The short answer
SEO consulting can be billed hourly, by project or as ongoing support. The fee depends on the problem, site complexity, markets and who implements the work. I agree on scope before quoting rather than publish a package price. Compare proposals by deliverables, implementation ownership and verification—not just the headline fee. A less expensive audit may leave substantial writing and development costs with you.
You have one specific question and someone who can implement the answer.
Check: Can the question be investigated within an agreed time allowance?
Next: Consider hourly support with a spending limit and a written conclusion.
You need a defined set of pages or technical issues addressed.
Check: Are the deliverables, dependencies and acceptance checks clear?
Next: Compare project proposals covering the same work.
Products, content or site features change regularly.
Check: Is there enough implementation capacity to act on recurring recommendations?
Next: Consider ongoing support with a prioritized work plan and review points.
Two proposals have very different fees.
Check: Does one include publishing, development coordination and post-release checks?
Next: Compare the fees for the same set of tasks before deciding which offers better value.
General SEO pricing: context, not a quote
There is no useful single price for both answering a technical question and managing months of research, edits and implementation checks. Start with the business decision: what needs to change, and what work can your staff already do? If you are considering working with me as an independent SEO consultant, that division of responsibility comes before the fee.
For historical context, Ahrefs’ 2024 SEO pricing survey reported an average hourly rate of $111. That is an international survey benchmark, not my fee, a current 2026 market average or a quote for the Turkish market.
My recommendation is to use benchmarks only as background. For an hourly proposal, the planning formula is estimated hours × agreed rate. Ask what the estimate covers, whether communication and checking are billable, and when additional time requires your approval.
Choose the model around the work
Hourly support suits a bounded investigation, a second opinion or occasional guidance for an internal marketer. Request a time allowance, a stopping point and a useful output, such as a written decision with supporting evidence. A low hourly rate alone does not reveal the final cost; the amount of investigation and rework matters too.
A project fee fits a defined outcome under the provider’s control: an audit, an agreed set of page revisions or a migration review. Specify what happens if additional templates, languages or problems are discovered. Ongoing support makes more sense when there is a continuing sequence of decisions and someone available to implement them.
I can work hourly, by project or on an ongoing basis after scope is agreed. None is automatically the best choice. If you need several production disciplines managed together, compare a consultant and an agency before comparing their fees.
What actually changes the scope?
Page count is a starting point, not a workload estimate. Hundreds of pages sharing one layout may need fewer distinct decisions than a smaller site with several service types, languages and booking systems. A template is a shared page layout; an error in one template can affect many pages. Ask which templates and markets the proposal covers.
Content work also varies. Updating an existing service page with reliable business information is different from researching a new subject, interviewing a specialist and obtaining approval. A competitive market can require more research and stronger supporting material, but competition alone does not explain a fee. The proposal should translate difficulty into named tasks.
Access and approval arrangements matter too. Missing analytics access, unavailable developers or unclear product facts can prevent work from moving forward. The SEO services I provide can be scoped around those constraints, but tasks your business must complete should remain visible in the plan.
Worked example: the same problem, different purchases
Illustrative example—not a client case: a commercial refrigeration repair business has a WordPress site. It wants to understand why its service pages attract few relevant inquiries. One proposal offers diagnosis; another includes agreed changes. The key difference is who will carry out the recommendations and check the results.
The table shows which tasks each proposal covers and how to check that they are complete. An analysis-only project can be sufficient if your marketer and developer can carry out the recommendations. Otherwise, include that remaining effort in your budget. For a more detailed checklist, see what an SEO audit should deliver.
I would start by checking inquiry tracking and whether the service pages address customers’ searches, then use those findings to decide whether a larger content plan is needed.
| Work item | Diagnosis only | Diagnosis plus agreed implementation | Evidence to request |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inquiry measurement | Review tracking and document gaps | Make agreed tracking changes where access permits | Test submission and record of the event received |
| Service pages | Assess search intent and recommend edits | Revise and publish the named pages after approval | Approved copy and published page list |
| Technical issues | Document affected pages and recommended fixes | Apply in-scope fixes or coordinate developer work | Before-and-after checks for each agreed fix |
| Handover | Prioritized recommendations with owners | Change log, verification and unresolved items | Clear record of completed and remaining work |
Separate the fee from the full implementation budget
A consulting fee is not necessarily the total cost of the work. Ask whether research, writing, subject-matter review, translation, images and publishing are included. Separate recurring software subscriptions from one-off expenses. You should know whether a tool account is required, who owns it and whether access remains available after the engagement.
Most of my implementation work is in WordPress; specialist development is coordinated with the client’s developers. Coordination does not mean the developer’s labor is included. Likewise, a recommendation to improve a booking form does not automatically include redesigning or rebuilding it. Name the owner and approval process for each dependency before work starts.
For your own comparison, record three components: the consultant’s fee, outside production costs and staff time you must reserve. Internal time is not a new invoice, but an overloaded approver can leave paid recommendations unused.
Check deliverables, responsibilities and approval terms
Google’s hiring guidance recommends asking prospective SEO providers about their methods and proposed work, and warns against guaranteed first-place rankings.
My proposal-review recommendation is to request a sample deliverable or a description detailed enough to evaluate. A finding should connect an observed issue, affected pages, proposed action and verification method. A count of keywords, reports or articles does not establish that connection. Neither an inexpensive nor an expensive proposal proves quality on its own.
Ask how priorities will be revised, how extra work is approved, who owns the accounts and files, and what happens on cancellation. Distinguish delivery milestones from business results: publishing agreed edits is verifiable; a traffic increase by a fixed date is not a dependable contract promise. Use realistic SEO timing considerations when planning review points.
Send a short brief that makes quotes comparable
Give each provider the same starting information. Describe the business problem rather than requesting a generic package: which services or products matter, where customers are located and what currently prevents progress. If the cause is unknown, ask for a scoped investigation instead of treating an assumed solution as settled.
You can send me a message to get started; a call is optional. Do not send passwords in the initial message. Your website address, priorities and a note about who can make changes are enough to start defining the scope. If you have a budget limit, sharing it can help us decide what to prioritize or postpone.
- Website, platform, target countries and languages.
- Priority services or products, and what counts as a qualified inquiry or sale.
- Main concern, relevant dates and any planned redesign or migration.
- Available Search Console and analytics data; known measurement gaps.
- Who can write, approve, develop and publish, plus any spending constraints.
Common questions
Is monthly SEO support necessary?
Not always. A defined investigation or project may be enough if your staff can implement and maintain the work. Ongoing support is more appropriate when the site changes regularly and there are continuing priorities to address.
Should I choose the lowest hourly rate?
Compare estimated total effort, deliverables and remaining responsibilities first. Ask for an approval limit on additional hours. A higher rate can still produce a smaller bill, but neither rate level proves efficiency or quality.
Can I start with a smaller scope?
Yes, if it answers a useful question or completes a coherent piece of work. I recommend narrowing the problem or page set rather than removing essential verification. Agree separately on any later implementation or ongoing support.