Published: 25 January 2026 | Last Updated: 25 January 2026
By Clwyd Probert, CEO & Founder, Whitehat SEO Ltd
How Do I Choose a PPC Agency in the UK?
A PPC agency manages paid advertising campaigns across Google Ads, Microsoft Ads, and LinkedIn to generate qualified leads for your business. UK PPC management services typically cost £400–£5,000 per month depending on complexity, with the best agencies delivering measurable pipeline growth rather than vanity metrics.
UK search advertising reached £16.9 billion in 2024, growing 12.8% year-over-year according to IAB UK's Digital Adspend Report. For B2B companies, paid search now accounts for over 50% of average marketing budgets. Yet choosing the right agency remains challenging—the UK has over 1,600 Google Partner agencies, but only 169 hold Premier Partner status.
This guide covers everything marketing directors need to evaluate PPC agency partnerships: realistic pricing benchmarks, performance expectations, red flags to avoid, and the questions that separate genuine experts from the rest.
What Does a PPC Agency Actually Do?
A PPC agency handles the strategic planning, execution, and optimisation of paid advertising campaigns. This includes keyword research to identify high-intent search terms, ad copywriting that drives clicks, bid management to control costs, landing page recommendations, and continuous performance analysis.
Modern PPC management extends well beyond Google Ads. Effective agencies coordinate campaigns across multiple platforms—Google Search, Microsoft Ads (which offers 30–50% lower CPCs for B2B), LinkedIn for precise job-title targeting, and increasingly Performance Max campaigns that span Google's entire network. Over 80% of advertisers now use automated bidding strategies, requiring agencies to balance AI-driven optimisation with strategic oversight.
The real value lies in what many businesses struggle to achieve internally: proper conversion tracking, multi-touch attribution, and integration with CRM systems like HubSpot. Without these foundations, you're flying blind on ROI. Whitehat's HubSpot integration services ensure that every lead source is tracked from first click through to closed revenue.
How Much Do UK PPC Agencies Charge in 2026?
UK PPC agency pricing typically follows three models: percentage of ad spend, fixed monthly retainers, or hourly rates. Understanding these structures helps you evaluate proposals and avoid overpaying.
| Pricing Model | Typical Range | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Percentage of ad spend | 10–20% of monthly budget | Mid-to-large budgets (£5k+ spend) |
| Monthly retainer | £400–£5,000+ | SMEs and predictable budgeting |
| Hourly rate | £45–£250/hour | Project work and audits |
| Setup fee | £250–£1,000 | One-time account configuration |
According to WebFX data, 83% of businesses spending £1,000–£100,000 monthly pay 5–10% of their budget as management fees. London agencies average £1,200 per month compared to Manchester's £950—a 15–25% premium that's narrowed as remote delivery has become standard.
For B2B SaaS companies with 50–250 employees, expect £3,000–£10,000 monthly in agency management fees plus ad spend budgets of £5,000–£30,000 depending on competitive intensity. Whitehat publishes transparent pricing because we believe marketing directors deserve clarity before conversations begin.
What Results Should I Expect from PPC?
B2B PPC benchmarks have shifted significantly. Firebrand's 2025 Google Ads B2B Advertising Benchmarks report shows the average conversion rate dropped to 1.42%—2.3 percentage points below the eight-year average. UK B2B cost-per-click increased 29% year-over-year to £4.27 according to Dreamdata.
| Metric | UK B2B Benchmark |
|---|---|
| Average CPC | £3.00–£6.00 for B2B services |
| Conversion rate | 1.42–5.78% depending on industry |
| Average cost per lead | £52.58 UK average |
| ROAS median | 3.5:1 across industries |
| Time to meaningful results | 3–6 months |
Be wary of agencies promising immediate dramatic results. B2B sales cycles run 6–12 months with buying committees averaging 17 stakeholders. Campaigns generate clicks within 24–48 hours, but meaningful pipeline impact emerges over 3–6 months with optimal scaled performance taking 6–12 months.
Should I Use Google Ads or Microsoft Ads for B2B?
The answer is both. Google commands 92.57% of UK search market share and provides volume, but Microsoft Ads offers significant B2B advantages that many companies overlook.
