Ecommerce SEO pricing in the UK is frustratingly opaque. Most agencies do not publish their rates. Quotes for similar-sounding services range from £500 to £10,000 per month. And without understanding what should be included at each price point, comparing quotes is almost impossible.
We are going to fix that. This guide provides real pricing data for ecommerce SEO services in the UK, explains what you should expect at each level of investment, and gives you a framework for calculating whether SEO will deliver a positive return for your specific store.
No vague ranges. No "it depends" without qualification. Real numbers with real context.
Ecommerce SEO pricing overview
Here is the current UK market for ecommerce SEO, based on our experience both as providers and as operators who have hired SEO agencies for our own brands.
| Tier | Monthly retainer | Annual investment | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foundation | £1,000 – £2,000 | £12,000 – £24,000 | Stores under £500K revenue establishing SEO foundations |
| Growth | £2,000 – £3,500 | £24,000 – £42,000 | Stores doing £500K-£3M seeking consistent organic growth |
| Performance | £3,500 – £5,000+ | £42,000 – £60,000+ | Stores doing £3M+ competing in demanding verticals |
One-off projects sit alongside these retainers:
| Project type | Price range | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Technical SEO audit | £1,500 – £3,000 | 1-2 weeks |
| Full SEO audit (technical + content + competitive) | £3,000 – £5,000 | 2-3 weeks |
| Keyword research and content strategy | £1,500 – £3,000 | 1-2 weeks |
| Migration SEO planning | £2,000 – £5,000 | 2-4 weeks |
Common pricing models
SEO agencies in the UK use several pricing models. Each has trade-offs.
Monthly retainer
The most common model for ongoing ecommerce SEO. You pay a fixed monthly fee for a defined scope of work. This model works well because SEO is an ongoing discipline — it is not a project with a start and end date. The retainer provides predictable budgeting and allows the agency to plan resource allocation.
As we discuss in our guide on why one-off SEO does not work, the compounding nature of SEO means consistent monthly investment outperforms sporadic bursts of activity.
Hourly rate
Some agencies charge by the hour, typically £75-£200 per hour depending on seniority and location. This model provides flexibility but makes budgeting unpredictable. It also creates a perverse incentive: the agency earns more by taking longer.
Performance-based
A small number of agencies offer performance-based pricing, where fees are tied to rankings or traffic outcomes. This sounds appealing but has significant problems. It incentivises targeting easy-to-rank keywords rather than commercially valuable ones. It creates disputes over attribution. And it often includes high base fees with performance bonuses, making it more expensive than a straightforward retainer.
Project-based
Suitable for one-off audits, migration planning, or specific optimisation projects. Not appropriate for ongoing SEO because the work is never truly "done."
Our recommendation: monthly retainers for ongoing SEO, with project-based pricing for specific initiatives like audits or migration planning. This combination provides the consistency needed for compounding results with the flexibility for targeted projects.
What you get at each price point
Foundation tier: £1,000 – £2,000/month
This tier covers the essential technical and on-page SEO work that every ecommerce store needs. At this level, you should expect:
- Monthly technical SEO monitoring (crawl errors, indexation issues, Core Web Vitals)
- On-page optimisation of 5-10 priority pages per month (title tags, meta descriptions, heading structure, internal linking)
- Basic keyword tracking (50-100 keywords)
- Google Search Console monitoring and issue resolution
- Monthly reporting with traffic and ranking data
- Reactive recommendations based on algorithm changes or technical issues
What you typically do not get at this level: content creation, link building, competitive analysis, or strategic planning. This tier maintains and marginally improves your existing SEO position but is unlikely to deliver breakthrough growth in competitive markets.
Growth tier: £2,000 – £3,500/month
This is where most ecommerce stores should invest. The growth tier adds proactive strategy, content, and link building to the foundational work:
- Everything in the Foundation tier
- Content strategy and production (2-4 pieces of optimised content per month)
- Collection page optimisation and category SEO strategy
- Link building through genuine outreach (5-10 quality links per month)
- Competitor monitoring and gap analysis
- Expanded keyword tracking (200-500 keywords)
- Quarterly strategic reviews with commercial context
- Structured data implementation and optimisation
- Internal linking architecture improvements
This level of investment is appropriate for stores doing £500K-£3M in annual revenue. It provides the strategic depth and tactical execution needed to meaningfully grow organic traffic and revenue. Our guide on what an SEO agency should do every month covers these deliverables in detail.
