Facebook Ads vs Google Ads for Contractors: Which Gets More Leads Per Dollar?

Both channels work for contractor leads, but they target homeowners at fundamentally different stages of intent. Google Ads captures homeowners who are actively searching right now—'roof leak repair', 'AC not working', 'plumber near me'. These are high-intent buyers who need a contractor today, which is why Google Ads close rates for contractors run 25–45%. Facebook Ads reach homeowners before they're actively searching, through interest and demographic targeting. Close rates are lower (10–20%) but cost per lead is often cheaper ($12–$30 vs $25–$75 for Google). The best strategy for most contractors: Google Ads as the primary channel (higher intent = higher close rate = better ROI) with Facebook Ads for retargeting website visitors and building brand awareness in your service area. Use Facebook for seasonal campaigns—pre-summer HVAC tune-ups, pre-storm roofing inspections.

Facebook Ads for home service contractors typically generate leads at $12–$35 per lead through lead form ads or traffic campaigns to landing pages. Roofing leads run $18–$40, HVAC runs $15–$35, plumbing runs $12–$25. These costs are lower than Google Ads, but close rates are also lower because the homeowner wasn't actively searching—they saw an ad while scrolling. The real number to track is cost per booked job, not cost per lead: a $20 Facebook lead at 12% close rate costs $167 per booked job. A $50 Google Ads lead at 40% close rate costs $125 per booked job. Facebook wins on raw lead cost; Google typically wins on cost per booked job. Meta's own advertising research shows home services as one of the highest-performing verticals for local businesses, but performance depends heavily on audience targeting and creative quality.

The highest-performing Facebook ad formats for contractors are: (1) Lead form ads—homeowners fill out a pre-populated form within Facebook without leaving the platform, generating phone numbers and emails directly. Fast friction-free lead capture, though lead quality is slightly lower than website visitors. (2) Traffic ads to dedicated landing pages—sends homeowners to a conversion-optimized page with a phone number and contact form. Higher friction but typically higher intent. (3) Retargeting ads—show ads to people who visited your website or engaged with your Facebook page. Retargeting close rates are 3–5x higher than cold audience ads because these homeowners already know who you are. Start with lead form ads for volume, add retargeting for quality, test traffic campaigns to landing pages as you scale.

The highest-ROI Google Ads structure for contractors focuses on exact match and phrase match keywords with high commercial intent: '[trade] near me', '[trade] [city]', 'emergency [service]', '[service] cost'. Create separate ad groups for each service type and location so your ad copy matches the search query closely—a homeowner searching 'emergency roof leak' should see an ad specifically about emergency roofing, not a generic roofing company ad. Use call extensions and location extensions on every campaign. Set up call tracking to measure which keywords produce actual booked jobs, not just calls. Build a negative keyword list of 200+ terms (DIY, parts, training, jobs, competitors, unrelated services) before you launch. A properly structured campaign spends 20–30% less per lead than a broad account because it filters out non-buyer traffic before it reaches your budget.

Growth-oriented contractors should invest 8–12% of gross revenue in total marketing, with 60–70% of that budget allocated to paid digital advertising (Google Ads, LSAs, Facebook) and 30–40% to SEO and website optimization. At $500K revenue: $3,300–$5,000/month total marketing, with $2,000–$3,500 toward paid ads. At $1M revenue: $6,600–$10,000/month total, with $4,000–$7,000 toward paid ads. At $2M revenue: $13,300–$20,000/month total, with $8,000–$14,000 toward paid ads. These are guidelines—the right budget is whatever achieves a 5:1 or better return on ad spend. If your ROAS is above 8:1, you should be spending more because every dollar invested returns more than it costs. If ROAS is below 3:1, fix your funnel (landing pages, response time, close rate) before increasing spend.

Yes, but the strategy is different from emergency service advertising. High-ticket job Facebook campaigns work best as awareness and retargeting campaigns rather than direct response. Run brand awareness ads to homeowners in your service area who match the profile of your ideal customer (homeowners 35–65, household income $75K+, interests in home improvement). When those homeowners later search Google for roofing, they recognize your brand and are more likely to click your search ad or call directly. This brand lift effect can reduce your Google Ads cost per lead by 15–25% because your brand recognition improves click-through rates. For direct response on high-ticket jobs, seasonal triggers work well on Facebook: storm damage campaigns after major weather events, summer cooling campaigns for HVAC, fall furnace tune-up campaigns. The homeowner isn't searching yet, but they have a relevant upcoming need.