The Pricing Framework That Helps Accounting Firms Budget SEO Without Guessing

SEO pricing for accounting firms isn't arbitrary. Three variables account for most of the range you'll see when requesting quotes.

1. Local Market Competition

A CPA firm in a mid-size metro like Raleigh or Salt Lake City competes against a different set of established domains than one in Chicago or Los Angeles. Highly competitive markets require more consistent content, stronger backlink profiles, and longer runways to move into the Google Map Pack or top organic positions. That translates directly to higher monthly investment.

2. Number of Service Lines Being Targeted

A firm that wants to rank for tax preparation, bookkeeping, business advisory, and estate planning needs separate optimized pages, distinct keyword strategies, and ongoing content for each. Firms focused on a single high-value service — say, audit services for healthcare practices — often pay less and see faster movement because the scope is tighter.

3. Current Technical and Authority Baseline

If your site has indexing errors, thin service pages, or no backlinks at all, early months involve remediation work before growth work can begin. A site that was built on a solid technical foundation and already has some domain authority reaches ranking improvements faster. Agencies will factor your starting point into scoping — expect a discovery call or audit before a final quote is issued.

Secondary factors include whether you need Google Business Profile management, reputation monitoring, or multi-location optimization for firms with satellite offices. Each adds scope, and scope drives price.

The following ranges reflect what accounting firms realistically encounter when working with competent SEO providers. These are not guarantees — your market, starting point, and goals will move the number.

Audit or One-Time Project: $1,000–$3,500

A technical and content audit with a prioritized action plan. Useful for firms that want to understand where they stand before committing to an ongoing engagement, or for in-house teams that need an external diagnosis.

Entry-Level Retainer: $1,500–$2,500/month

Suited to smaller firms in less competitive markets, or those with a tight scope (one location, one primary service). Typically covers foundational on-page optimization, Google Business Profile management, and light content production. Expect limited link-building activity at this tier.

Mid-Range Retainer: $2,500–$4,000/month

The most common engagement level for established CPA and accounting firms targeting two to four service lines across a competitive metro. Includes ongoing content (typically two to four pieces per month), active link acquisition, GBP management, and monthly reporting.

Full-Service Retainer: $4,000–$6,000+/month

Appropriate for multi-location firms, regional practices, or those targeting highly competitive keywords like "CPA firm [major city]" or "audit services." Includes broader content programs, digital PR, conversion rate optimization on landing pages, and more intensive competitive monitoring.

Disclaimer: These are directional benchmarks, not fixed pricing. Actual quotes depend on your firm's specific situation and goals.

When you receive a retainer proposal, it should account for distinct categories of work. Understanding what each line item does helps you evaluate whether a proposal is appropriately scoped — or padded.

• Technical SEO maintenance: Ongoing monitoring of crawl errors, page speed, Core Web Vitals, schema markup, and internal linking. This is largely invisible but foundational — without it, content gains erode.
• Content production: Service pages, location pages, blog posts targeting questions your prospective clients are actually searching. Good accounting SEO content requires someone who understands the industry — generic writers produce generic results.
• Link acquisition: Earning mentions and backlinks from relevant, authoritative sources. For accounting firms, this often includes local business directories, professional associations, and editorial placements. This is one of the more time-intensive and expensive components.
• Google Business Profile management: Posting updates, responding to reviews, adding service categories, and monitoring for unauthorized edits. GBP is a primary driver of Map Pack rankings for "accountant near me" searches.
• Reporting and strategy: Monthly rank tracking, traffic analysis, and conversation about what's working and what needs adjustment. You should be able to connect SEO activity to real business metrics — not just keyword positions.

Firms that hire the cheapest option available often find that one or two of these components are missing entirely — usually link acquisition and meaningful reporting. That's where the gap between a $500/month retainer and a $2,500/month retainer usually lives.

Rather than asking "what's the cheapest SEO option," the more useful question is: what's the minimum investment needed to be competitive in my market, given my goals and timeline?

Scenario A: New Firm or Brand-New Website

Start with a technical audit ($1,500–$2,500 one-time), then move into a mid-range retainer. Expect to invest for at least six months before organic leads become consistent. The first two to three months are typically remediation and groundwork — not visible ranking movement.

Scenario B: Established Firm, Stagnant Rankings

An existing site with some history often benefits from a focused audit to identify what's blocking progress, followed by a retainer scoped to fix the highest-impact gaps first. Many firms in this position see faster initial movement because the domain already has some authority.

Scenario C: Competitive Market, Growth Target

If you're targeting "CPA firm Chicago" or similar high-competition terms, underfunding SEO typically means no results at all — not slower results. In competitive markets, a minimum viable investment exists below which you won't move the needle regardless of how long you wait. Budget for a full-service retainer from the start.

Scenario D: Multi-Location Practice

Each location requires its own GBP profile, location page, and local citation profile. Multi-location SEO is fundamentally more complex and should be scoped and priced accordingly. Avoid providers offering a flat rate that doesn't account for location count.

In all scenarios, factor in a 6-month minimum runway before evaluating ROI. Stopping SEO at month three because results haven't arrived yet is one of the most common — and expensive — mistakes accounting firms make.

These are the questions and concerns we hear most often from partners and practice managers evaluating an SEO investment.

"We tried SEO before and it didn't work."

In most cases, prior SEO efforts that failed were either under-scoped for the market, focused on vanity metrics rather than leads, or stopped before results materialized. A failed past engagement is worth diagnosing — often the issues are identifiable and correctable — rather than used as evidence that SEO doesn't work for accounting firms.

"Can't we just do this in-house?"

Some firms can manage GBP and publish blog content internally. But link acquisition, technical SEO, and competitive keyword strategy require tools, relationships, and time that most accounting firm marketing staff don't have available. A hybrid model — internal content, external technical and link strategy — can work well at a lower cost.

"Why is there such a wide range in quotes?"

Because scope varies significantly, and because the market includes providers at very different quality levels. A $500/month retainer and a $3,000/month retainer are not the same product with different price tags. Ask any provider for a specific breakdown of what's included month-to-month, and compare deliverables — not totals.

"How do we know we'll see ROI?"

You won't have certainty before starting, but you can set clear benchmarks: rank tracking for target keywords, organic traffic trends, and — most importantly — lead form submissions or phone calls attributed to organic search. A good agency will help you build that measurement framework from month one. For a deeper look at how accounting SEO ROI works, see our accountant SEO resource hub.