If you are a Melbourne business owner researching SEO, the pricing you encounter ranges from $99 per month to $15,000+ per month. That spread is confusing and makes it almost impossible to know what is reasonable, what is a waste of money, and what you actually need. This guide cuts through the noise with honest pricing data based on what agencies in Melbourne actually charge in 2026 and what you should expect to receive at each price point.
The Short Answer: What SEO Costs in Melbourne
Here is the realistic pricing landscape for professional SEO services in Melbourne in 2026:
| Business Type | Monthly Investment | What You Get |
|---|---|---|
| Startup / Solo Operator | $500–$1,000 | Basic technical fixes, GBP setup, foundational on-page SEO |
| Small Business (Local) | $1,500–$3,000 | Full technical SEO, content strategy, local SEO, monthly reporting |
| Growing Business (Multi-Location) | $3,000–$5,000 | Everything above + content production, link building, multiple locations |
| eCommerce (Under 1,000 SKUs) | $1,500–$4,000 | Product optimisation, category architecture, schema, Shopping feeds |
| eCommerce (1,000+ SKUs) | $4,000–$8,000 | Full catalogue management, crawl budget, faceted nav, enterprise tooling |
| Enterprise / National Brand | $6,000–$15,000+ | Full-service SEO team, multi-market, CRO, content at scale, AI SEO |
The most common price point for Melbourne small businesses working with a reputable agency is $1,500 to $3,000 per month. That is the sweet spot where agencies can dedicate enough hours to your account to deliver real results without pricing out the businesses that need SEO most.
What Affects the Price of SEO in Melbourne
SEO pricing is not arbitrary. The cost reflects the actual hours and expertise required to move your website up in search results. Several factors determine where your business falls on the pricing spectrum.
Competition level is the single biggest factor. A plumber in Werribee faces dramatically less SEO competition than a personal injury lawyer targeting "lawyer Melbourne." High-competition industries — legal, medical, financial services, real estate — require more aggressive content strategies, more link building, and more ongoing optimisation to compete. That means more hours, which means higher costs.
Current website condition matters significantly. A brand-new website with no domain authority, no content, and no backlinks needs far more upfront work than an established site that already ranks on page two and just needs strategic optimisation to push onto page one. The technical health of your site also plays a role — a WordPress site loaded with 40 plugins and a 6-second load time needs substantial technical remediation before content strategy can take effect.
Geographic scope affects pricing because local SEO and national SEO are fundamentally different challenges. Ranking for "dentist South Yarra" requires a different strategy (and less effort) than ranking for "best dental implants Australia." Multi-location businesses need individual optimisation for each service area, which scales the work linearly.
Content requirements drive a significant portion of SEO cost. A service business needs landing pages for each service and location, plus supporting blog content. An eCommerce store may need unique descriptions for hundreds of products. Content creation, whether done in-house or by the agency, is time-intensive and directly impacts pricing.
Platform complexity affects technical SEO costs. A simple WordPress site is straightforward to optimise. A Magento 2 store with 50,000 SKUs and faceted navigation requires specialist expertise and substantially more technical work. Shopify stores fall somewhere in between, with platform-specific limitations that require workarounds.
What You Get at Each Price Point
Under $500/month: The Danger Zone
At this price, an agency cannot afford to dedicate more than 1-2 hours per month to your account. That is barely enough time to log in, check your rankings, and send an automated report. You will typically get cookie-cutter optimisation — basic meta tag updates, directory submissions to low-quality sites, and generic blog posts that add no real value.
The real danger of cheap SEO is not just that it wastes money — it is that it wastes time. Twelve months at $400 per month is $4,800 spent with nothing to show for it, plus a year of lost opportunity where a proper campaign could have been building momentum. Some cheap providers also use risky link building tactics that can trigger Google penalties, actively damaging your site's ranking ability.
$1,000–$1,500/month: Foundation Building
This budget allows an agency to dedicate approximately 5-8 hours per month to your account. That is enough for a proper technical audit in month one, on-page optimisation of your core pages, Google Business Profile setup and optimisation, basic content strategy, and monthly reporting with actionable recommendations.
For a local business in a low-to-moderate competition niche — think trades, allied health, hospitality — this can be enough to achieve page one rankings within 6-9 months. It is not enough for content-heavy strategies or competitive industries, but it builds a solid foundation that can scale.
