Contents
What impacts SEO costs in Australia?
How much does AEO cost in Australia?
How to maximise your SEO budget
Hidden SEO costs and budget planning
How to invest in SEO that actually works
It’s a question many people have, with answers ranging from $500 to $10,000 a month, depending on who you ask. And if you’re a business owner trying to budget for SEO services, it’s not very helpful.
SEO costs in Australia vary wildly because it’s not a one-size-fits-all service. There are several factors that affect cost, including location, competitiveness, business size and type of SEO provider.
But, instead of asking “How much does SEO cost?”, it’s actually better to ask “How much should I be paying for SEO that works for my business?”
Understanding what drives the cost of SEO is going to help you find an SEO agency or provider that matches your needs and budget, rather than one that just sounds good in a sales pitch.
At Shout Digital, we’ve seen businesses waste thousands on cheap SEO that delivers nothing, and others overpay for work that doesn’t match their actual needs. This guide breaks down what you should realistically expect to pay, what you get at each price tier, and how to invest strategically.
SEO pricing models explained
The cost of SEO often depends on the pricing model an SEO provider uses. Unlike buying a product with a fixed cost, SEO services can be packaged in several different ways, and the model you choose affects both what you pay and what you get.
SEO monthly retainers
This is the most common SEO pricing model in Australia. Because SEO is an ongoing process that compounds over time, an ongoing retainer allows a provider to continue working on your SEO for as long as you (or your contract) allows. With a monthly retainer, you pay a fixed amount each month for a set scope of work that should be led by an overall SEO strategy.
How it works: Your agency allocates a certain number of hours or delivers specific services each month. This might include technical optimisations, content creation, link building, reporting, and strategy refinement.
Best for: Businesses that want consistent, long-term growth and need ongoing support to stay competitive.
Typical cost of SEO retainers: $1000 – $10,000+ per month, depending on scope and agency expertise.
The lower end of this pricing range ($1,000-$2000/month) covers basic SEO maintenance like light technical fixes, basic content creation and link building, and basic reporting.
You’re getting someone to keep an eye on your site and handle the fundamentals, but don’t expect aggressive growth or competitive dominance at this level.
The mid-range ($2,000-$5,000/month) is where SEO starts to become a genuine growth engine for your business. Here, you’re getting strategic planning, consistent, high-quality content production, active link building or digital PR, on-page refinement, and detailed reporting.
This pricing tier is where most small to medium-sized Australian businesses find the best balance between investment and measurable growth.
At the premium tier ($5,000-$10,000+/month), you’re getting more hours of dedicated work from senior strategists and specialists. This level includes everything in the mid-tier, plus advanced technical SEO, large-scale content operations, digital PR campaigns that build genuine authority, competitive intelligence, and often integration with your broader marketing efforts.
This is the tier that enterprise businesses, competitive eCommerce sites, and national brands tend to need.
Generally speaking, with a good SEO provider, a higher investment means faster results. More budget means more hours, more content, more links, and more expertise working on your account simultaneously.
A well-funded campaign can achieve in six months what a lean one takes a year to accomplish.
But it’s not a simple equation. How quickly you see results also depends on how competitive your industry is, how established your competitors are, and what state your website is in when you start.
Project-based pricing
If you don’t want or need a monthly SEO retainer, some SEO agencies work by project.
How it works: The agency scopes out the project, estimates the time and resources required, and quotes a flat fee. Once the work’s done, it’s done.
Best for: Well-defined projects with clear start and end points, like website migrations, SEO audits and content overhauls.
Typical cost of SEO projects: This depends on the project complexity. Below are some examples.
| SEO project cost examples | ||
| Type of project | Typical cost | Factors affecting cost |
| SEO audit | $2000 – $8000 | Website sizeDepth of analysisDeliverable format |
| Website migration | $3000 – $50,000+ | Number of pages being migratedPlatform complexity (Shopify to WordPress vs. custom CMS to headless)Whether you’re changing the domain, structure, or bothThe level of post-migration support included |
| Content project | $2500 – $10,000+ | Number of pages being optimised or createdContent complexityResearch depth requiredWhether copywriting is included or just SEO strategy |
| Digital PR campaign | $4000 – $12,000+ | Campaign scope and target publicationsAsset creation requirements Industry difficulty Guaranteed vs. best-effort placements |
Hourly SEO pricing
Some agencies and SEO consultants charge by the hour, usually for advisory work, audits or when you need expert input on specific issues.
How it works: You pay for the consultant’s time, usually in hourly increments. This works well for businesses that have an in-house team but need specialist expertise for specific challenges.
Best for: Businesses with internal marketing teams, one-off technical issues, or those who need strategic direction without full execution.
Typical range: $150–$400 per hour depending on the consultant’s experience and specialisation.
Performance-based SEO pricing
This model ties payment to results, so you pay a base fee plus bonuses when specific targets are hit, like ranking improvements, traffic increases, or conversions.
