How Expensive is SEO? A 2023 Price Guide for SEO Services

Search engine optimization remains an essential component of digital marketing. Search is the main driver behind online traffic, and the only way to top the Google charts is with a strong SEO strategy. While most business owners are aware of this situation, there’s one key point that is less known: SEO costs.

The uncertainty that surrounds SEO prices leaves a lot of companies hesitant to invest in this digital marketing tactic correctly. They might perform a little keyword researchKeyword research helps websites unearth the best keywords to drive traffic and visibility. This research is supported by a number of powerful web-based tools, the best of which we’ve listed here. here and write some content there, but they never go all-in with their strategy. That’s not good – and it leads to these organizations missing out on valuable organic trafficOrganic search traffic (sometimes called natural or unpaid search) is the traffic that's driven to a website because of unpaid placement on a search engine results page..

If you are also confused by SEO pricing, this guide is here to help.

As an expert provider of everything from small business to enterprise SEO, it’s fair to say we know a thing or two about the cost of search engine optimization. Along with having to put together a pricing structure for our SEO services, we have to stay in the loop with how much other SEO agencies are charging. Otherwise, we would be left in the dark, just like you right now!

However, it’s time to shine a light on the confusion. It’s time to get a clearer idea about how much do SEO services cost in 2023.

How much does SEO cost?

We’d love to give you a quick, straightforward answer right now. We really would. However, there’s nothing straightforward when trying to describe the cost of SEO services. Business size, competition, and goals – these all play a key role in how much you’d splash out on SEO. Different agencies will also have different SEO plans and pricing.

When it comes to SEO services pricing, this is often done with a monthly model. You will also see SEO package prices in certain situations.

According to Ahrefs, the average cost of SEO sits between $501 to $1,000 per month. That’s accounting for businesses of all sizes, regardless of their overall goals of optimizing their websites for search. As you would expect, a small local business will typically spend a lot less on SEO compared to a multinational organization.

So, how much does search engine optimization cost? It’s not easy to answer without knowing basic details about your business. This is why it is recommended to use our SEO consultancy service for a clearer idea about specific pricing for your business.

Before that, we have broken down general SEO rates depending on company size.

Read more: What is an SEO Consultant?

How much does SEO cost for a small business?

99.9% of businesses fall within the “small” bracket, which means this is the section of interest for most.

As for the average cost of SEO for small business outlets, this will typically fall around the $750 to $2,000 mark per month. Keep in mind this SEO price is for a fully managed service. It’s not just technical SEO website optimization, for example, but also keywordKeywords are the words and phrases that potential customers might search for to find your business. research, link buildingLink building is a process of acquiring links pointing to your website. These links are obtained by creating content, participating in social media or commenting on other blogs., content creation, and other key tasks necessary for climbing the Google SERPs.

Of course, this cost can go up or down depending on your needs, industry, and competition. However, a high-quality SEO solution that includes all the necessary components will usually start from $500 per month. If you see SEO pricing plans that fall below this rate, chances are you are seeing a deal that’s ‘too good to be true’.

Remember, a lot of effort and SEO specialists are required for a coherent, effective search strategy! To put it into perspective, here’s a look at what is needed with SEO for SMEs.

How much does local SEO cost?

As an extension of the previous section, you might also be wondering how local SEOLocal SEO is the process of optimizing your website to rank on the 1st page of Google for a search term and geographic location that is relevant to your business. pricing works. In general, local SEO costs fall within the same bracket as the aforementioned small business pricing.

Again, this is dependent on various factors. If you operate in an industry that is relatively easy to conquer from a marketing point of view, you could see local SEO package pricing fall around the $500 per month mark.

Rather than guess local SEO services pricing, however, you can utilize our SEO audit services. We will be able to look at your current website and its search performance, compare it against the local competition, and put together the necessary budget to achieve your SEO goals.

How much does SEO cost for a medium-sized business?

As the business grows in size, the SEO needs grow at the same rate. As a result, it shouldn’t be a surprise the SEO cost per month is higher on average for medium-sized companies. While $2,000 per month is at the high end for small businesses, this is the average cost for a medium-sized organization.

The extra cost, as you would expect, brings more to the table from an SEO perspective. The keyword research is more thorough, the on-page optimization more comprehensive, and the link building more generous. This all helps give a medium-sized business the added edge necessary to compete for the top Google spots.

Read more: Link Building vs Managed SEO

Of course, SEO agency pricing can go far beyond the average of around $2,000 monthly for medium enterprises. Say you operate in a highly competitive sector. If you opt for a full-service national SEO campaign, you could be looking at upwards of $5,000 or even $10,000 per month to conquer your industry in the search arms race.

How much does SEO cost for large businesses?

How much is SEO for a large company? Unsurprisingly the average cost goes up significantly compared to mid-sized organizations. This typically has a monthly cost of $5,000. The added cost brings the SEO work up to another level. More high-quality backlinks are acquired, website architecture is further refined, competitive analysis is more detailed, and so on.

As with SMEs, the SEO pricing for a large business can vary drastically – even more so in this case. If a market is highly competitive, a large company will be spending a five-figure sum each month if they want to battle for the best search results against their rivals realistically.

SEO pricing models

Search engine optimization pricing is structured differently depending on the model used. The standard models used are as follows:

• Monthly retainer based on agreed deliverables
• Monthly retainer that has no deliverables attached
• Per project
• Hourly rates

With an SEO retainer, it is essential you pick one that is based on deliverables. For instance, if an agency says they will deliver 20 new backlinks per month, they have to complete this agreed number and report it to you.

As for SEO package pricing per project, this generally involves a one-time payment for an agreed amount of SEO work. For example, this could be for rewriting a website’s pages and getting 50 backlinks. Regarding SEO charges per project, this set fee can start anywhere from $500 to $5,000 or more.

Some consultants decide to work with an hourly pricing model. Individual SEO experts or small agencies mostly utilize this type of model. As for an SEO consultant’s hourly rate, this will usually be between $75 to $150.

Read more: What is an SEO Expert?

Search engine optimization prices per service

What if your SEO budget is limited? What if you only need assistance with certain aspects of SEO? In some cases, many small businesses won’t have much money to spend on digital marketing. Some companies also take a proactive approach and continually work on their SEO efforts.

In such scenarios, a business can opt for a specific SEO service rather than a fully managed package. Here’s a quick breakdown of how much some of these individual SEO services cost:

You might decide to conduct a website migration for a stronger SEO foundation. Although it’s a one-time task – hopefully – it involves a lot of delicate work. Our pricing for a website migration starts from $563.

As for standard initial tasks like keyword research and a website audit, the SEO service cost for these typically starts from $500 and goes up to $2,000 for more comprehensive results. Usually, the SEO services price for these won’t deviate much regardless of the agency you choose.

That situation changes drastically with link building. For instance, our more affordable prices begin at $64 per link and go up to $275, depending on quality and volume. Other agencies can charge as much as $4,000+ for a single high authority link.

Conclusion

SEO is not cheap. With so much up for grabs, businesses are willing to invest a lot to reach the first page of Google search results. While some agencies are not transparent about search engine optimization costs, we’re different. Along with the above information, we provide clear pricing information about our individual SEO services.

For more information about our comprehensive SEO packages pricing, contact us today for a free consultation to learn how our fully managed SEO solution can help your business.