call tracking. We recommend a starting ad budget on your strategy call.
5. Is it worth it?
It's worth it when the jobs it brings in are worth more than what you spend. Use our break even calculator to see how many jobs a month cover the cost. Related: when to hire a Google Ads agency.