How it works: You agree on measurable KPIs upfront, then pay incrementally as those targets are achieved. Sometimes there’s a small base retainer; other times it’s purely commission-based.
Best for: Businesses with established traffic and clear conversion paths who want to align agency incentives with outcomes.
Typical range: It’s highly variable, but often the base retainer is lower ($500–$2,000) and then performance bonuses are added on.
Performance-based pricing sounds ideal for clients, but most SEO agencies in Australia don’t like to offer it. The main reason is that SEO outcomes aren’t solely under the agency’s control. Slow implementation from an internal team, a competitive industry landscape, or an out-of-the-blue algorithm update can all affect results even when an SEO agency is delivering good work.
It can also incentivise the wrong behaviour. Agencies under performance contracts are motivated to meet targets as quickly as possible, even if that means cutting corners.
Established SEO providers with proven track records don’t need to offer performance-based pricing as they have case studies, testimonials, and clients who trust their process.
What impacts SEO costs in Australia?
SEO pricing isn’t arbitrary. Usually, when you receive a price from an SEO provider, they’ve considered a number of factors before quoting. Understanding what drives these costs can help you evaluate quotes you’ve received.
Here are the main factors that influence SEO pricing in Australia:
Your industry and competition level
If your competitors are spending big on SEO, if you’re in a market with lots of competition, or if your competitors have been working on their SEO for longer than your business, you’ll likely need to spend more to be competitive and catch up.
Here are some examples of what specific industries might expect to pay each month for SEO and why.
Key:
- $ = $1,000 – $2,500/month
- $$ = $2,000 – $5,000/month
- $$$ = $5,000 – $10,000/month
- $$$$ = $10,000+/month
| Industry | Competition level | Typical investment |
| Local trades & Services (Plumbers, Electricians, Landscapers) | Low to moderate | $1000-2000 |
| Hospitality & tourism (Restaurants, Hotels, Tours) | Moderate | $$1000-2000 |
| Home services & renovation (Builders, Renovators, Interior Design) | Moderate | $$2000-6000 |
| Real estate | Moderate to high | $$2,000-8000 |
| Medical & healthcare (GPs, dentists, Specialists) | Moderate to high | $$1500-8000 |
| Education & training (Schools, Tutoring, Online Courses) | Moderate | $$2,000-10,000 |
| Retail & eCommerce (Small stores) | High | $$1,500-6,000 |
| Retail & eCommerce (Medium-Large stores) | Very high | $$$3,000-10,000 per site |
| Legal Services (Family Law, Conveyancing) | Very high | $$$3,000-10,000 |
| Finance & insurance | Very high | $$3,000-10,000 |
| B2B & professional services (Consulting, Agencies) | High | $$2000-10,000 |
| SaaS & Technology | Very high | $$$3,000-10,000 |
| Enterprise SEO (Large corporations, Multi-national brands) | Very high | $$$$5,000-20,000 |
Geographic targeting
Where you want to rank also affects cost.
Local SEO (single location, city-specific keywords): Smallest competitive pool, most cost-effective.
Multi-location SEO (franchises, multiple branches): Each location needs optimisation, content, and citations. Not 5x the cost for five locations, but substantially more than one.
National SEO: Competing across Australia increases keyword volume, content requirements, and authority needed.
International SEO: Multiple languages, regional search behaviours, country-specific technical requirements (hreflang, geo-targeting), separate content strategies per market.
Website size and existing technical health
Small sites (10-50 pages): Quick audits, manageable content overhauls, faster fixes.
Medium sites (50-500 pages): More strategic planning around structure, internal linking, and content hierarchy.
Large sites (500+ pages, especially eCommerce): Significant technical complexity like faceted navigation, product variations, duplicate content risks, and thousands of URLs requiring careful management.
Well-built sites enable straightforward optimisation. Sites with broken links, slow load times, poor mobile performance, and structural issues require extensive baseline work before growth begins.
Agency location
Where your SEO agency is based can influence pricing, though it’s less significant than other factors.
Australian agencies (Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane) typically charge $2,000-$10,000+/month depending on their expertise and market positioning. Metro-based agencies often have higher overheads (rent, salaries) reflected in their pricing, but you get local market knowledge, timezone alignment, and easier face-to-face meetings.
Regional Australian agencies may charge slightly less ($1,500-$6,000/month) with lower overhead costs, though the expertise level and service breadth can vary.
Offshore agencies (India, Philippines, Eastern Europe) advertise rates as low as $300-$1,500/month. The lower cost comes with trade-offs: potential communication barriers, timezone challenges, less understanding of Australian search behaviour and consumer expectations, and often junior-level execution. At Shout Digital, we’ve seen businesses spend 6-12 months with offshore providers before realising they need to start over with local expertise.
Current SEO position
Starting from scratch (new site, no visibility, no backlinks): Building everything from the ground up will require more time and consistent investment.
Established site (page 2-3 visibility, existing content and backlinks): Less foundational work needed. Focus shifts to refinement and strategic pushes to page one.
Declining visibility (previously ranked well): Resource intensity depends on the root cause, such as technical issues, algorithm impacts, or competitors outpacing you.
