How much should I expect to pay per lead from paid search?

Updated October 2026 · How we answer

What drives the cost

Paid search prices depend on how many advertisers bid on the same keywords and how well your ads and landing page perform. Highly competitive services in large cities usually cost more per click. Strong ads and relevant pages can lower the cost because they earn better placement for the price.

Cost per lead is different from cost per click. A cheap click that never fills out a form adds little value. Divide your total spend by the number of qualified leads to see the true number.

How to measure your own number

Run a campaign for several weeks before judging results, since early numbers can be noisy. Track which keywords produce leads and which only add clicks. Pause the weak ones and shift budget to the terms that bring real conversations.

Compare your figure with your average job value. If a typical customer is worth a large amount, a higher cost per lead may still be profitable.

If the numbers look high, review the search terms report to see which queries bring browsers instead of buyers, then add those as negative keywords.

• Divide spend by qualified leads, not clicks
• Give campaigns several weeks to settle
• Pause keywords that add clicks only
• Compare cost per lead to job value

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