A full-service marketing agency typically charges around $1,500 to $10,000 or more per month, and a single service such as social media, ads or local SEO usually runs about $300 to $5,000 a month. One-time projects are priced separately: about $1,000 to $10,000 or more for a website and about $500 to $10,000 or more for branding, with ad spend as its own bill paid to the platforms.
The ranges are wide because a food truck and a dental group need different work. What you should pay depends on what a new customer is worth to you: good marketing brings in more profit than it costs once it has had time to run. Here's how agencies charge, what each service costs and how to judge a quote.
How agencies charge
Most agencies use one or more of these four models:
- Monthly retainer. A set fee every month for ongoing work like social media, ads or SEO. Most local marketing is sold this way, because the work never really ends.
- Per project. A fixed price for something with a finish line, like a website, a logo and brand guide or a CRM setup.
- Hourly. Common for consulting and small fixes. Consultants often charge $100 to $300 an hour; Clutch's pricing guides put most U.S. agencies on its site at $100 to $149 an hour, and many listings in its El Paso directory (which includes firms based elsewhere) show the same band. A one-time marketing plan usually costs about $500 to $5,000.
- Management fee plus ad spend. With ads you pay two separate bills: the agency's fee for running the campaigns and the money that goes to Meta, Google or TikTok. Google's third-party policy requires agencies to disclose any separate management fee and, when they share costs, to report exactly what Google charged, apart from their own fees.
Websites and branding
A website is usually a one-time project: from about $1,000 for a simple template site up to $10,000 or more for a custom build with online booking, integrations or lots of pages. Hosting and upkeep come on top, often $50 to $300 a month. Branding can be as little as about $500 for a basic logo package or $10,000 or more for a complete brand with a logo system, colors, fonts and guidelines.
Social media and content
Social media management usually costs about $500 to $5,000 a month. Most of the difference is content: an agency that schedules photos you send costs far less than one that films Reels at your business every week, edits them and answers your comments and DMs.
Ads on Meta, Google and TikTok
Ads management usually costs about $500 to $3,000 a month in fees. Ad spend is separate and is paid to the platform, and many local businesses begin by spending $300 to $1,500 a month on the ads themselves. Watch the ratio: if the fee dwarfs the spend, most of your budget is paying for management instead of reaching customers.
Google Business Profile, local SEO and SEO
Managing your Google Business Profile and local SEO, the work that helps you show up in Google Maps, usually costs about $300 to $2,000 a month. Broader SEO for your website runs about $500 to $5,000 a month. For a reference point, Ahrefs polled 439 SEO providers and found the most common monthly retainer was $501 to $1,000.
Email, SMS and CRM
Email and SMS marketing usually costs about $300 to $2,000 a month, plus the platform's own fees. Setting up a CRM and booking system usually costs about $500 to $5,000, plus the software subscription, which you pay to the software company.
AI systems
AI now shows up on a lot of quotes. A do-it-yourself AI receptionist app runs about $30 to $300 a month, while a done-for-you receptionist usually runs $500 to $5,000 up front, then $100 to $1,000 monthly, depending on call volume. Chatbot tools you set up yourself run from free to about $100 a month; a custom chatbot for your website and DMs is about $500 to $5,000 to build, with a monthly fee after that. Custom AI agents and systems usually start around $2,000 and can pass $10,000.
What moves the number in El Paso
In El Paso, three things move the number most:
- Bilingual content. Writing ads, captions, pages and replies in English and Spanish is closer to two campaigns than one. The Spanish has to sound like the border, not like a machine translation, and that takes time.
- Filming on site. Content shot at your business, by someone who drives to the Westside on Monday and Far East El Paso on Thursday, costs more than stock photos or clips you film yourself.
- How many locations you have. Each location needs a separate Google Business Profile, separate reviews and often separate ads. A business with one shop in Northeast and another in the Lower Valley is running two local marketing efforts.
How to compare quotes
Agencies bundle work differently, so line every quote up against the same questions:
- What exactly is included each month: how many posts, videos, campaigns, pages or hours?
- Is ad spend or software inside the price or on top of it? A quote that includes your ad spend and the same number plus ad spend are very different deals.
- How will results be measured: calls, bookings, leads and sales, or only likes and impressions?
- How long is the contract, and what happens to your accounts, website and content if you leave?
Red flags
- Guaranteed rankings. Google says no one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google, and it warns against SEOs who claim a special relationship with Google.
- Long lock-in contracts. A 12-month contract with no way out before you've seen results puts all the risk on you. Month to month, or a short first term with clear goals, is fairer.
- You don't own your ad account. Your ads should run in an account in your business's name, paid with your card, with the agency added as a partner. If the agency owns the account, you can lose your history and data when you leave.
- You don't own your website or domain. The domain should be registered to you, and you should be able to take the site with you.
- You can't see what the platform charged. If an agency won't show you what was actually spent on ads, ask why.
- Reports full of reach and likes, with nothing about calls, leads or bookings.
When an agency isn't worth it yet
Hiring an agency is worth it when the work will pay for itself and you don't have the time or skills to do it well. It often isn't worth it yet if you can't handle more customers right now, if you don't know what a new customer is worth, if the basics aren't in place (a clear offer, a phone someone answers and someone who follows up) or if your budget covers the fee and leaves nothing for ad spend.
In those cases, start with what you can do yourself: complete your Google Business Profile, ask every customer for a review, answer calls and messages fast and post what's already happening at your business. A one-time plan from a consultant can also give you a roadmap before you commit to a retainer.
Why we don't post prices
H1 Collaborative is a marketing and AI agency in El Paso, and we don't publish prices or packages. Every business needs a different mix of work, so a price list would mislead most readers. We'd rather look at your situation on a free call, tell you what we'd tackle first and give you an exact quote. You own your website, ad accounts and data, and ad spend goes straight from your account to Meta or Google.
The honest summary
Expect roughly $1,500 to $10,000 or more monthly for a full-service agency, about $300 to $5,000 a month for a single service and a separate budget for ad spend. Compare quotes line by line, keep your accounts and website in your name, walk away from guarantees and long lock-ins and insist on being measured in customers, not likes. If the basics aren't in place yet, fix those first. An agency is worth hiring when the extra customers it produces bring in more profit than its fee.