Agency expertise and track record
Agencies aren’t priced equally for good reason.
Junior or generalist agencies: Lower rates, less experience, fewer proven results, less sophisticated strategies.
Specialised or senior agencies: Demonstrated industry results, advanced technical capabilities, and established processes justify premium rates, but typically deliver faster, more reliable outcomes.
Award-winning or high-profile agencies: Top-tier pricing backed by high demand and proven track records. You’re paying for expertise, strategic thinking, and reduced risk from working with people who’ve solved your exact problem before.
Agencies like Shout Digital price based on the complexity of your market and the strategic depth required, not arbitrary hourly rates or cookie-cutter packages.
How much does AEO cost in Australia?
Many SEO agencies now offer answer engine optimisation services. Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) focuses on getting your brand cited on AI-powered platforms such as ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews. Since this is an emerging field, most SEO agencies, including Shout Digital, integrate AEO into existing SEO strategies rather than charging separately. The fundamentals overlap, and so the work usually happens concurrently.
How to maximise your SEO budget
You want every dollar you invest in SEO to work hard. Strategic allocation and smart prioritisation will ensure you get maximum return on your investment. Your SEO agency should be well-versed in these strategies, but here’s what you need to know to spend wisely and get the best possible results.
- Prioritise based on impact and effort
Focus on quick wins that are high impact and low effort to start, while simultaneously working on high impact, high effort tasks. - Measure what matters
Focus on metrics tied to business outcomes. - Work effectively with your agency
Provide timely access to accounts, respond promptly to requests and implement recommendations quickly. Share business context so they can ensure their SEO strategy aligns with business priorities and trust the process while staying informed and interested in what they’re doing.
Hidden SEO costs and budget planning
Most businesses budget for the agency retainer and assume that it covers everything, but sometimes, businesses will incur additional costs.
These additional costs include:
- Developer resources
If your SEO provider doesn’t have an in-house developer, you’ll need to hire someone to execute the technical SEO fixes - Copywriter
Most SEO agencies will have an internal copywriter, but smaller agencies may require you to have someone internally who can write additional copy. - SEO tools and software
Most agencies will have their own tools, but may require you to purchase additional plugins or subscriptions for your website. - Platform or website upgrades
If additional pages are being added to your site or if you require a whole new platform, it’s best to seek the services of a web designer/developer to ensure your website still looks good and functions well after SEO changes have been made.
How to choose an SEO agency
While pricing can be a factor in your choice, you should not use SEO pricing as the only factor you evaluate when choosing an SEO agency. It also helps to look at whether the agency has these:
- Proven results (ideally in your industry or similar)
- Transparent pricing and clear scope
- Ethical SEO methods
- Realistic timelines
- Comprehensive reporting
- Understanding of AI & SEO
- Strategic thinking
- Fair contract terms
- Verifiable references
Is cheap SEO worth it?
In Australia (and especially overseas), some SEO providers will still charge rates between $300-$500/month. It’s tempting to explore these retainers as they are significantly less than the SEO costs mentioned earlier in the article; however, cheap SEO always costs more in the long run.
For that low price, agencies are either outsourcing their work offshore or only allocating a few hours a month to your account, which is barely enough for strategy, implementation and reporting. At this level, you may as well not pay for it.
But the risk of cheap SEO isn’t about wasted money. Cheap SEO can be damaging to your website with providers resorting to shortcuts or black hat tactics, which can trigger Google penalties that tank your visibility for months or years.
Even if you avoid penalties, tactics like poorly written content and a spammy backlink profile damage your brand credibility and turn away potential customers who land on your site expecting professionalism.
Beyond direct damage, there’s the opportunity cost. SEO can take a few months to show results. Spending that time with an ineffective provider means you’ve lost months of potential growth (and customers) while competitors who invested properly have pulled further ahead. You can’t get that time back.
In SEO, you truly get what you pay for, so avoid choosing an SEO provider that is too cheap.
How to invest in SEO that actually works
SEO pricing in Australia is usually a direct reflection of the work required to compete in your market, the expertise needed to execute effectively, and the time it takes to build sustainable rankings and authority.
You don’t need to overspend to get good SEO results. You just need to spend strategically with an agency or SEO provider that understands your business, works well with your team and prioritises SEO work that will have the biggest impact on your bottom line.
When done properly, with adequate investment and realistic timelines, SEO is one of the highest-ROI marketing channels available. But it requires commitment to quality work, strategic thinking, and the patience to let it compound.
As you evaluate SEO proposals and plan your budget, focus on finding the right investment for your situation, not just the cheapest option. Cheap SEO is rarely good SEO.
Choose your SEO partner carefully, invest appropriately for your goals, and give the process the time it deserves. The results will speak for themselves.
At Shout Digital, we work with Australian businesses of all sizes to build SEO strategies that match their goals and budgets. Ready to discuss what SEO could do for your business? Get in touch with our experienced team and unlock legendary revenue growth today.
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