The headline numbers
Blended LSA cost per lead across trades: $53, with a 43.9% booking rate, $233 cost per paying customer, and 7.84x closed return on ad spend (SearchLight, Feb 2026). That's 49% cheaper than blended Google Ads and 64% cheaper than non-branded search. More than 90% of LSA leads arrive as phone calls (The Media Captain, 2025), and roughly 6–7% of spend comes back as dispute credits on junk leads.
| Trade | Cost per lead | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical | $39 | Cheapest of any measured trade |
| HVAC | $51–$80 | 43.9% booking rate benchmark |
| Plumbing | $57–$69 | Drain/sewer $59; water heaters $71 |
| Roofing | $71–$162 | Storm markets at the high end |
| Windows (contact) | $25–$85 | BaaDigi 2026 |
| Cleaning | $28 | LocaliQ 2025 |
What moves your LSA ranking
LSA ranking isn't an auction you can simply outbid — Google weighs review count and rating, answer rate, booking responsiveness, and dispute behavior. The practical playbook: answer every call in seconds (missed calls tank rank), push happy customers to Google reviews weekly, dispute junk leads promptly but honestly, and pair LSA with search ads so you occupy both the guaranteed slots and the standard results. Trades where LSA is cheapest (electrical, HVAC) often have the most room to scale volume before hitting lead-quality limits.
Frequently asked questions
How much do Local Services Ads cost per lead?
2026 benchmarks: $39 for electrical, $51 for HVAC, $57 for plumbing, and $71–$162 for roofing, with a $53 blended average across trades at a 43.9% booking rate (SearchLight, Feb 2026).
Are LSA leads better than Google Ads leads?
They're cheaper — 49% below blended search and 64% below non-branded (SearchLight, 2026) — and pre-filtered by Google's screening. The trade-off: volume caps in smaller markets and rankings driven by reviews and answer rate rather than pure budget. Most contractors should run both.
Why am I getting few LSA leads?
Usually ranking, not budget: low review count, slow answer rate, or aggressive disputing. Fixing phone coverage and review velocity typically moves LSA volume more than raising the weekly cap.
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