Most ecommerce SEO is sold as a monthly retainer, and most retainers sit between a few hundred and a few thousand dollars a month. The best public data we know of is an Ahrefs poll of 439 SEO providers: the average was $2,917 a month, agencies averaged $3,209 and freelancers $1,348, and 78.2% charge a monthly retainer (Ahrefs, updated August 2024). That survey covers SEO in general, not only ecommerce, so treat it as a rough benchmark.
The number on a proposal matters less than what it buys. This guide explains how ecommerce SEO is priced, what should be included at each level, and the questions that separate a fair quote from an expensive one. We also show our own prices, because we think every agency should.
A fixed monthly fee for ongoing work: technical fixes, page optimization, new content and reporting. This is how most stores buy SEO, because rankings come from steady work over months, not a single project. Check the minimum term. Some agencies require six or twelve months up front.
A full review of your store with a prioritized list of fixes. A good audit is useful even if you never hire the agency, because any developer can work from it. It is also the lowest-risk way to judge whether an agency knows ecommerce.
Useful for a defined job: a platform migration, a redirect plan, a site speed project. Ask for a cap on hours so the scope can't drift.
| Budget level | What's realistic |
|---|---|
| One-time audit | Technical crawl, indexing review, keyword map for key collections, a prioritized fix list |
| Entry retainer | Technical fixes, core page optimization, a keyword map, a small amount of new content each month, a monthly report |
| Growth retainer | Everything above, plus product and collection page rewrites, more content, and genuine link outreach |
| Larger retainer | Everything above, plus programmatic pages for large catalogs, conversion work on key pages, and regular strategy sessions |
We publish ours. Card prices are shown; paying by bank transfer saves 3%. Plans run month to month with 30 days' notice to cancel.
| Plan | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| SEO Audit (one-time) | $775 | Full technical and content audit with a prioritized fix list. Credited toward your first month if you start a plan within 30 days. |
| SEO Foundation | $1,545/mo | Technical audit and fixes, on-page optimization of core pages, keyword map, 2 articles a month, monthly ranking report |
| SEO Growth | $2,885/mo | Everything in Foundation, 4 articles a month, product, collection or feature page optimization, link outreach |
| SEO Scale | $4,635/mo | Everything in Growth, 8 articles a month, programmatic landing pages, conversion improvements, quarterly strategy session |
See what the work looks like on a store in our Shopify SEO service, or compare every plan on our packages page.
Often, because stores have more pages and more technical issues created by filters, variants and apps. A small catalog in a narrow niche can cost less than a content-heavy software site.
Technical fixes can show in Search Console within weeks. Meaningful traffic growth usually takes six to twelve months. Judge an agency on the work shipped and the trend in qualified traffic, not on any single month.
If you are unsure whether SEO is your problem, start with an audit. It tells you what is wrong and roughly how much work fixing it takes.
Want to know what your store needs first? Book a call and we'll tell you, even if the answer is the cheaper option.