Performance tier: £3,500 – £5,000+/month
The performance tier is for stores competing in demanding verticals where organic search is a primary revenue channel:
- Everything in the Growth tier
- Senior strategist with significant ecommerce SEO experience
- Advanced content production (4-8 pieces per month, including long-form guides and landing pages)
- Aggressive link acquisition strategy (10-20+ quality links per month)
- Advanced technical SEO (JavaScript rendering, internationalisation, faceted navigation)
- Conversion rate insights alongside SEO (traffic quality, not just volume)
- Custom dashboards and advanced analytics integration
- Monthly strategy calls with senior team members
- Product page SEO at scale (optimising hundreds of product pages systematically)
This tier is appropriate for stores doing £3M+ where organic search represents a significant portion of revenue and where competitive pressure demands sustained, high-quality activity.
One-off audits vs ongoing retainers
Some brands consider doing a one-off SEO audit and then implementing the recommendations themselves. This can work for technically strong teams, but it has limitations.
When a one-off audit makes sense
- You have an in-house team capable of implementing SEO recommendations
- You want to evaluate your current position before committing to ongoing investment
- You need an independent assessment of a previous agency's work
- You are preparing for a platform migration and need SEO planning
When an ongoing retainer makes sense
- You do not have in-house SEO expertise
- You want consistent organic traffic growth over time
- Your competitors are actively investing in SEO
- You need content production, link building, and technical monitoring — not just a list of recommendations
The audit-only approach is like getting a health check but never following the treatment plan. You know what is wrong, but nothing changes. For most ecommerce stores, the ongoing retainer delivers significantly better commercial outcomes.
What affects the price
Not all ecommerce stores require the same level of SEO investment. Several factors influence where your project falls on the pricing spectrum.
Store size and complexity
A store with 50 products and 5 collections requires fundamentally less SEO work than one with 5,000 products across 200 collections. More pages mean more optimisation work, more complex internal linking architecture, and more crawl management considerations.
Competitive landscape
SEO for a niche artisan candle maker is less expensive than SEO for a fashion brand competing with established retailers. The more competitive your market, the more link building and content investment is needed to gain visibility.
Current SEO position
A store with strong existing authority, clean technical foundations, and some ranking visibility needs less initial work than one starting from scratch or recovering from a penalty. The first three months of a new engagement are typically more intensive (and potentially more expensive) as foundations are established.
Technical platform
Shopify stores have specific SEO considerations (URL structure, pagination, tag pages) that require platform-specific expertise. Working with a Shopify-focused agency that understands these nuances is typically more cost-effective than a generalist agency that needs to learn the platform.
Content requirements
If content production is included in the retainer, the volume and complexity of content required affects pricing. Technical product content costs more to produce than general blog articles. If you have in-house content capabilities, you can reduce agency costs by handling content production internally with strategic direction from the agency.
How to calculate SEO ROI
The most important question is not "how much does SEO cost?" but "will SEO generate a positive return?" Here is how to calculate that.
Step 1: Estimate organic traffic opportunity
Use keyword research tools (Ahrefs, Semrush) to estimate the total monthly search volume for keywords relevant to your products and categories. For a typical ecommerce store, this ranges from 10,000 to 500,000+ searches per month.
Step 2: Project realistic traffic capture
Ranking on page one of Google captures approximately 70% of clicks for a given query. The first position captures roughly 30%. Estimate what percentage of total keyword volume you could realistically capture over 12-18 months. A conservative estimate is 3-5% of total relevant search volume.
Step 3: Apply your conversion rate
Organic search traffic typically converts at 1.5-3% for ecommerce stores. Apply your actual organic conversion rate (check GA4) or use 2% as a conservative estimate.
Step 4: Calculate revenue
Projected monthly traffic × conversion rate × average order value = projected monthly revenue from SEO.
For example: 100,000 monthly relevant searches × 4% traffic capture × 2% conversion rate × £60 AOV = £4,800 per month, or £57,600 per year. Against a £30,000 annual SEO investment, the ROI is 92%.
This is conservative. SEO compounds over time — year two typically delivers more traffic than year one from the same investment, because the authority and content you have built continue to generate returns.
