Last Updated on May 21, 2026
Executive Summary
Most UK roofers either spend nothing on marketing or spend money in the wrong places. This page breaks down what each marketing channel actually costs for a roofing business, what you should expect to pay at different stages of growth, and where the best returns come from.
The single most important insight: storm-responsive marketing, where you increase your Google Ads budget during bad weather, can multiply your lead volume by five. Roofing is uniquely seasonal, and the businesses that adjust their spend to match demand patterns consistently outperform those that set a flat monthly budget and forget about it.
Key Takeaways
- A sole trader can run effective marketing for £200 to £600 per month. The key is spending it in the right places.
- Google Ads CPCs for roofing keywords range from £3 to £20, with emergency keywords costing the most.
- Checkatrade costs £600 to £1,200 per year plus lead fees. Track your ROI or you’re flying blind.
- Before-and-after photos taken on a phone cost nothing and are one of the most effective marketing tools a roofer can use.
- Storm-responsive marketing, increasing Google Ads budget during bad weather, can 5x your lead volume during peak periods.
- Don’t buy an expensive website before you have 30+ Google reviews. The reviews matter more.
How to Read This Page
This is a pricing reference for UK roofing businesses, not a blog post. Jump to the section that matters to you.
If you want to know how much Google Ads costs for roofers, go to Section 4. If you want a ready-made budget template, skip to Section 8. If you want to know what not to do, the Red Flags section is worth reading first.
All figures are in GBP and reflect UK market pricing as of early 2026.
Budget by Business Size
What you should spend on marketing depends on the size of your business, your growth ambitions, and how much you currently rely on referrals. These ranges represent realistic monthly budgets for UK roofing businesses at each stage.
| Business Size | Monthly Budget | What This Covers |
|---|---|---|
| Sole Trader | £200 – £600/mo | Google Business Profile optimisation, basic Google Ads, review generation, phone photos |
| Small Team (2-4) | £600 – £1,500/mo | Google Ads, Checkatrade, basic SEO, Facebook ads, leaflet drops |
| Growing Company (5-10) | £1,500 – £4,000/mo | SEO retainer, scaled Google Ads, professional photography, video content, multiple channels |
| Established Company (10+) | £4,000+/mo | Full marketing strategy, SEO, PPC, content, brand building, multiple service areas |
Monthly Marketing Budget by Business Size (£)
Google Ads Costs for Roofers
Google Ads is the fastest way for a roofing business to get in front of homeowners who are actively looking for help. But the cost per click varies significantly depending on the keyword, the location, and the level of competition.
| Keyword | Typical CPC | Intent Level |
|---|---|---|
| “Roofer near me” | £5 – £12 | High. Ready to hire. |
| “Emergency roof repair [city]” | £10 – £20 | Very high. Urgent need, willing to pay premium. |
| “Flat roof replacement [city]” | £6 – £14 | High. Planned project, comparing options. |
| “Roof repair [city]” | £4 – £10 | High. Active problem, seeking solution. |
| “New roof cost [city]” | £3 – £8 | Medium. Research phase, not yet committed. |
CPCs based on UK Google Ads auction data, Q1 2026. Actual costs vary by city, competition, and quality score.
Google Ads CPC by Keyword Type (£, midpoint)
Emergency keywords cost more because the person searching has a leak right now. They’re not comparing three quotes over two weeks. They’re calling the first roofer who looks trustworthy. If your ad is there with good reviews behind it, the conversion rate can be significantly higher than for planned work.
SEO and Website Costs
A website and SEO are long-term investments. Unlike Google Ads, where you pay per click and stop getting leads the moment you stop paying, SEO builds an asset that generates enquiries over months and years.
| Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Website Build | £1,500 – £5,000 | 5-10 page site with gallery, testimonials, service pages. More for custom design. |
| SEO Retainer | £500 – £1,800/mo | Monthly optimisation, content, link building, local SEO management. |
For most roofing businesses, a website in the £2,000 to £3,000 range is the sweet spot. It should load fast, look professional on mobile, show your work, display your reviews and certifications, and make it easy to get in touch.
SEO retainers vary widely. For a local roofing business targeting one or two towns, £500 to £800 per month is reasonable. For a company targeting multiple cities or competing in a dense urban area, £1,000 to £1,800 per month is more realistic.
Trade Directories: Checkatrade and MyBuilder
Trade directories are where many roofers start because they offer leads without needing a website or marketing knowledge. But they come with costs that add up, and the leads are shared with competitors.
| Platform | Annual Cost | Lead Model | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Checkatrade | £600 – £1,200/year | Subscription + lead fees | Fixed annual cost plus additional fees for leads in some categories |
| MyBuilder | Varies | Per-lead: £10 – £30 | Pay per lead. You only pay for the leads you express interest in. |
Both platforms can deliver good leads, but the key issue is dependency. If Checkatrade is your only source of work, you’re entirely at the mercy of their pricing decisions and algorithm changes. Use directories as one channel among several, not as your entire marketing strategy.
Other Marketing Channels
Beyond Google Ads and trade directories, several other channels deliver results for roofing businesses. Some cost almost nothing. Others require meaningful investment but can differentiate you from competitors.
| Channel | Cost | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Before/After Photography (phone) | £0 | Website, social media, Google profile. Free and highly effective. |
| Before/After Photography (professional) | £200 – £500 per session | Premium website content, case studies, print materials. |
| Facebook Local Ads | £200 – £600/mo | Visual before/after content. Particularly effective for roofing. |
| Van Signage | £500 – £2,000 | Local brand awareness. One-off cost, works every day your van is on the road. |
| Leaflet Drops | £200 – £400 per 5,000 | Post-storm areas. Target streets with visible roof damage. |
| Drone Roof Survey Videos | £200 – £500 per video | Sales tool, website content, social proof. Impressive and differentiating. |
Monthly Cost by Channel (£, midpoint)
Facebook Ads for Roofers
Facebook is particularly effective for roofing because the work is so visual. Before-and-after transformations stop people scrolling. A roofer posting a dramatic re-roof with good photos can generate significant local engagement and enquiries for £200 to £600 per month in ad spend.
