A good cost per lead for a tradie is whatever leaves you a healthy profit once you account for your close rate and job value, not a fixed dollar figure. As a rough guide (illustrative), many trades see A$20–A$80 per lead work out profitably. Work backwards from your average job value rather than chasing a number you read online.
Ask five agencies "what is a good cost per lead" and you will get five different numbers, because the honest answer is: it depends on what a lead is worth to you. A A$40 lead is expensive for a A$150 callout and cheap for a A$8,000 bathroom reno.
Work backwards from your job value
- Take your average job value and profit margin. Say a A$3,000 job at 35% margin is A$1,050 profit.
- Decide what share of that profit you are happy to spend winning the job. Many tradies land around 10–20%, so roughly A$105–A$210 per booked job.
- Factor in your close rate. If you close 1 in 3 leads, a A$150 target cost per booked job means you can afford roughly A$50 per lead.
- That A$50 is your target cost per lead, not a number from a blog post, one built from your own numbers.
Cost per lead only means something next to your close rate and job value. A A$70 lead that closes 1 in 2 can beat a A$25 lead that closes 1 in 10.
Illustrative ranges by job size
These are illustrative, not a promise: your suburbs, trade and competition move the numbers. But they show why "good" changes with what you sell.
| Job size | Cost per lead (illustrative) | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Small callouts (A$150–A$400 jobs) | A$15–A$30 | The profit pool per job is thin |
| Mid-size jobs (A$1,000–A$4,000) | A$30–A$80 | More room for a lower close rate |
| Large projects (A$8,000+) | A$100–A$300+ | One won job covers many unsuccessful leads |
Why chasing "the cheapest lead" backfires
The lowest cost per lead usually comes from the loosest targeting: casting a wide net that pulls in tyre-kickers, out-of-area enquiries and price shoppers. Those leads look cheap on a report and close terribly. A slightly higher cost per lead from tighter targeting almost always produces a lower cost per booked job, which is the number that actually pays the bills.
What actually moves your cost per lead
- Suburb and keyword targeting in Google Search Ads: the tighter the fit to your service area and trade, the less you pay for irrelevant clicks.
- Landing page conversion rate: doubling it roughly halves your cost per lead without spending an extra dollar on ads.
- Negative keywords: blocking DIY searches and job-seekers keeps the lead pool relevant.
- Speed to lead and follow-up. This does not change cost per lead, but it changes close rate, which is the number that decides whether a given cost per lead was actually good.
If you want a target specific to your trade, suburbs and job value rather than an illustrative range, the fastest way is a free audit. We will map your numbers and send back a written cost-per-lead target.
There is no universal good cost per lead: it depends on your job value, margin and close rate. Work backwards from what you can afford to pay per booked job, then divide by your close rate. As a rough guide (illustrative), many trades find A$20 to A$80 a lead works.
Found this useful? Make Scalepoint a preferred source in Google Search.