How much does SEO cost? Pricing models and what drives the price.

SEO quotes can differ tenfold while describing, on paper, the same service. When someone asks me about price, my honest answer is: it depends. But I can tell you exactly what on, and what to look at so you neither overpay nor, worse, buy something that does nothing.

The short answer

The cost of SEO depends on competition in your industry, the size and condition of your site and the scope of work. A local service business with a dozen pages needs completely different work from a store with thousands of products or a site in several languages. That is why a reliable quote is only possible after reviewing the site.

For reference, my prices: an SEO audit of a company website (up to 20 pages) from PLN 1,900 + VAT, an online store audit (up to 200 products) from PLN 4,500 + VAT, ongoing SEO from PLN 900 + VAT per month and consulting at PLN 200 + VAT per hour. The full list is on the pricing page.

Four ways to pay for SEO

1One-off auditA diagnosis and prioritised action plan, implemented by your teamProject

2Ongoing SEOMonthly work on technical SEO, content, links and reportingRetainer

3ConsultingHours for specific questions, change reviews or team trainingHourly

4Results-basedPaying for rankings of selected keywords in GoogleRisky

A one-off audit works when you have your own team or developer and mainly need a diagnosis: what blocks your visibility and what to fix first. You pay once, and the result depends on how quickly you implement the recommendations. I describe what it should cover in what does an SEO audit include.

A retainer suits companies that want someone to run SEO continuously: implementing fixes, planning content, building links and reporting results. What matters is exactly what you get each month.

Hourly consulting is good for specific problems: a traffic drop, a decision before a migration or a review of your agency’s work. It is often the cheapest way to get an experienced opinion.

Results-based pricing sounds safe but needs caution. More on that below.

What drives the price of SEO

• Competition. The stronger the sites ranking for your keywords, the more work it takes to catch up.
• Site size. A store with filters, variants and several language versions needs more analysis and monitoring than a site with a dozen pages. More on that on the e-commerce SEO page.
• Technical condition. Indexing, speed or migration problems have to be solved before anything else can work.
• Content. If pages for key services or categories are missing, they need to be planned and written.
• Reach. Local SEO in one city is a different scope from national or international visibility.
• Implementation speed. If your team implements changes, the service costs less, but results depend on their availability.

Results-based SEO: what to watch out for

Watch out"Only pay for top 10 rankings"Billed keywords often have little traffic, and quick rankings are sometimes achieved with tactics that hurt the site later.

BetterA clear scope and measurable goalsDefined work, reports on traffic and enquiries, and access to your Search Console and GA4 data.

If you are considering this model, ask for the list of billed keywords and check how many people search for them. Also ask what happens when the contract ends and who owns the links and content created.

How to compare SEO proposals

1. Scope. What exactly will be done in the first month and after that? Vague phrases like “site optimisation” tell you nothing.
2. Who does the work. An experienced specialist, or someone still learning under an account manager?
3. Data access. You have full access to Search Console and Analytics, and reports show traffic and enquiries, not just rankings.
4. Contract. Notice period, ownership of content and links, how the engagement ends.
5. Realistic promises. Nobody controls Google’s algorithm, so a guaranteed position by a fixed date is a warning sign.

I covered timing separately in how long does SEO take. If you want to know what SEO would cost for your site, start with a free consultation or check the pricing page.