The key is targeting. Run ads within a 15-20 mile radius of where you work, target homeowners aged 30+, and use real photos from your own jobs. Stock photos of generic roofs do not work.
Van Signage
Van signage is one of the most underrated marketing channels for roofers. A well-branded van parked on a residential street while you work is a daily advertisement to every neighbour who walks past. The one-off cost of £500 to £2,000 pays for itself many times over.
Budget Templates
These three templates give you a starting point based on your monthly budget. They prioritise the highest-impact activities first and add channels as budget allows.
Starter Budget: Under £500/month
| Item | Monthly Cost | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Google Business Profile optimisation | £0 (your time) | Essential |
| Before/after photos (phone) | £0 (your time) | Essential |
| Google Ads (self-managed) | £200 – £400 | Essential |
| Review generation system | £0 (your time) | Essential |
| Total | £200 – £400 |
Growth Budget: £500 – £1,500/month
| Item | Monthly Cost | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Google Ads (managed) | £400 – £800 | Essential |
| Checkatrade subscription | £50 – £100 | Recommended |
| Facebook local ads | £200 – £400 | Recommended |
| Leaflet drops (seasonal) | £100 – £200 | Optional |
| Total | £750 – £1,500 |
Scale Budget: £1,500+/month
| Item | Monthly Cost | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Google Ads (managed, storm-responsive) | £600 – £1,500 | Essential |
| SEO retainer | £500 – £1,000 | Essential |
| Facebook ads | £300 – £600 | Recommended |
| Professional photography (quarterly) | £75 – £125 | Recommended |
| Drone video content (quarterly) | £75 – £125 | Optional |
| Checkatrade | £50 – £100 | Optional |
| Total | £1,600 – £3,450 |
Red Flags in Roofer Marketing Spend
These are the most common ways roofing businesses waste their marketing budget. If any of these apply to you, fix them before spending more.
- Paying Checkatrade without tracking ROI. If you don’t know how many of your Checkatrade leads turn into actual jobs, you have no idea whether it’s worth the cost. Track every lead source so you can compare what each one actually costs you per job won.
- Running Google Ads at the same budget year-round. Roofing demand spikes during storms and drops in summer. If you’re spending the same amount in July as you are in November, you’re overspending in quiet months and underspending when demand is highest.
- Buying an expensive website before getting Google reviews. A £5,000 website with 3 reviews will lose to a £1,500 website with 60 reviews. Get the reviews first. They cost nothing but time and they have a bigger impact on lead generation than any design element.
- No emergency keyword targeting. Emergency roof repair searches have the highest intent and the highest job values. If your Google Ads campaign doesn’t include emergency keywords, you’re missing the most valuable clicks in your market.
- Spending on marketing with no call tracking. If you can’t tell which marketing channel generated which phone call, you’re guessing at what works. Basic call tracking costs very little and gives you the data to make smarter decisions about where to spend.
- Paying an agency with no clear reporting. If your marketing agency can’t tell you exactly how many leads each channel generated last month and what each lead cost, you need a different agency. Vague reports with impressions and reach are not enough.
Storm-Responsive Marketing
This is the single biggest opportunity in roofing marketing, and most roofers miss it entirely.
When a storm hits, search volume for roofing keywords spikes dramatically. Homeowners with leaks, missing tiles, and damaged roofs flood Google looking for help. The roofers who are already advertising, with budget ready to scale up, capture the majority of these leads.
How to Set Up Storm-Responsive Ads
The process is straightforward. Keep a Google Ads campaign targeting emergency roofing keywords paused or running at a low budget during calm periods. When a storm hits or severe weather is forecast, increase the daily budget by 3x to 5x. After the surge in demand passes, scale it back down.
This approach works because most of your competitors are running flat budgets. When demand spikes, their daily budget runs out by midday, and your ads start showing to the remaining searchers. The cost per click may be higher during storms, but the conversion rate and average job value are both significantly higher too.
Leaflet Drops After Storms
After a significant storm, targeted leaflet drops in affected areas can be highly effective. If you can see damaged roofs on a street, the homeowners there know they have a problem. A professional leaflet from a local, certified roofer arriving within days of the storm hits differently than a generic door drop in calm weather.
Cost: £200 to £400 per 5,000 leaflets, including printing and distribution. Target specific postcodes where damage has been reported.
Methodology
This page is based on a combination of publicly available UK advertising cost data, roofing industry reports, and marketing pricing data from UK agencies and platforms.
Sources include:
- Google Ads Keyword Planner and auction data for UK roofing-related keywords
- Publicly listed pricing from Checkatrade, MyBuilder, and other trade platforms
- Published pricing from UK-based SEO agencies and marketing providers serving the trades sector
- Industry benchmarking reports on small business marketing spend
- Analysis of seasonal search demand patterns for UK roofing queries
All cost figures represent UK market pricing as of early 2026. Actual costs will vary based on location, competition, and scope of services. Budget templates are guidelines, not prescriptions.
This page is updated periodically. If you spot something outdated, let us know.
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 sell roofing leads.
We publish independent research, tools, and audits designed to give business owners the information they need to make better decisions, whether that means hiring an agency, doing it themselves, or deciding not to spend at all.
We built this page because too many roofers either spend nothing on marketing and wonder why the phone doesn’t ring, or spend thousands on the wrong channels without tracking what actually works. If this page helps you avoid wasting money, it’s done its job.
Learn more at whito.co.uk