The Numbers Behind HVAC Search — And What They Actually Mean for Contractors

Before citing any figure from this page, understand where the data comes from and what it does not claim.

The benchmarks here draw from three sources: publicly available industry research (Google, BrightLocal, Moz, and LocaliQ annual reports), third-party HVAC trade data, and observed ranges from campaigns we have managed for home-services contractors. Where figures come from our own campaign observation, we note that explicitly and do not assign false precision to them.

What this page does not do: It does not fabricate precise percentages dressed up as statistically significant research. You will not find claims like "73% of HVAC contractors see ROI in 90 days" here — because no methodology supports that kind of specificity across a fragmented, local industry.

Instead, you will find qualified ranges with context:

• Market size and competition level affect every benchmark materially
• Firm size (solo operator vs. multi-truck fleet) changes what "average" means
• Starting domain authority determines how quickly organic gains compound
• Service mix (residential vs. commercial, install-heavy vs. service-heavy) shifts keyword demand and conversion patterns

Disclaimer: Benchmarks vary significantly by market, firm size, and service mix. Use these figures as directional context, not guarantees. If a vendor quotes you precise ROI figures without asking about your market, treat that as a red flag.

Understanding search behavior is the foundation of any data-driven SEO strategy for HVAC contractors. The patterns below are consistent across multiple industry reports and align with what we observe across campaigns.

Search Intent Is Mostly Transactional

The majority of HVAC-related searches carry strong commercial or transactional intent. Queries like "AC repair near me," "furnace replacement cost," and "HVAC contractor [city]" signal a homeowner who is ready to call or request a quote — not someone doing casual research. This matters because it means organic traffic from well-ranked HVAC pages tends to convert at a higher rate than traffic from informational content targeting early-stage researchers.

Mobile Dominates Local Searches

Industry research consistently shows that local service searches skew heavily toward mobile devices — estimates generally range from 60% to over 75% of local queries depending on the category and time of year. For HVAC specifically, emergency searches ("AC not working," "furnace stopped working") are almost entirely mobile. A site that loads slowly or lacks a prominent click-to-call button is functionally invisible to a significant share of potential callers.

Seasonal Demand Creates Predictable Spikes

HVAC search volume is not flat. Air conditioning queries spike sharply in late spring through summer in most U.S. markets. Heating queries climb in fall and peak in winter. Industry data and Google Trends confirm this pattern year over year. The practical implication: SEO work needs to be in place at least 3-4 months before your peak season — not launched during it. Google does not reward new content overnight.

"Near Me" Searches Are Still Rising

According to Google's own reporting, "near me" search queries have grown substantially over the past several years and continue to climb. For contractors, this reinforces the primacy of local SEO over generic national rankings. A plumber in Phoenix ranking nationally for "HVAC repair" matters far less than ranking in the Phoenix Map Pack.

Local SEO performance for HVAC contractors breaks down across three measurable areas: Map Pack visibility, Google Business Profile engagement, and review signals. Here is what industry benchmarks and campaign observation suggest about each.

Map Pack Click Share

Studies from BrightLocal and other local SEO researchers consistently show that the Google Map Pack (the top three local business listings) captures a substantial majority of clicks for contractor-type searches — often estimated between 40% and 60% of total clicks on results pages where the Map Pack appears. The first organic blue-link result below the pack receives a fraction of that. Ranking in the Map Pack is not a bonus; for most HVAC markets, it is the primary battleground.

Google Business Profile Engagement

Google's own data shows that businesses with complete, regularly updated GBP listings receive more direction requests, website clicks, and phone calls than incomplete profiles. In our experience working with home-services contractors, GBP profiles with recent photos, consistent NAP data, and active Q&A sections tend to outperform sparse profiles in competitive markets — even when the underlying website authority is comparable.

Review Volume and Recency

BrightLocal's annual Local Consumer Review Survey consistently finds that review recency matters as much as total count. A contractor with 80 reviews and the most recent dated six months ago is often outranked by a competitor with 40 reviews and activity in the last 30 days. Industry benchmarks suggest that HVAC contractors actively requesting reviews after each service call maintain a meaningful competitive edge in local rankings.

Citation Consistency

NAP (name, address, phone) consistency across directories like Yelp, Angi, HomeAdvisor, and industry-specific platforms remains a confirmed local ranking signal. Inconsistent listings — different phone numbers, old addresses, name variations — dilute local authority. This is a fixable problem, and one of the higher-return early-stage SEO tasks for contractors with minimal prior optimization.

