Ask five SEO providers for a price and you'll hear anything from $99 to $10,000 a month. The spread is real, but it isn't random: it follows how much work is actually being done, how competitive your searches are, and where the provider is based. Here's what the market charges, what each level usually buys, and how to tell a fair price from a cheap one.
- In Ahrefs' survey of 439 SEO providers, the average was $2,917 a month.
- The most common monthly retainer was $501 to $1,000, and 68.8% charged $2,000 a month or less.
- Agencies averaged $3,209 a month, freelancers $1,348.
- Local SEO averaged $1,557 a month, and the average hourly rate was $111.
- We charge $500-$2,000 a month, month-to-month, and a standalone audit is $500.
How SEO is priced
| Model | Typical price | How common |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly retainer | $501-$1,000 is the most common band; average $2,917 | 78.2% of providers |
| Per project | Agencies mostly $1,001+; freelancers often $101-$250 | 48.9% of providers |
| Hourly | Average $111; most common $100-$150 | Used alongside the others |
Source: Ahrefs' SEO pricing survey of 439 providers, last updated August 2024. Providers can use more than one model, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
For most small businesses the monthly retainer is the right model, because SEO compounds: each month's pages, fixes and links build on the last. A project fee suits one job with a clear end, like a site migration or a technical clean-up.
What each price level usually buys
- Under $500 a month. Reports, tools and light on-page tweaks. Little or no new content, and rarely any real link earning.
- $500 to $1,000. Focused local SEO or a small site: Google Business Profile, technical fixes and a few new or improved pages a month.
- $1,000 to $2,500. A steady content programme, ongoing technical work and outreach for links, enough for competitive local markets or narrow national searches.
- $2,500 and up. Larger sites, ecommerce catalogues and competitive national searches, with more content and more people on the account.
What changes the price
- Competition. Ranking for a lawyer or roofer in a big city takes far more work than ranking a niche service in a small town.
- Local or national. Local SEO averaged $1,557 a month in the Ahrefs survey, against $2,917 for SEO overall.
- Site size. An ecommerce catalogue with thousands of pages needs more technical work than a ten-page service site.
- Content volume. Writing is usually the biggest cost inside a retainer, so the number of pages a month moves the price most.
- Where the provider is. In the same survey, 79.1% of US and Canadian providers charged at least $1,001 a month, while 76% of India-based providers charged $1,000 or less.
- Experience. Providers with two or more years' experience charged about a third more.
The trouble with cheap SEO
The cheapest packages save money by leaving out the work that moves rankings: useful pages, technical fixes and links from real, relevant sites. Many make up the difference with bulk backlinks. Google's spam policies list buying or selling links for ranking purposes as link spam, and its guide to hiring an SEO warns that providers using techniques against those policies can cause a negative adjustment of your site's presence in Google.
The same guide is blunt about promises: no one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google, and you should be wary of anyone claiming a special relationship with Google or a priority submit. A low price paired with a guarantee is the clearest warning sign in this market.
Is SEO a monthly cost?
For most businesses, yes. On our accounts, the first movement, usually technical wins and new rankings on lower-competition searches, shows within the first 30 days, and meaningful traffic and lead growth typically lands around three to six months. The pages and links keep working after that, which is the difference from ads. Is SEO worth it for a small business has the sums for deciding whether to start.
Start with an audit
If you're not sure what's holding your site back, a one-off audit is a cheaper first step than a retainer. Ours is a $500 SEO audit: technical, content and local findings in writing, ranked by what they're costing you, with the fee credited against a monthly plan if you start one within 60 days.
How to compare quotes
Put the quotes side by side on what's included each month, not the headline price: how many pages are written or improved, which technical work is covered, how links are earned, who owns the content and the accounts, and what the report measures. How to choose an SEO company has the questions to ask, and what a digital marketing agency costs covers the other services if you're comparing a wider package.
Questions people ask
How much does SEO cost per month?
Ahrefs' survey of 439 SEO providers found an average of $2,917 a month. The most common monthly retainer was $501 to $1,000, and 68.8% of providers charged $2,000 a month or less. Agencies averaged $3,209 and freelancers $1,348.
How much does local SEO cost?
Less than national SEO. The same survey put local SEO at $1,557 a month on average: about $1,819 from agencies and $1,150 from freelancers. Competitive cities and multi-location businesses sit above that.
Why is some SEO so cheap?
Because it usually leaves out the expensive parts: writing useful pages, fixing technical problems and earning real links. Very cheap packages often sell bulk backlinks, and Google's spam policies count buying links for ranking purposes as link spam, which can hurt rather than help.
How much should a small business spend on SEO?
Enough to fund content and technical work every month, which for most small businesses means $500 to $2,000 a month. Local businesses in quieter markets sit at the lower end; ecommerce sites and competitive national searches need more.
Is SEO a one-time cost?
Rarely. A one-off audit or fix can solve specific problems, but rankings come from a steady supply of useful pages and links, and competitors keep working. Most providers charge a monthly retainer for that reason: 78.2% in the Ahrefs survey.
Can anyone guarantee SEO results?
No. Google's own guidance says no one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google, and warns against providers who claim a special relationship with Google or a priority submit. A credible provider gives you a realistic estimate and a timeline, not a guarantee.
Want a price for your site? Book a strategy call. We'll look at your site and your competition, and tell you what we'd do and what it would cost, whether or not you hire us.
