SEO costs: compare scope, monthly budgets and minimum commitments
Worked amounts are fictional USD examples unless a named, dated offer is identified. Unknown charges are not zero.
Worked scope and budget
| Comparison item | Known base or scope | What remains unknown | Decision |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proposal A · fictional | USD900 + 6 × USD900 = $6,300.00 | Tax, extra work and payment schedule | Six-month minimum base is also $6,300.00. |
| Proposal B · fictional | 6 × USD800 = $4,800.00 | Tax, extras and exit conditions | Twelve-month minimum base: $9,600.00. |
| Hourly assignment · fictional | 20 hours × USD125 = $2,500.00 | Exact tasks, overrun authorization and extras | Compare a defined assignment, not a recurring service. |
| Scope match | Content, implementation, reporting and ownership | Which party supplies developer time? | Resolve gaps before comparing totals. |
| Final payable amount | Known base is only one part of the quote | Tax and additional charges are unconfirmed | No complete total or cheapest-provider verdict. |
Normalize the scope before choosing a proposal
The original example uses a fictional retailer planning six months of work. Proposal A has USD900 setup plus USD900 monthly and a six-month minimum: its known six-month base is USD6,300. Proposal B has no setup charge and USD800 monthly, but a twelve-month minimum: its six-month base is USD4,800 while the full minimum-period base is USD9,600. Taxes and extras are unknown, so neither number is a final payable total. A separate twenty-hour assignment at USD125/hour totals USD2,500 before unknown extras; it does not buy six months of ongoing work.
Use the same currency, planning horizon and list of deliverables when comparing proposals. Separate cash due during your chosen period from the quoted minimum-period commitment, deposits, renewal conditions and exit terms. Ask whether writing, publishing, developer time, software and reporting are included. An attractive monthly number can omit the work your site needs. Do not choose a winner from the fictional arithmetic alone: a smaller amount with less implementation is not necessarily the same purchase.
Public offers observed on 27 October 2026
These are advertisements, not purchased or tested services, endorsements or market averages. Recheck the exact tier, currency, taxes, billing and scope before relying on a quote.
Website Depot Basic: displayed $950/month, with a six-month package minimum. Base-only illustration: 6 × $950 = $5,700. Tax, extras and explicit ISO currency code remain unconfirmed.
Website DepotWebFX SEO Services headline: starting at $2,900/month. It mentions copywriting and implementation, but a written proposal must establish exact scope, setup, minimum term and taxes.
WebFX
Your comparison record
| Field to confirm | Your evidence |
|---|---|
| Provider, proposal URL/file and observation date | Not yet confirmed — record the source and date |
| Currency, billing unit and payment schedule | Not yet confirmed — record the source and date |
| Setup, recurring fees, taxes and extra work | Not yet confirmed — record the source and date |
| Minimum period, renewal and exit terms | Not yet confirmed — record the source and date |
| Included deliverables, owner and acceptance evidence | Not yet confirmed — record the source and date |
| Unknowns, reviewer and next review date | Not yet confirmed — record the source and date |
Before comparing proposals
- Compare one clearly defined scope and period.
- Keep planned cash and minimum-period base separate.
- Record explicit zero separately from unknown.
- Request evidence and implementation ownership.
- Review delivered work separately from search outcomes.
Give each proposal a source document and date, a named decision owner, an included-work list and explicit unknowns. Ask for an example finding, its evidence, the proposed fix and who will implement and verify it. Google’s hiring guidance recommends understanding recommendations, references and communication; at an initial audit stage it advises read-only Search Console access. Record acceptance as delivered work with evidence, and track later search performance separately. The worksheet downloads are local records; they do not contact vendors, submit orders or connect your Search Console account.
An advertised starting price is not your negotiated quote, and a quoted minimum is not a prediction of SEO results. None of these observations establishes average cost, agency quality, guaranteed rankings or the value of a backlink. Local-location work and audit depth have dedicated companion guides. The existing backlink cost calculator concerns a different unit of purchase. Recheck the source offers when making a decision, retain the dates, and leave unresolved taxes or fees marked unknown rather than silently treating them as zero.