Google Ads agency fees UK: pricing models and costs
Four pricing models, what each one does to the incentives, worked fee arithmetic you can repeat with your own numbers, and a scope checklist so two quotes can be compared fairly.
There is no published, reliable average price for Google Ads management in the UK. Fees vary by scope, seniority, catalogue complexity and how much of the tracking and feed work sits with the agency.
So this guide does not quote market rates. It sets out the models, shows the arithmetic with labelled hypothetical figures, and gives you the questions that make two quotes comparable.
The four pricing models
Percentage of ad spend
Basis: A stated percentage of monthly media spend
Simple to quote, and the fee moves with the size of the account.
The fee rises with spend whether or not the additional spend is profitable, so the agency's revenue and your profit can move in opposite directions. Ask how a recommendation to reduce spend would affect the fee.
Ask: How does the fee change if spend halves, or doubles?
Fixed monthly fee
Basis: A set fee agreed against a written scope
The fee does not move with spend, so recommendations to pause, cap or reduce cost the agency nothing.
Only works if the scope is written down. An unpriced scope creep argument six months in is the common failure. Very small accounts may not support a fee that funds senior time.
Ask: What exactly is in the scope, and what triggers a re-price?
Performance or commission element
Basis: A base fee plus a share of an agreed outcome
Can align both sides where the outcome is defined precisely and measurable by both parties.
Depends entirely on the definition. A share of revenue or blended ROAS can be increased without profit increasing. Baselines, attribution basis and the measurement source all have to be agreed in writing before it means anything.
Ask: Which exact metric, from which source, against which baseline?
Hourly or project
Basis: A day rate or a fixed project price
Clean fit for a one-off audit, migration or piece of consultancy with a defined end point.
Less suited to ongoing management, where the work is continuous and the value comes from accumulated account knowledge rather than discrete deliverables.
Ask: Is this a project with an end, or ongoing management in disguise?
The arithmetic, with labelled figures
Comparing a 10% of media arrangement with a hypothetical £3,000 fixed fee. These are illustrative figures chosen to show the shape of the comparison. They are not market averages, not a JudeLuxe quote, and not a forecast of performance. They exclude VAT, tools and any setup or onboarding fees.
| Monthly media | Management at 10% | Total, percentage model | Total, £3,000 fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| £20,000 | £2,000 | £22,000 | £23,000 |
| £50,000 | £5,000 | £55,000 | £53,000 |
| £80,000 | £8,000 | £88,000 | £83,000 |
The percentage model is cheaper at the lower figure and more expensive at the higher ones, and where it crosses over depends entirely on the percentage and the fixed fee in front of you. Run the same three lines with your own spend and the two quotes you actually have. The separate question, which the arithmetic cannot answer, is what each fee structure rewards the agency for recommending.
The question worth asking every agency
“If, six months in, the right recommendation is to pause part of the account and reduce total spend for two quarters, what happens to your fee?” There is no wrong answer, but the answer tells you which way the structure leans, and it is better heard before you sign than after.
The scope checklist
A fee only means something next to a scope. Take this list into both conversations and write the answers down side by side.
- 01Who does the work. The named person on the account day to day, and who you speak to when something goes wrong.
- 02What is covered. Strategy, bid and budget management, campaign build, negative and exclusion work, testing, reporting.
- 03Feed and Merchant Center. Whether product feed work and Merchant Center diagnostics are included, excluded or billed separately.
- 04Tracking and data work. Conversion setup, tagging changes, consent implications, and who is responsible when tracking breaks.
- 05Setup or onboarding fees. Whether the first month includes migration, restructure or audit work, and at what price.
- 06Tools and third-party costs. Feed tools, scripts, dashboards and reporting platforms, and whether they are rebilled.
- 07Ownership. Who owns the Google Ads account, Merchant Center, tags and feed, and what happens to them at the end.
- 08Notice and initial term. The initial commitment, the notice period afterwards, and how a handover is run.
- 09VAT and billing. Whether quoted figures include VAT, and whether media is paid by you directly or through the agency.
What JudeLuxe charges
Fixed monthly fees from £2,000, priced on catalogue complexity and workload rather than on ad spend. No percentage of spend and no media mark-up. Three-month initial engagement, then monthly rolling with 30 days' notice. Our typical retained client invests £10k+ per month in Google Ads, which is a description of who we tend to work with rather than a minimum.
Current fees and terms are set out on the pricing page.
Frequently asked questions
What pricing models do Google Ads agencies use?
Four are common: a percentage of ad spend, a fixed monthly fee, a base fee with a performance or commission element, and hourly or project pricing. Each shifts risk and incentives differently. The important comparison is fee plus scope together, not the headline number on its own.
How does percentage of spend compare with a fixed fee arithmetically?
Take a 10% arrangement against a hypothetical £3,000 fixed fee. At £20,000 monthly media, 10% is £2,000, so totals are £22,000 versus £23,000. At £50,000, 10% is £5,000, so £55,000 versus £53,000. At £80,000, 10% is £8,000, so £88,000 versus £83,000. The crossover point depends entirely on the percentage and the fixed fee being compared. These are illustrative figures, not market averages and not a JudeLuxe quote, and they exclude VAT, tools and any setup fees.
Is a percentage-of-spend fee always worse?
Not automatically. It is a question of incentive and arithmetic. The incentive question is whether the fee structure rewards the agency for recommending less spend when that is the right answer. The arithmetic question is what the two models cost at your spend level over a realistic period. Ask both, and ask what the fee includes in each case.
What should I compare besides the fee?
Scope coverage, who actually does the work, whether feed and Merchant Center work is included, tracking and data responsibilities, account and data ownership, initial term and notice period, and any setup or tool costs. Two quotes with the same monthly number can describe very different amounts of work.
Should the agency own my Google Ads account?
You should own the account, the Merchant Center, the tags and the feed, with the agency granted access. It makes leaving a normal commercial event rather than a rebuild. Ask what happens to historical data and campaign structure at the end of the engagement, and get the answer in writing.
How long should the contract be?
Long enough for the work to show, short enough that you are not trapped. Ask what the initial term is, what the notice period is afterwards, and what the handover includes. Terms vary between agencies, so treat any figure quoted as that agency's terms rather than an industry standard.
What does JudeLuxe charge?
Fixed monthly fees from £2,000, priced on catalogue complexity and workload rather than on ad spend, with a three-month initial engagement and 30 days' notice afterwards. Our typical retained client invests £10k+ per month in Google Ads, though that is a description of who we work with rather than a minimum. Current fees and terms are on our pricing page.
Are cheaper agencies a false economy?
Sometimes, and sometimes not. A lower fee can reflect a narrower scope, more junior time or fewer hours, all of which may be perfectly reasonable for a simpler account. The way to tell is to compare the scope checklist rather than the headline price, and to ask who is doing the work.
Continue:
- • How to choose a PPC agency — the scorecard
- • Should I change PPC agency? — the six commercial questions
- • JudeLuxe pricing — current fees and terms
Fixed fee, priced on scope, never on spend.
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