What should a lead cost in your industry, and are your ads overpaying? Pick your business type to see typical cost per lead, then drop in your spend and leads to find out exactly where you stand. Free, instant, no signup.
Enter your monthly spend and leads on the left and we will calculate your real cost per lead and compare it to the benchmark.
Benchmarks are planning estimates from typical local accounts, not a quote. Real cost per lead depends on your market, your ads, and your follow-up. Want your true local number? Get a free audit below.
Benchmarks are a starting point. We'll look at your actual account or your market, find what is driving your cost per lead up, and show you what a tighter setup could deliver. No cost, no obligation.
These are the ranges we commonly see for paid search leads across local service and e-commerce accounts. Use them as a sanity check, not a guarantee. Your real number depends on your market, your competition, and how well your ads and landing page are built.
| Industry | Lower end | Typical | Higher end |
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These reflect Google Search leads. Local Services Ads (the pay-per-lead Google Guaranteed units) often run lower per lead. E-commerce figures are cost per online purchase rather than cost per lead.
A good cost per lead is one that is comfortably less than the profit you make from the jobs those leads turn into. For a roofer whose average job is worth thousands, a lead at a hundred dollars or more can be very profitable. For a low-ticket service, the same lead price would not work. The benchmark above gives a typical range by industry, but the real test is your own economics.
The biggest levers are tighter keyword and audience targeting, ruthless negative keywords so you stop paying for irrelevant clicks, a faster and clearer landing page, and quick follow-up so more leads actually convert. Most accounts that feel expensive are leaking budget in one or more of these areas, which is exactly what a free audit looks for.
Common causes are bidding on broad terms that attract tire-kickers, no negative keyword list, a slow or confusing landing page, weak conversion tracking that hides what is working, and competitors bidding up your market. The fix is rarely just spending more. It is usually cleaning up where the budget goes.
They are reasonable starting points for the Salt Lake City and broader Utah market, where we focus. Costs still vary by city, season, and how crowded your specific service is. For a number based on your real zip codes and competitors, get the free audit.