Last Updated on June 25, 2026
What to Spend and Where
Executive summary
Most builders get their work through word of mouth and assume that is enough. It works until it doesn’t. One quiet month, one lost referral partner, and the pipeline dries up with nothing behind it.
This page breaks down what each marketing channel actually costs for UK builders in 2026, from Google Ads to Checkatrade to SEO. Every figure is based on real UK pricing data, not agency estimates. If you are spending money on marketing, this will tell you whether you are paying a fair price. If you are spending nothing, it will show you what a sensible starting budget looks like.
Key facts
Key takeaways
- A sole trader builder can run effective marketing for £250 to £600 per month. Most of that should go to Google Ads and Google Business Profile optimisation before anything else.
- Google Ads CPCs for builder keywords range from £3 to £8 for standard terms, with extension and loft conversion keywords at the higher end due to job values.
- Google Local Services Ads deliver cost per lead 20 to 40% lower than standard search ads for builders, with typical CPL of £15 to £45.
- Your Google Business Profile is free and is the single most underused marketing channel for builders. Before spending on ads, optimise this properly with project photos and reviews.
- A professional website costs £2,000 to £5,000 for builders and should showcase completed projects with before/after photography. Without it, your ads have nowhere credible to send traffic.
How to read this page
This is a reference page, not a blog post. Jump to the section that matters to you.
If you want to know what Google Ads costs for builders, go to Section 3. If you want SEO and website costs, go to Section 4. If you’re looking at platforms and directories, go to Section 5. For budget templates, skip to Section 6. If you want to know what to avoid, go to Section 7.
All figures are in GBP and reflect UK market data as of early 2026.
Google Ads costs
Google Ads puts you in front of homeowners actively looking for a builder. The cost varies significantly depending on whether someone is searching for a small repair or a major extension. High-value project keywords cost more per click but the return per converted lead is substantially higher.
Cost per click by keyword
| Keyword | Average CPC | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| builder near me | £3 – £7 | High volume, broad intent |
| builders [city] | £3 – £6 | Local intent, competitive in cities |
| loft conversion [city] | £5 – £12 | High job value (£27,500 – £75,000), worth the CPC |
| house extension builder | £4 – £10 | Very high job value (£55,000 – £110,000) |
| kitchen fitter near me | £3 – £8 | Good conversion, £12,000 – £42,000 job value |
| bathroom renovation [city] | £3 – £7 | £7,000 – £18,000 job value |
| local builders | £2 – £5 | Broad, needs tight location targeting |
| garage conversion builder | £3 – £8 | Growing search term, good margins |
Cost Per Lead (Local Services Ads)
20-40% cheaper than standard search ads, with Google Guaranteed badge building trust
What to budget
Most builders start with £400 to £1,200 per month in Google Ads spend. At the lower end, focus exclusively on high-value project keywords (extensions, loft conversions) in a tight geographic area. At the higher end, you can include kitchen fitting, bathroom renovation, and general builder terms.
The maths on extensions: if your average extension project is worth £65,000 and you close 1 in 4 qualified leads, and each lead costs £30 through LSAs, you are spending £120 to win a £65,000 job. That is a return most businesses would accept.
Watch out
Builder keywords attract a lot of irrelevant traffic: people looking for Minecraft builders, bodybuilders, CV builders, and website builders. Your negative keyword list needs to be comprehensive from day one, or you will waste 30 to 50% of your budget.
SEO and website costs
SEO for builders is a long-term investment that pays off significantly for businesses targeting high-value projects. A page ranking for “loft conversion [city]” can generate enquiries worth hundreds of thousands of pounds over a year.
Local SEO Retainer
Ongoing local SEO including Google Business Profile, project content, and citations
Website Build
Professional builder website with project galleries and location pages
What you get for the money
| Service | Cost | What It Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Google Business Profile optimisation | Free (DIY) or £150 – £400 one-off | Project photos, service descriptions, review strategy, category setup |
| Local citation building | £150 – £400 one-off | Listings on Yell, Thomson, FreeIndex, Houzz, and 30+ directories |
| Monthly local SEO | £400 – £1,000/mo | GBP management, project case studies, local content, review generation |
| Website build | £2,000 – £5,000 | 8 to 15 page site with project galleries, service area pages, contact forms |
| Website maintenance | £40 – £100/mo | Hosting, security updates, adding new project photos |
The biggest missed opportunity for builders is project photography. A gallery of completed extensions, loft conversions, and renovations with before/after images does more for your conversion rate than any amount of ad spend. Invest in professional photography for your best projects.
Platform and directory costs
For builders, trade platforms serve two purposes: lead generation and credibility. The biggest platforms in the UK building market are Checkatrade, MyBuilder, Bark, and Houzz for higher-end residential work.
| Platform | Cost Model | Typical Cost | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Checkatrade | Monthly membership | £50 – £120+/mo | Trust building, reviews, smaller jobs |
| MyBuilder | Per shortlist | £5 – £50 per shortlist | Larger projects, extensions, conversions |
| Bark | Credit-based | £1.10 per credit, 8-12 credits per lead | Volume of enquiries across job types |
| Houzz | Free + premium | Free listing, premium from £50/mo | Higher-end residential, design-led projects |
| Rated People | Per lead | £5 – £25 per lead | Mix of small and medium jobs |
The platform trap
Platforms are most useful when you are building a reputation. Once you have 30+ reviews and a solid Google Business Profile, the return on platform spend often declines relative to investing in your own website and SEO. The builders who grow fastest use platforms as a launch pad, not a permanent strategy.
