01
$500–$1,000/mo
Junior agency or freelancer. GBP posts + a few citations. Won't move you out of the local pack but better than nothing.
Cost & Pricing
How much does contractor SEO cost?
Honest range: $1,000–$5,000/mo for contractor SEO done right. The cheaper end is template work. The higher end is the engine that compounds. Here's what drives the number.
02
$1,500–$3,000/mo
Real SEO. Site rebuild, content, GBP, citations, monthly reporting. Where Heist Plant Your Flag sits.
03
$3,000–$5,000+/mo
Full engine with content velocity, technical depth, link-building, and competitive monitoring.
What drives the cost
- Content velocity. 2 pages/month vs 8 pages/month is most of the price difference.
- Site rebuild included? A real contractor site is $5K–$12K. Some agencies bundle it, some bill it separately.
- Link-building. Real outreach is expensive. Most agencies skip it.
- Reporting cadence. Monthly vs quarterly. Quarterly is a red flag.
What "cheap SEO" actually costs you
A $500/mo retainer typically buys you 2 GBP posts and a citation submission. After 12 months you're $6K in with nothing to show. The $1,500/mo retainer costs $18K over the same period but lands you with a real 40-page site, ranking pages, and a content engine that keeps compounding.
The math: cheap SEO loses on time, not on dollars.
The Heist Way
Ready to plant your flag?
15-minute call. No pitch deck. No pressure.