$1,500–$3,000/month: The Sweet Spot for Small Business
This is where professional SEO starts to deliver consistent, measurable results for Melbourne businesses. At this level, you should expect a dedicated account manager, comprehensive technical SEO audits and fixes, keyword research and content strategy, monthly content creation (2-4 pieces), local SEO optimisation including GBP management, internal linking strategy, schema markup implementation, competitor monitoring, and detailed monthly reporting tied to actual business outcomes — not just ranking positions.
Most Melbourne small businesses achieve strong ROI at this level within 4-6 months. A plumber spending $2,000 per month on SEO who generates 10 additional enquiries per month at an average job value of $500 is seeing a 2.5× return — and that return compounds as rankings strengthen over time.
$3,000–$5,000/month: Competitive Growth
This budget suits businesses in competitive industries — lawyers, dentists, real estate agents, financial services — or multi-location businesses that need to rank across several suburbs. At this level, agencies can invest in aggressive content production (4-8 pieces per month), digital PR and link building, conversion rate optimisation alongside SEO, multi-location GBP management, and advanced technical SEO including SEO for AI.
Businesses at this investment level are typically generating enough revenue from organic search to justify the spend within 3-4 months, with returns accelerating significantly after the 6-month mark.
$5,000–$10,000+/month: Enterprise & eCommerce
Enterprise SEO budgets reflect the complexity of large websites. An eCommerce store with thousands of products requires ongoing catalogue optimisation, crawl budget management, faceted navigation configuration, product schema at scale, and Google Merchant Center feed optimisation. National brands need multi-market strategies, content at scale, and dedicated SEO teams that integrate with internal marketing departments.
At this level, SEO typically represents 5-10% of the revenue it generates. A Melbourne eCommerce store investing $8,000 per month in SEO and generating $100,000+ in monthly organic revenue is achieving a 12× return — which is why enterprise SEO budgets continue to grow year over year.
SEO Pricing Models in Melbourne
Melbourne agencies use several pricing structures. Understanding them helps you compare quotes accurately.
Monthly retainers are the most common model, ranging from $1,000 to $10,000+ per month. You pay a fixed monthly fee for an agreed scope of work. This is generally the best model for ongoing SEO because it allows for consistent, strategic work that builds momentum over time. The downside is that you are committing to ongoing costs, though reputable agencies do not lock you into long-term contracts.
Project-based pricing works for specific one-off needs: a technical audit ($2,000–$5,000), a site migration ($3,000–$8,000), or a content strategy document ($1,500–$3,000). This is good for businesses that have in-house capability to execute but need expert direction.
Hourly consulting typically ranges from $150 to $350 per hour for experienced SEO consultants in Melbourne. This works for businesses that need ad-hoc advice or have specific technical questions but do not need a full-service engagement.
Performance-based pricing sounds attractive — pay only when you rank — but it carries significant risks. Agencies using this model often target easy, low-value keywords to hit their metrics, or use aggressive tactics that risk Google penalties. We strongly advise against performance-based SEO agreements.
SEO vs Google Ads: Where Should You Spend?
Melbourne businesses frequently ask whether they should invest in SEO or Google Ads. The honest answer is both, but the balance depends on your timeline and budget.
Google Ads delivers immediate traffic but stops the moment you stop paying. The average cost per click for Melbourne service businesses ranges from $5 to $25+, with legal and medical terms exceeding $50 per click. A Melbourne lawyer spending $5,000 per month on Google Ads might generate 100-150 clicks — and at a typical 5-10% conversion rate, that is 5-15 enquiries at $333-$1,000 per lead.
SEO takes 3-6 months to gain traction but delivers compounding returns. The same $5,000 per month invested in SEO might generate nothing in month one but could be delivering 500+ organic visits per month by month six, growing to 2,000+ by month twelve — all without ongoing click costs. The cost per lead drops dramatically as organic traffic grows.
The smart approach for most Melbourne businesses: start Google Ads and SEO simultaneously. Ads fill the gap while SEO builds momentum. As organic traffic grows, gradually shift ad budget toward SEO. Within 12-18 months, most of your lead flow should come from organic search at a fraction of the cost per lead.
Red Flags: How to Spot Bad SEO Pricing
The Melbourne SEO market has no shortage of agencies and freelancers making promises they cannot keep. Watch for these warning signs when evaluating proposals.
Guaranteed rankings are the biggest red flag. No agency can guarantee a #1 position because Google's algorithm is controlled by Google, not by the agency. Anyone who guarantees specific rankings is either lying or planning to target keywords so obscure that ranking for them has zero commercial value.
Lock-in contracts of 12+ months protect the agency, not you. Reputable agencies earn your business every month through results. If an agency needs a 12-month contract to keep you, ask yourself why they are not confident you will stay voluntarily.