Microsoft Ads delivers 30–50% lower CPCs than Google, with an average CPC of £1.17 versus Google's £2.00—a 42% discount according to Embryo. Bing's B2B conversion rate of 3.9% outperforms Google. The platform reaches 23% of business executives directly, and its LinkedIn profile targeting enables precise job title, company, and industry targeting unavailable elsewhere.
LinkedIn now captures 39% of B2B advertising budgets (up from 31% in H1 2024) and drives 80% of all B2B social media leads. With 45 million UK members and four in five members driving decision-making at their organisations, the platform has become essential for B2B reach.
The recommended budget split for B2B: 60–80% Google, 20–35% Microsoft Ads. Any agency not discussing Microsoft Ads for B2B is leaving money on the table. Read our complete guide to understanding PPC in the UK market.
What Questions Should I Ask When Evaluating Agencies?
The questions you ask reveal whether an agency is a genuine partner or simply chasing retainers. These six questions separate experts from pretenders:
- Who specifically manages my account, and how many accounts do they handle? Red flag: More than 100 accounts per manager means your campaigns won't get meaningful attention.
- Are you a Google Premier Partner? Verify on Google's official directory. Premier Partners represent the top 3% and must maintain minimum spend thresholds, certification rates, and optimisation scores.
- Who owns the ad account? Non-negotiable: you must own your account. Never work with an agency that insists on owning accounts—this creates lock-in and data hostage situations.
- Can we speak with current B2B clients in similar industries? Authentic agencies welcome reference calls. Hesitation signals weak track records or churned clients.
- How do you approach offline conversion tracking? For B2B, generic form submissions are meaningless. Agencies should import MQLs and SQLs from your CRM to optimise for pipeline, not clicks.
- What's your approach to attribution? With B2B sales cycles spanning months, multi-touch attribution is essential. Single-touch models drastically undervalue PPC contribution.
What Are the Red Flags to Avoid?
Certain warning signs should immediately disqualify an agency from consideration:
- Guaranteed results: No legitimate agency can guarantee specific rankings, leads, or revenue. PPC involves too many variables—competition, market conditions, landing page quality—for guarantees to be credible.
- Opaque pricing: If you can't get a clear answer on total monthly costs before signing, expect hidden fees and scope creep.
- Long contracts without exit clauses: Avoid agreements exceeding six months without 30-day termination provisions. Quality agencies retain clients through results, not legal lock-in.
- No case studies or references: An agency unable to share specific, quantified results from similar clients either lacks experience or has poor outcomes to hide.
- Resistance to sharing access: You should have full visibility into your ad accounts, analytics, and reporting. Agencies that resist transparency are protecting themselves, not you.
Is Managing PPC In-House a Viable Alternative?
According to LOCALiQ's 2025 UK Survey, 31.7% of UK businesses manage PPC entirely in-house, 42.1% use software or agency support, and 13.3% fully outsource. The decision depends on resources, expertise, and strategic priorities.
In-house advantages include deep brand knowledge, direct control, and institutional learning. However, a full-time UK PPC manager costs £35,000–£60,000 plus tools, training, and turnover costs—often exceeding agency fees for comparable expertise. The State of PPC 2024 report found that 40% of companies cite talent acquisition as their most challenging PPC aspect, while 43% struggle to stay current with platform developments.
Agency advantages include specialist expertise across multiple clients and industries, premium tools bundled into fees, platform relationships (Google Premier Partners get beta feature access), and scalability. Analysis by Reboot Online found agency costs run approximately 2.5× less per person than equivalent in-house teams at higher spend levels.
The case for agency partnership has strengthened considerably as complexity increases—Performance Max configuration, Consent Mode V2 compliance, AI Max for Search, offline conversion tracking, and multi-platform management across Google, Microsoft, and LinkedIn all require specialist expertise.
How Do I Measure PPC Agency Performance?
