{"id":7725,"date":"2026-10-27T09:29:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-27T09:29:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mediahouse.ee\/2026\/10\/27\/why-do-seo-prices-vary-so-much-from-one-agency-to-another-even-though-the-service-seems-the-same\/"},"modified":"2026-10-27T09:29:10","modified_gmt":"2026-10-27T09:29:10","slug":"why-do-seo-prices-vary-so-much-from-one-agency-to-another-even-though-the-service-seems-the-same","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mediahouse.ee\/en\/2026\/10\/27\/why-do-seo-prices-vary-so-much-from-one-agency-to-another-even-though-the-service-seems-the-same\/","title":{"rendered":"Why do SEO prices vary so much from one agency to another, even though the service seems the same?"},"content":{"rendered":"
In short:<\/strong> SEO prices vary because different services are sold under the same name: technical improvements, content creation, and link building. The price is also influenced by the number of hours included in the monthly fee, the pricing model, and the contract length. The cheapest offer may involve risky tactics, such as purchased links or a promise of a guaranteed top ranking.<\/div>\n

1. Three different services are actually sold under the same term \u201cSEO\u201d<\/h2>\n

The Estonian agency Marketing Sharks explains the price differences by noting that three different things are sold under the name \u201cSEO\u201d: technical improvements, content creation, and link building (Marketing Sharks\u2019 Digital Marketing Price Guide<\/a>). In their model, content accounts for about 40\u201350% of ongoing work, technical work 15\u201325%, authority and links 15\u201325%, and analytics 10\u201315% (Marketing Sharks: What\u2019s Actually Done for a Monthly SEO Fee<\/a>).<\/p>\n

One agency\u2019s \u201cSEO service\u201d might therefore consist of a monthly technical audit, while another\u2019s might also include several new articles and link building. Both are honestly labeled as SEO, but they are different products. You can\u2019t compare offers based on their titles alone\u2014only on their content.<\/p>\n

The price is also determined by your specific situation. According to Marketing Sharks, the price depends on how much content is needed, how problematic the technical side is, and how intense the search competition is: ongoing work for a small or medium-sized website starts at around 500 euros per month, while for an e-commerce site or a competitive niche, it ranges from 900 to 2,000 euros per month (Marketing Sharks: How to Choose an SEO Agency and What It Costs<\/a>).<\/p>\n

2. The monthly fee represents a very different number of working hours<\/h2>\n

Marketing Sharks estimates that a 700-euro monthly SEO fee buys about 8\u201312 hours of work in Estonia, and recommends always asking how many hours the quote actually covers ( Marketing Sharks: What is actually done for a monthly SEO fee<\/a> ). In an international comparison, the most common hourly rate in Ahrefs’ SEO pricing survey<\/a> was $75\u2013100 (24% of respondents) and the most common monthly rate was $501\u20131,000 (20.4%).<\/p>\n

According to the same source, SEO for small businesses in Estonia typically ranges from 400 to 1,500 euros per month, and a price lower than that usually covers only a single activity, not a comprehensive service. A low monthly fee isn\u2019t necessarily a bad thing. It simply means a smaller scope of work, and that should be reflected in the quote.<\/p>\n

If you have two offers on the table, ask both of them the same questions in writing:<\/p>\n