Vague deliverables are a sign that you are paying for time, not outcomes. Your proposal should specify exactly what you receive each month: number of content pieces, technical tasks, reporting cadence, and how success will be measured. "SEO optimisation" is not a deliverable — it is a category.
No access to your own accounts is unacceptable. You should have direct access to Google Analytics, Search Console, and any other tools used on your website. Agencies that set up accounts in their own name are creating dependency — if you leave, your data leaves with them.
Outsourced link building with no transparency is how sites get penalised. Ask any agency exactly how they build links and demand examples. If they cannot or will not explain their link building methodology, assume the worst.
How to Get the Most Value From Your SEO Budget
Regardless of how much you spend, these principles help you maximise your return on SEO investment.
Start with a technical foundation. Spending money on content and links while your site has a 5-second load time, broken internal links, and no schema markup is like pouring water into a leaking bucket. Fix the technical issues first — this is where early budget delivers the fastest returns.
Prioritise commercial keywords. Not all traffic is equal. A hundred visits from people searching "how to fix a leaking tap" is worth less than ten visits from people searching "emergency plumber South Melbourne." Your SEO strategy should prioritise the keywords that generate revenue, not just traffic.
Demand revenue reporting, not just ranking reports. Rankings are a leading indicator, but revenue is what matters. Your agency should be tracking which organic keywords drive enquiries and sales, the cost per lead from organic traffic, and how SEO performance compares month over month. If they only report on keyword positions and traffic numbers, they are not connecting their work to your bottom line.
Invest consistently. SEO compounds. Three months of $3,000 per month delivers significantly less than twelve months of $1,500 per month because organic authority builds over time. A smaller, sustained investment almost always outperforms a larger, short-term one.
What We Charge (And Why)
Transparency matters, so here is how our pricing works. Our small business SEO engagements start from $1,500 per month. eCommerce SEO starts from $1,500 per month for smaller stores and scales to $6,000+ for large catalogues. Enterprise SEO is quoted based on scope, typically $5,000 to $10,000+ per month.
Every engagement starts with a free audit so we can provide a transparent quote based on your actual situation — not a generic package price. We do not lock clients into long-term contracts because we believe the work should speak for itself. Our clients stay because they see results, not because they are contractually obligated.
If your budget is below $1,500 per month, we will tell you honestly whether SEO is the right investment right now or whether that money would be better spent on Google Ads or improving your website's conversion rate first. Not every business needs SEO today, and we would rather be honest about that than take money for a campaign that is unlikely to deliver.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average cost of SEO in Melbourne?
SEO in Melbourne ranges from $500 to $10,000+ per month depending on business size, competition, and scope. Most small businesses pay between $1,500 and $3,000 per month for professional SEO that delivers measurable results. Enterprise and eCommerce businesses with large websites typically invest $5,000 to $10,000+ per month.
Is cheap SEO worth it?
SEO under $500 per month in Melbourne rarely delivers meaningful results. At that price point, agencies cannot afford to dedicate enough hours to move the needle. You typically get automated reports and minimal actual optimisation work. The risk is wasting 6-12 months on an approach that was never going to work — and in some cases, cheap providers use risky tactics that can actively harm your rankings.
How long does SEO take to show ROI in Melbourne?
Most Melbourne businesses see initial ranking improvements within 3-4 months and meaningful traffic and lead growth within 6-9 months. Competitive industries like legal, medical, and real estate may take 9-12 months. The compounding nature of SEO means ROI typically accelerates significantly after the first year.
Should I do SEO myself or hire an agency?
DIY SEO works for businesses with simple needs and someone willing to invest 10-15 hours per week learning and implementing. For competitive Melbourne markets, professional SEO typically pays for itself within 3-6 months through increased leads and revenue. The real question is whether your time is better spent running your business or learning SEO.
What should I look for in an SEO agency quote?
Look for specificity: what deliverables are included each month, how many hours are allocated, what tools they use, and how they measure success. Avoid agencies that guarantee rankings, lock you into 12-month contracts, or cannot explain what they will actually do with your money. Ask for case studies and client references in your industry.
Is SEO more cost-effective than Google Ads?
Over 12+ months, SEO typically delivers a lower cost per lead than Google Ads because organic traffic compounds while ad costs are ongoing. However, Google Ads delivers immediate traffic. The best strategy for most Melbourne businesses is starting both simultaneously, then gradually shifting budget toward SEO as organic traffic grows.