In-house vs agency: the cost comparison
Some brands consider hiring an in-house SEO specialist instead of engaging an agency. Here is how the costs compare:
| Cost element | In-house SEO hire | SEO agency (Growth tier) |
|---|---|---|
| Annual salary/fee | £35,000 – £55,000 | £24,000 – £42,000 |
| Employer NI and pension | £5,000 – £8,000 | Included |
| SEO tools (Ahrefs, Semrush, Screaming Frog) | £5,000 – £8,000 | Included |
| Training and development | £1,000 – £3,000 | Included |
| Management overhead | Significant | Minimal |
| Coverage during absence | None | Full team |
| Breadth of experience | One person | Full team across multiple clients |
| Total annual cost | £46,000 – £74,000 | £24,000 – £42,000 |
An agency provides a broader skill set (technical SEO, content, link building, strategy) at a lower total cost than a single in-house hire. The in-house option becomes more economical when your organic channel is large enough to justify a dedicated full-time role, typically at the £5M+ revenue level.
Pricing red flags
Be cautious of these pricing patterns:
- Below £750/month: This is not enough budget to deliver meaningful ecommerce SEO. At this price, you are likely getting templated reports, automated tools run without analysis, and no genuine strategic input. The risk is not just wasted money — low-quality link building at this tier can actively damage your domain.
- Guaranteed rankings: No one can guarantee specific rankings. Google's algorithm considers hundreds of factors, and your competitors are also investing in SEO. Guarantees are either dishonest or targeting keywords so obscure they have no commercial value.
- Long lock-in contracts: Some agencies require 12-24 month minimum contracts. Good agencies earn their retention through results, not contractual obligation. Three to six month minimum terms are reasonable; beyond that, be cautious.
- No itemised deliverables: If the proposal says "SEO services" without specifying exactly what is included each month, you have no way to evaluate value or hold the agency accountable.
- Results in 4 weeks: SEO is a medium to long-term channel. Agencies promising rapid results are either using risky tactics that will backfire or setting expectations they cannot meet.
The timeline question
SEO is not instant. Understanding the realistic timeline prevents premature disappointment and budget cuts that undermine long-term results.
Month 1-3: Foundations
Technical audit, issue resolution, keyword research, content strategy development. You may see some quick wins from fixing critical technical issues, but significant traffic growth has not yet begun. This is the setup phase.
Month 3-6: Early signals
New content begins ranking, optimised pages start climbing, and link building begins to show impact. You should see measurable improvements in keyword positions and organic impressions. Revenue impact may be modest but directionally positive.
Month 6-12: Growth phase
This is where the compounding effect becomes visible. Authority built through consistent content and link building accelerates ranking improvements. Organic traffic growth becomes consistent month-over-month. Revenue attribution to organic search becomes significant.
Month 12+: Compounding returns
SEO investment from the first year continues to generate returns in the second year and beyond. Pages that were optimised months ago continue to attract traffic. Domain authority gains benefit all pages, including new ones. This compounding effect is why SEO delivers the best long-term ROI of any marketing channel.
How we price ecommerce SEO
We price ecommerce SEO as a monthly retainer with a three-month minimum commitment. This minimum exists because SEO requires at least three months to establish foundations and demonstrate directional results. Beyond that, the engagement continues month-to-month — we earn retention through results, not contracts.
Every engagement begins with a comprehensive audit and strategy development. We then move into monthly execution with transparent reporting that connects SEO activity to commercial outcomes — not just rankings and traffic, but revenue attributable to organic search.
We take the same approach to all our SEO engagements: measurable activity, transparent reporting, and strategies that prioritise commercial outcomes over vanity metrics.
SEO should pay for itself. If it does not, either the strategy is wrong, the execution is poor, or the investment is not at the level needed to compete in your market. We would rather tell you that upfront than take your money knowing the budget is insufficient.
Andrew Simpson, Founder
If you want an honest assessment of what ecommerce SEO would cost for your specific store and whether the ROI works, start a conversation. We will give you a direct answer.
Ecommerce SEO is an investment, not an expense. When properly executed at the right budget level, it delivers compounding returns that no other marketing channel can match. The key is investing enough to compete in your specific market, choosing a partner with genuine ecommerce expertise, and committing to the timeframe needed for results to materialise. Half-measures deliver half-results. Proper investment delivers compound growth.