Budget templates by business size
Building marketing budgets should scale with your team size and the value of projects you are targeting.
Sole trader (1 person, handyman to small builds)
| Channel | Monthly Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Google Business Profile | Free | Essential. Optimise with project photos. |
| Google Ads (local keywords) | £150 – £350 | Focus on “[service] near me” terms |
| Checkatrade or MyBuilder | £50 – £100 | Build early reviews and credibility |
| Website hosting + maintenance | £40 – £60 | Assuming website already built |
| Total | £240 – £510/mo |
Small team (2-5 employees)
| Channel | Monthly Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Google Business Profile | Free | Active management, weekly photo updates |
| Google Ads | £500 – £1,200 | Extension, loft conversion, kitchen keywords |
| Local SEO retainer | £400 – £700 | Monthly content, project case studies |
| Platform (Checkatrade/MyBuilder) | £75 – £150 | Premium listing for larger jobs |
| Social media (project photos) | Free – £150 | Instagram/Facebook with finished projects |
| Total | £975 – £2,200/mo |
Growing business (6+ employees, multiple projects)
| Channel | Monthly Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Google Ads | £1,200 – £3,000 | Multiple campaign types, broader coverage |
| SEO retainer | £700 – £1,500 | Full local SEO + project content strategy |
| Social media management | £300 – £600 | Regular posting, ad boosting, video content |
| Professional photography | £100 – £250 | Monthly shoot of completed projects |
| Email marketing | £50 – £100 | Past customer nurturing, referral campaigns |
| Total | £2,350 – £5,450/mo |
Red flags and wasted spend
Red flag 1: No project photography
If your website and Google Business Profile do not have professional photos of completed projects, you are losing leads to competitors who do. Homeowners spending £30,000 to £100,000 on an extension want to see evidence of quality work before they pick up the phone.
Red flag 2: Generic website with no location pages
A builder serving Birmingham, Solihull, and Wolverhampton needs separate pages for each area. A single “we cover the West Midlands” page will not rank for any of those individual locations. Create specific service area pages with local project examples.
Red flag 3: Paying for leads you cannot service
If you are running Google Ads for extensions when your team is already booked for 3 months, you are paying for leads you will lose. Pause campaigns when capacity is full and restart when you have availability. Wasted leads also damage your Google Ads quality score.
Red flag 4: No reviews strategy for high-value work
A builder with 5 Google reviews competing against one with 80 reviews will lose every time, regardless of quality. After every completed project, ask for a detailed review mentioning the project type and location. “Great loft conversion in Harborne” is worth ten times more than “Good builder.”
Red flag 5: Spending on social media before fixing Google
Instagram and Facebook are useful for builders, but they are awareness channels, not lead generation channels. If your Google Business Profile is not optimised and you have no website, social media spend is premature. Fix the foundations first.
Offline marketing costs
Offline marketing still plays a meaningful role for builders, particularly site signage and vehicle branding which generate awareness in the areas where you are already working.
| Channel | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Site boards / hoardings | £50 – £200 per board | Branded boards at every project site. The best passive marketing for builders. |
| Vehicle livery | £400 – £2,000 per van | Professional branding with website and phone number. |
| Leaflet drops | £50 – £200 per 1,000 | Target streets around active project sites. |
| Local sponsorship | £200 – £1,000/year | Sports teams, community events. Brand awareness, not direct leads. |
| Trade shows / home shows | £500 – £2,000 per event | Local home improvement shows. Good for high-value project leads. |
The most effective offline tactic for builders is site signage. Every active project is a billboard in a residential area full of potential customers. A well-designed board with your name, phone number, and website costs under £100 and sits there for weeks or months.
Methodology
This page is based on a combination of publicly available UK market data, platform pricing, Google Ads benchmarking data, and agency fee research.
Sources include:
- Google Ads Keyword Planner data for UK builder search terms (2025-2026)
- Published pricing from Checkatrade, MyBuilder, Bark, Houzz, and Rated People
- Publicly listed pricing from UK web design agencies and SEO providers
- Google Ads benchmarking data for the UK home improvement sector
- Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) building cost data
- Federation of Master Builders (FMB) industry reports
All prices are in GBP and were accurate as of May 2026. Costs may vary by region, with London and the South East typically 20 to 40 percent higher than the national average.
Whito is not affiliated with any of the platforms, agencies, or tools mentioned on this page.
About Whito
Whito helps UK businesses figure out what’s working and what’s not in their marketing. We’re not an agency and we don’t manage marketing campaigns for builders. We publish independent research, tools, and audits designed to give business owners the information they need to make better decisions about where to spend their marketing budget.
We built this page because too many builders are either spending nothing on marketing and relying entirely on word of mouth, or they’re paying agencies without knowing whether the price is fair. This page gives you the numbers so you can make your own call.
Common questions
How much does marketing cost for a UK builder in 2026?
A sole trader builder can run effective marketing for £250 to £600 per month. Most of that should go to Google Ads and Google Business Profile optimisation before anything else.
What should a UK builder avoid when paying for marketing?
Google Ads CPCs for builder keywords range from £3 to £8 for standard terms, with extension and loft conversion keywords at the higher end due to job values.
Where should a UK builder focus its marketing budget?
Google Local Services Ads deliver cost per lead 20 to 40% lower than standard search ads for builders, with typical CPL of £15 to £45.
