Google Ads is better when you need calls now, and SEO is better for lowering your cost per lead over time. Most tradies who can afford it run both: ads for urgent, high-value searches while SEO builds, then shift budget as organic enquiries grow.
Ads can put you at the top of Google within days and you can switch them off when the diary is full. The trade-off is that every click costs money, and the leads stop the day the budget does.
SEO is slow to start but compounds. A suburb page that ranks in month four can keep producing enquiries for years without a per-click fee, and your map pack position keeps paying for itself.
For a side-by-side look at the economics, see PPC vs SEO for local business. Scalepoint runs Google Ads from A$990/month + ad spend and SEO from A$890/month, both ex GST and month-to-month.
This is one part of a bigger picture. SEO for tradies: the full guide covers costs, timelines, Google Maps, websites, agencies and AI search in one place.