The short answer: For most local service businesses, ongoing local SEO runs $1,500 to $3,500 a month. In competitive metros or for multi-location companies, it runs $3,500 to $7,500 a month. The price depends mostly on how competitive your market is, how many locations and services you cover, and how much work your website and Google Business Profile still need. At Kelly Webmasters and Marketers the work is month-to-month with no long-term contract, and you own your site, content, and accounts.
Local SEO is ongoing work, not a one-time setup, so it is billed monthly. The fee covers the recurring tasks that keep a local business visible in Google's map results, in the regular results near you, and now in the AI answers people use to find a contractor. A typical plan includes some mix of:
Providers bundle these differently. Some focus almost entirely on the profile. Others treat it as one piece of a wider plan that also covers your website, your content, and how you appear in AI search. The broader the scope, the higher the fee. Measurement is part of what you pay for: first-party lead dashboards run on more than 20 of the sites we manage, so the monthly report can show real leads instead of ranking screenshots.
For most local service businesses, ongoing local SEO runs $1,500 to $3,500 a month. In competitive metros or for multi-location companies, it runs $3,500 to $7,500 a month. Those are the figures we publish and the figures we charge, and they sit in line with what serious local SEO costs across the industry.
You will see cheaper offers at $300 or $500 a month. At that price the work is usually thin: a few automated directory submissions, a canned report, and little else. In a market with real competition it rarely moves anything, and the months you spend waiting to learn that carry a cost of their own. At the other end, some agencies charge far more and lock you into a year-long contract to do it.
We do not work either way. Every plan is month-to-month, and you own your site, your content, and your accounts. If the work is not earning its keep, you are free to stop. That structure only makes sense if the work is worth paying for on its own each month, which is the standard we hold it to.
Two businesses in the same trade can land at very different prices. A few things move the number:
The monthly number assumes your website is already in decent shape. If it is not, a rebuild is a separate, one-time cost. Custom website builds run $3,500 to $12,000+ depending on size and complexity. It is often worth doing first, because local SEO sends people to your site, and a weak site wastes the visits it earns.
Paid advertising is a separate line too. Local SEO and Google Ads solve different problems: SEO builds visibility that keeps working after you stop paying for each click, while ads buy visibility today. Plenty of local businesses run both, using ads for immediate calls while the SEO matures. Ad management is usually priced as a flat monthly fee or a percentage of your ad spend. We quote a flat fee after a free consult, so you are not handing over a cut of every dollar you spend.
Doing it yourself is also an option, at least to start. Claiming your profile, gathering reviews, and keeping your listings consistent are within reach for most owners, and they cost time rather than money. The point where most businesses hire out is when the market is competitive enough that the work stops fitting into a spare hour a week.
Local SEO is not fast. It compounds: the pages, reviews, and links you build this quarter keep working next year. How long it takes to reach your leads depends on your market and your starting point, so anyone naming a specific date is guessing. We would rather be honest about that than sell you a timeline no one can control.
Whether the spend pays off comes down to your own math. If your average job is worth $3,000, a single extra job a month more than covers a mid-range plan. If your average ticket is $80, the case is harder, and paid ads or another channel may fit better. Run your real numbers before you commit to anything.
To get a figure for your own business, the quickest path is a short conversation about your market, your site, and your goals. You can also start on your own:
We are Orlando based and have worked with local service businesses nationwide since 2008. When you are ready, get a free mockup or call or text (407) 694-2055. No contract, no pressure.
No. Every plan is month-to-month, and you own your website, your content, and your accounts. If the work is not paying for itself, you can stop.
Regular SEO tries to rank you for searches anywhere. Local SEO focuses on people searching in your service area, plus your Google Business Profile and the map results. For a business that serves a specific area, local SEO is usually the priority.
They are priced differently, so it depends on your spend. Local SEO is a fixed monthly fee for ongoing work. With Google Ads you pay for the clicks plus a management fee, so your cost rises with how aggressive you want to be. Many local businesses run both.
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