Traffic without conversion is irrelevant. Here is what the available data suggests about how HVAC leads convert from organic search compared to other channels.

Organic vs. Paid Search Lead Quality

Industry benchmarks from WordStream and LocaliQ suggest that home-services categories (including HVAC) carry some of the highest cost-per-click rates in local paid search — often ranging from $15 to $50+ per click depending on market and keyword. At those rates, a modest conversion rate means cost-per-lead figures that climb quickly. Organic search, once established, does not carry per-click costs, which is why long-term cost-per-lead from SEO tends to improve over time while paid search costs remain constant or increase.

That said, paid search delivers results immediately; organic takes time to build. The comparison is not "which is better" but "which fits your current stage and budget."

Phone Call Conversion Rates

For local contractor searches, phone calls are typically the primary conversion event — not web form submissions. Industry data from call tracking platforms suggests that click-to-call conversions from local search pages outperform form fills in high-intent categories like HVAC. This reinforces the importance of mobile optimization and prominent phone number placement, not just ranking position.

Landing Page Performance Ranges

Based on patterns observed across home-services campaigns, HVAC service pages with clear service descriptions, localized content, trust signals (reviews, licenses, photos), and a prominent call to action tend to convert at meaningfully higher rates than generic pages with thin content. Specific conversion rate ranges vary widely by market and page quality, but the gap between optimized and unoptimized pages is consistently significant in our experience.

Lead Volume by Channel

Many HVAC contractors report that organic search and GBP together account for a substantial share of inbound leads once SEO is established — often the largest single channel over a 12-24 month horizon. Paid search and referral networks tend to dominate early, with organic growing its share as content and authority compound.

The table below consolidates key benchmark ranges referenced in this page. These are directional figures — not guarantees — and should be interpreted in context of your specific market, competition level, and starting SEO baseline.

• Map Pack click share (contractor searches): Estimated 40–60% of total page clicks where Map Pack appears (source: BrightLocal and Moz research)
• Mobile share of local HVAC searches: Generally cited at 60–75%+ depending on device trends and season
• Seasonal search volume swing: AC-related queries can increase 3–5x from off-season to peak summer months in most U.S. markets (Google Trends observable)
• Typical HVAC cost-per-click (paid search): Industry benchmarks suggest $15–$50+ per click in competitive markets (WordStream/LocaliQ data)
• SEO timeline before ranking impact: Most campaigns show measurable ranking movement in 3–6 months; significant lead volume impact often takes 6–12 months (varies by market)
• Review recency window: Industry data suggests reviews within the last 90 days carry outsized weight in local ranking signals
• GBP completeness impact: Google's own guidance confirms complete profiles perform better; industry observation supports meaningful engagement differences between complete and incomplete profiles

Note on data visualization: If you are embedding this data in a report or presentation, we recommend pairing each benchmark with its source and a note on market variability. Precise-looking numbers without context mislead readers and undermine credibility — including yours.

Data without interpretation is noise. Here is how to translate these benchmarks into actual decisions about your HVAC marketing spend and strategy.

If You Are Not in the Map Pack, That Is the First Problem to Solve

Given the click-share concentration in the top three local results, any HVAC contractor not appearing in the Map Pack for their core service-area searches is effectively invisible to a large portion of the market. GBP optimization and review generation are the highest-use starting points — and they are faster to impact than building organic domain authority from scratch.

Your Peak Season Is Not the Time to Start

The seasonal data is unambiguous: HVAC demand spikes fast and decisively. SEO content and GBP improvements published in June will not rank by July. Contractors who consistently outperform competitors in summer started their SEO work in February or March at the latest. The right time to invest in data-driven SEO strategies for HVAC contractors is during the slow season — when you have time to build and Google has time to index.

Review Generation Is Not Optional

The review recency data reinforces what we observe in competitive markets: contractors who ask for reviews systematically after every job maintain a compounding advantage. A single review-request process (text message follow-up, post-invoice email) can meaningfully change your Map Pack position over a 90-day window.

Track the Right Metrics

Vanity metrics like keyword rankings tell only part of the story. The metrics that connect to revenue are: phone calls from GBP, website sessions from organic search, and conversion rate on service pages. If your agency reports only rankings without connecting them to calls and leads, that is a gap worth addressing directly.