Why is there such a wide range in SEO prices?

Because SEO is not one product. Prices differ with competition, site size, local versus national reach, how much content and technical work is needed, and who is doing it. The two sources on this page disagree by a lot, which is a sign of how different the slices of the market are.

Is cheap SEO a red flag?

Not always, but be careful. Very low prices often mean templated work, bought links or no reporting. Ask what you actually get each month and who does it, then judge the price against that.

Should I pay monthly, per project or by the hour?

Most providers (78.2% in Ahrefs’ survey) use a monthly retainer, because SEO builds over months. Projects suit audits and migrations, and hourly suits advice. Webtec uses a monthly plan, with a share of results for ads and CRO.

How long until I see results?

The typical SEO project on Clutch runs about 12 months. You can usually see leading signs, like more pages ranking and more impressions, earlier. We never promise a ranking, and we report from your own Search Console data every month.

What does Webtec’s SEO price include?

A Growth Manager, Project Manager, Specialist and dedicated team, the SEO work in your plan, and one plain-English report a month. There is no setup fee, and the proposal states the scope, term and exit before you sign.

Do you offer SEO and AEO together?

Yes, from $1,599 a month, which saves $599 compared with buying them separately.

What will you not do to rank my site?

We do not buy links, run parasite SEO, use blackhat tactics, fake reviews, or guarantee rankings. The full list is on our Who we work with page.

SEO cost guide

What does SEO really cost?

The honest market numbers from two published sources, how SEO pricing works, what moves your price, and exactly what we charge. Compare the scope, not just the number.

Our prices
The market
Pricing models
What moves it
Find your plan
Compare proposals
Questions

Average agency retainer^[1]

$3,209/mo

Webtec SEO starts from

$899/mo

Different scope, so compare what you get, not the headline.

WHAT WE CHARGE

Three plans, one team, no setup fee.

Starting prices. Each plan includes a Growth Manager, a Project Manager, a Specialist and a dedicated team.

SEO
$899/mo, from
- Keyword and page map by revenue
- Technical fixes and speed
- Content and internal links
- Monthly reporting you can read
See what is included
AEO
$1,299/mo, from
- Answer-first pages for real questions
- Structured data on every page
- Consistent profiles and citations
- Tracking of where you are named
See what is included
SEO + AEO
Best value
$1,599/mo, from
- Everything in SEO
- Everything in AEO
- One roadmap, one report
See what is included

THE MARKET

What SEO providers charge, from two sources.

Ahrefs surveyed 439 providers. Clutch publishes figures from its client reviews. They disagree, and that is the point: the market is wide.

Average monthly retainer, by provider^[1]

Freelancers$1,349
Agencies$3,209
Consultancies$3,250

Local SEO averaged $1,557 a month, against $3,474 for providers serving worldwide markets.^[1]

How many providers charge what^[1]

$501 to $1,000 a month20.4%
$501 to $2,000 a month42.8%
$2,000 a month or less68.8%

The most common retainer is $501 to $1,000 a month. Overall, 63% of buyers spend $500 to $5,000.^[1]

$3,199^[2]

Average monthly cost on Clutch

Agencies there typically charge $2,000 to $20,000 a month.

$100 to $149^[2]

Hourly rate most agencies charge

Per Clutch, for local SEO and content work.

About 12 months^[2]

Typical SEO project length

SEO compounds over time, so the first months are groundwork.

Read these as direction. Both sources are published by organisations that sell to the same market, the Clutch figures come from reviews rather than a formal survey, and an average hides the businesses paying far less or far more.

HOW SEO IS PRICED

Three ways to pay, and which one fits.

78.2%^[1]
of providers use it
Monthly retainer
Ongoing work for a fixed monthly fee. Best for results that build over months.
48.9%^[1]
of providers use it
Per project
A fixed fee for a defined piece, such as an audit or a site migration.
34.8%^[1]
of providers use it
Hourly
Pay for time. Suits advice and small fixes, but gives no one a reason to finish early.

Webtec works on a monthly plan with a starting price, a written term and no setup fee. Ads and conversion work add a small share of the results, so we do well when you do. See all of our prices.

WHAT MOVES THE PRICE

Six things that make SEO cost more or less.

This is why two quotes for the same site can be far apart. Ask each provider how they have read your situation.

How competitive your market isRanking for “accountant” in a big city costs more effort than ranking for a niche service in a small town.
The size of your siteMore pages to fix, write and link means more hours, especially if the site has years of technical debt.
Local or nationalLocal SEO is usually cheaper than national or worldwide work, which fights for far more searches.
How fast you want resultsMore content and more links in less time costs more. SEO compounds, so patience is the cheapest lever.
What state the site is inA site with crawl errors, slow pages or a messy migration needs fixing before anything else can work.
Whether AI search is includedBeing named in AI answers adds structured data, answer-ready pages and profile work on top of classic SEO.

FIND YOUR PLAN

Tell us the goal, see where we start.

Pick what you want SEO to do and we will show the plan and starting price that fits.

What do you want SEO to do?

Where Webtec starts

SEO

$899/month, from

Keyword and page map, technical fixes, content and links, with one report a month.

See what is included All prices

Starting prices. Your proposal sets the scope, term and final price after research.

Compare proposals

Eight questions to ask every SEO provider.

1What exactly will you do each month, in a list?
2Who does the work, and can I speak to them?
3How will you report, and in what language?
4Which numbers will you measure from, and who agrees them?
5How long is the term, and how do I exit?
6What do you do about links, and will you ever buy them?
7What happens if the results are slower than planned?
8Do I own the content, the accounts and the data?

Red flags

A guaranteed ranking or a guaranteed number-one spot
Link packages, or being unable to say where links come from
No monthly report, or a report full of jargon
No named person you can call
A long lock-in with no clear way out

We turn this kind of work down. See what we will not do on Who we work with.

QUESTIONS

SEO pricing, answered.

Question 1 of 8

How much does SEO cost per month?

It depends on the provider and the scope. Ahrefs’ survey of 439 SEO providers found agencies average $3,209 a month and freelancers $1,349, with 63% of buyers spending $500 to $5,000. Clutch puts the average at $3,199. Webtec’s SEO starts from $899 a month, with AEO from $1,299 and both from $1,599.

SOURCES

Where the numbers come from.

Both are read from the original pages. Check them yourself.

1How much does SEO cost? (survey of 439 SEO providers)AhrefsSource: Updated August 15, 2024 (as the page states)Average retainers by provider type, the spread of monthly retainers, hourly rates, local versus worldwide pricing and the share of providers using each pricing model. Page shows "Updated: August 15, 2024".Open the source
2SEO pricing guideClutchSource: Updated September 21, 2026 (as the page states)Agencies on Clutch typically charge $2,000 to $20,000 a month, the average monthly cost is $3,199, most agencies charge $100 to $149 an hour, typical projects run about 12 months, and most reviewed SEO projects cost under $10,000. A database of client reviews, not a formal survey.Open the source