Effective measurement separates valuable partnerships from expensive experiments. Focus on these primary KPIs:
- ROAS (Return on Ad Spend): Benchmark 4:1 for e-commerce, 2:1 for B2B services
- Cost Per Acquisition: Varies significantly by industry and deal size
- LTV:CAC Ratio: Healthy B2B SaaS targets 3:1 or higher
- Pipeline and revenue generated: The metric that ultimately matters
Operational metrics matter too: click-through rate (benchmark 4–6% for search), Quality Score (target 7+), and Impression Share indicate campaign health. For B2B SaaS specifically, track Sales Qualified Leads, demo bookings, and CAC payback period (target under 18 months).
Monthly reporting should include both performance data and strategic recommendations. If your agency only sends automated dashboards without analysis, you're paying for execution without expertise.
What UK Regulations Affect PPC Campaigns?
UK PPC campaigns operate under stricter regulatory oversight than many businesses realise. The ASA now scans up to 50 million ads annually using AI-driven Active Ad Monitoring, specifically targeting Google Ads for compliance sweeps. Recent rulings against Nike, Superdry, and Lacoste for misleading sustainability claims demonstrate heightened scrutiny.
GDPR's impact remains substantial. Research published in the Journal of Marketing Research documents an initial 11.7% drop in click-through rates and 12.5% publisher revenue decline following implementation. Cookie consent pools have shrunk dramatically, with only 20–40% of visitors opting into tracking in many cases.
Financial services face mandatory FCA verification for Google Ads since September 2021. The FCA's 2024 enforcement saw 19,766 financial promotions amended or withdrawn—a 97.5% increase from 2023. Health claims require robust evidence, and claims about serious conditions are prohibited. HFSS food restrictions take effect January 2026, banning online paid advertising for certain categories entirely.
Your agency should proactively manage compliance, not leave regulatory risk to you. This is particularly important for professional services and regulated industries.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much should I budget for PPC management in the UK?
Management fees range from 10–20% of ad spend or flat retainers of £400–£5,000+ monthly. B2B SaaS companies typically invest £3,000–£10,000 monthly in management plus £5,000–£30,000 ad spend. Setup fees of £250–£1,000 are common. Be wary of agencies charging below £400 monthly—quality management requires significant time investment.
How long before I see results from PPC?
Campaigns generate clicks within 24–48 hours, but meaningful B2B results emerge over 3–6 months. Initial baselines form in 2–4 weeks, preliminary results signal strategy direction at 2–3 months, and optimal scaled performance takes 6–12 months. B2B takes longer because sales cycles span 3–12 months with multiple stakeholders.
How do I integrate PPC with HubSpot for attribution?
Proper HubSpot integration requires UTM parameter tracking, offline conversion imports from HubSpot to Google Ads, and multi-touch attribution reporting. This connects ad spend directly to pipeline and revenue. Whitehat's HubSpot onboarding services include PPC attribution setup as standard.
What should a PPC agency report include?
Reports should cover spend versus budget, key performance metrics (impressions, clicks, conversions, cost per conversion), campaign-level breakdowns, keyword performance, competitive insights, and strategic recommendations. Monthly calls should accompany dashboards to discuss optimisation opportunities and upcoming tests.
What's the difference between Google Partner and Premier Partner?
Google Premier Partners represent the top 3% of UK agencies. Requirements include minimum $10,000 in 90-day spend across managed accounts, at least 50% of account strategists certified, minimum 70% optimisation score, and performance across client growth, retention, and diversification metrics. The UK has 169 Premier Partners out of 1,651 total Partners.
Ready to Evaluate Your PPC Performance?
Whitehat is a HubSpot Diamond Partner specialising in B2B paid search. We provide transparent pricing, direct access to senior strategists, and attribution-focused reporting that connects ad spend to pipeline.
Book a PPC Review →Sources & References
- IAB UK Digital Adspend Report 2024 — UK digital advertising market data
- Advertising Association/WARC Expenditure Report — UK total advertising spend statistics
- Firebrand: 2024 Google Ads B2B Advertising Benchmarks — B2B conversion rate and performance data
- Google Ads Help: Partner Programme Requirements — Premier Partner certification criteria
- FCA: Action Against Misleading Financial Adverts — UK financial services advertising enforcement
- Sopro: B2B Buyer Statistics 2025 — B2B purchasing behaviour research