At $10.49 per click—double the industry average—every wasted click on 'plumber salary' or 'DIY pipe repair' costs you real money. Our audit found the average plumbing company wastes 23% of their Google Ads budget on searches that never convert.
5 min
Audit time
6
Areas analyzed
Read-only
Account access
We've audited hundreds of plumber accounts. Here are the most common budget leaks we find:
Plumbing has the 3rd highest CPC in home services at $10.49/click. Broad match keywords trigger your ads for 'plumber salary' (147,000 monthly searches), 'plumbing apprenticeship', and 'how to become a plumber'. At $10.49 each, these job-seeker and DIY clicks drain your budget fast with zero chance of conversion.
Keywords like 'emergency plumber' and 'plumber now' have CPCs of $15-25 but convert at 2x the rate—IF you have a dedicated landing page with click-to-call, 24/7 availability messaging, and instant response promises. Most plumbers send this traffic to their homepage, killing conversion rates and wasting the premium CPC.
Plumbing is hyperlocal—customers won't wait 2 hours for a plumber to drive from 45 miles away. Yet many plumbers target entire metro areas or even states. With a $129.02 cost per lead, every lead outside your 15-20 mile service radius is money wasted on jobs you'll never take.
Not all keywords are created equal. Here's which ones to target and which to avoid for plumber Google Ads.
Specific service + local intent. Lower CPC than generic 'plumber', higher conversion rate because the customer knows exactly what they need.
High-ticket service ($300-800 average job). Customers searching this have an urgent need and are ready to book.
Often leads to larger sewer line replacement jobs ($3,000-15,000). Attracts serious homeowners, not tire-kickers.
Signals quality-conscious customer willing to pay more. Less price-shopping, higher close rates.
Urgent need = higher willingness to pay. Premium CPC but 15%+ conversion rates when paired with fast-response landing page.
147,000 monthly searches from job seekers, not customers. Zero commercial intent.
DIY searchers who will never hire. Watch a YouTube video, don't call a plumber.
Career seekers, not homeowners with plumbing problems.
People buying parts at Home Depot to fix it themselves.
Attracts price-shoppers collecting 10 quotes. Low close rate, high time waste.
Timing matters. Here's when plumber demand peaks and how to allocate your budget throughout the year.
December, January, February
Increase budget 40-50% during peak demand
June, July, August
Reduce spend or focus on maintenance services
Evenings (6-10pm) and weekends when homeowners discover problems
Frozen pipes drive 40% of winter emergency calls. Monitor weather forecasts—when temps drop below 20°F, increase bids 50%+.
Budget recommendations based on real LocalIQ 2025 data and typical plumber ROI.
Minimum Monthly Budget
$2,000
~15 leads/month
Recommended Range
$2,500-$5,000/month
Best ROI for most plumber businesses
Cost Per Customer
$516
At 25% close rate
At $129 CPL and 25% close rate, each customer costs $516 to acquire. Average plumbing job = $350. You need repeat business or referrals to profit. Focus on high-ticket services (water heaters, sewer lines) where one job covers acquisition cost.
Our AI audit checks every aspect of your Google Ads account against plumber-specific best practices.
We check if you're separating emergency services (burst pipes, no hot water) from scheduled work (water heater replacement, repiping). Mixing them tanks your Quality Score and wastes budget.
We identify if you're bidding on 'plumber salary' or 'plumbing jobs' that attract job seekers, not customers. These waste 15-25% of typical plumber budgets.
We check if your 'emergency plumber' ads mention 24/7 availability, response time guarantees, and click-to-call. Generic ads lose to specific ones.
We verify phone call tracking is set up—85% of plumbing leads come via phone, not forms. Without call tracking, you're flying blind.
We audit if your targeting matches your true service area. Paying $10.49/click for leads 45 miles away is money burned.
We score your landing pages for plumbing-specific trust signals: licensing numbers, insurance badges, review counts, and same-day service promises.
Understanding your competition helps you find your edge. Here's what plumber advertisers are up against.
Competition Level
very high
180,000+ monthly searches for 'plumber near me' in the US
Main competitors: National chains (Roto-Rooter, Mr. Rooter), local established plumbers, new LSA-focused competitors
How to Win
Your Differentiator
Win with speed-to-lead (respond in <5 minutes), specialty services (trenchless sewer), or premium positioning (licensed, insured, guaranteed).
"The audit found we were wasting $600/month on 'plumber near me' broad match hitting job searches. Fixed it in 10 minutes, saw cost per lead drop 34% in the first week."
— Plumbing Business Owner
Pay per audit. Use when you need it.
“$19.99 to find $1,400/mo in waste? Best ROI I've ever gotten.” — Elite Electric, San Diego CA
$19.99 per audit
“Paid for itself in 1 day”
— J.M., Plumber
$17.00 per audit
“Perfect for my 3 locations”
— T.K., Dentist
$15.00 per audit
“Use it monthly, always finds something”
— R.S., HVAC
$10.00 per audit
“Run it for all my clients now”
— M.L., Agency
Common questions about Google Ads for plumber businesses
Most successful plumbing companies invest $2,000-$5,000 per month on Google Ads, though this varies significantly by market size and competition. In major metros like Houston or Phoenix, you may need $4,000+ to compete effectively. In smaller markets, $1,500-2,500 can generate solid results. The key metric isn't budget—it's cost per lead and cost per customer. With plumbing's $129 average cost per lead and typical 25% close rates, you're spending roughly $516 to acquire each customer. Your budget should be based on how many new customers you can handle and whether the math works for your average ticket size. A shop doing $500+ average jobs can profitably spend more than one averaging $200 drain cleanings.