most consultants won’t tell you what they charge until you’ve sat through a call. i would rather you know before you book one.
the range is wide enough that two quotes can look nothing alike and both be reasonable, because they are often for different work. here is what each pricing model costs, what moves the number, and what i charge.
01the short answer
paid media consultants charge in one of three ways. hourly, usually $75 to $300. a monthly retainer, usually $1,500 to $15,000 or more depending on channels and scope. or a percentage of ad spend, usually 10% to 20%. for most businesses spending under $100,000 a month, a flat retainer priced on scope is the fairest of the three, because a bigger budget does not automatically mean more work.
below: what each model actually costs, what pushes the price up or down, what i charge, and the questions that tell you more than the fee does.
02the three ways consultants charge
hourly
$75 to $300 an hour, depending on experience, specialization, and what the work involves.
hourly fits anything with a defined start and finish:
- account audits
- strategy sessions
- campaign planning
- tracking reviews
- a second opinion on an account that has stalled
- short-term execution cover
it also works for fractional support when the workload changes month to month.
for ongoing management it works badly. once every optimization, meeting, and message is a line item, people stop sending them, and the account gets worse for it.
monthly retainer
the most common model for ongoing management. retainers start around $1,500 a month for a smaller single-channel engagement and reach $15,000 or more for complex multi-channel accounts.
a rough guide:
- $1,500 to $5,000: one channel, lower spend, a focused scope
- $5,000 to $8,000: senior strategic support across one or two channels
- $8,000 to $15,000: multi-channel, larger budgets, involvement across reporting, creative, testing, and planning
- $15,000+: high spend or complex accounts needing frequent optimization and coordination across teams
these are not universal. two retainers at the same price can include very different levels of attention, experience, and ownership.
percentage of ad spend
usually 10% to 20% of monthly spend. at $10,000 a month, that is $1,000 to $2,000 in management fees.
it is easy to quote and easy to invoice. it often does not match the work. if your budget doubles inside the same campaign structure, the fee doubles and the job doesn’t.
if someone quotes a percentage, ask two things: does it drop at higher spend, and does it become a flat fee at some point. a model that never flattens is priced for their growth, not yours.
03the three models, side by side
| model | typical range | works best for | watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| hourly | $75 to $300 / hour | audits, strategy sessions, second opinions, and anything with a defined start and finish. | time gets counted. every question becomes a line item, which makes people stop asking them. |
| monthly retainer | $1,500 to $15,000+ / month | ongoing management, where you want someone close enough to the account to notice things. | two retainers at the same price can buy completely different levels of attention. the number tells you nothing on its own. |
| % of ad spend | 10% to 20% of spend | big accounts where budget genuinely tracks with workload, and agencies with a lot of accounts. | your fee rises when your budget rises, even if the work doesn’t. ask whether it drops or flattens at a threshold. |
04what moves the price up or down
paid media management is not a standard product. the price follows what the person is responsible for and how much your account actually needs.
experience
a senior strategist with ten years in accounts will charge more than someone earlier on. that does not settle which one you want. a newer consultant can be right for a small, straightforward account. an experienced one earns the difference when the account is complex, performance has stalled, or you need someone who can work without supervision.
the question that matters is who will be in the account, not who is on the call.
number of platforms
google is not meta is not linkedin is not tiktok is not programmatic. each one adds campaign builds, optimization, reporting, creative requirements, and its own set of decisions. multi-channel should cost more than one channel.
monthly ad spend
a bigger budget does not mean proportionally more work, but higher-spend accounts usually carry more campaigns, audiences, markets, and tests, plus more internal scrutiny. there is also more money riding on every decision, which is what senior oversight is for.
scope of work
"paid media management" covers a huge range. one person manages bids, budgets, and settings. another is also responsible for:
- channel strategy and forecasting
- campaign builds
- conversion tracking
- reporting
- creative direction and ad copy
- landing page feedback
- audience development
- testing plans
- working with your internal teams
those are different jobs and they should not cost the same.
communication and reporting
a monthly report takes less time than weekly calls, a live dashboard, slack access, and regular work with your sales, creative, and leadership teams. more contact is not automatically better. you just need to know which one you are buying.
05what i charge
i work with businesses spending under $100,000 a month. at that level i don’t think a percentage of spend is fair to either of us, so i price on platform and scope instead.
- hourly consulting
- $100 / hour audits, strategy sessions, account reviews, and other scoped support.
- full account management
- $2,500 / month per platform. strategy, builds, optimization, tracking, reporting, and the creative briefs behind it.
- ongoing ad creative
- +$500 / month when regular creative development is part of the engagement.
no spend-based calculation, no setup fee, no surprise line items. the price changes when the scope changes, and not otherwise.
i take on three clients at a time. that is the actual reason i can price this way, and it is also the reason i sometimes say no. more on how i work on the services page.
06what you’re actually paying for
the fee tells you what it costs. it does not tell you how much of someone’s week you are getting.
a cheaper consultant who knows your business, watches performance closely, and brings you tests you didn’t ask for can be worth more than an expensive partner splitting attention across fifteen accounts.
before you compare two quotes, ask both of them:
- who will actually be working in the account?
- how many other accounts are they running right now?
- how often do they check the account?
- what does a normal week on this account include?
- what is in scope beyond campaign optimization?
- what do you need from my team?
- how will results be reported, and how often?
- what happens when the numbers aren’t moving?
the answers will separate the quotes faster than the prices will. i wrote more about that comparison in consultant vs. agency.
07pricing red flags
when the price looks too low
a low fee is not a problem by itself, especially on a small account or a narrow scope.
it becomes one when nobody can tell you how many hours it buys, who does the work, or what is included. the usual version of this: you are paying for senior strategy and receiving a few optimizations a month from someone junior.
when the price looks too high
a premium rate should come with premium experience, attention, or scope, and the person quoting it should be able to say which.
ask what they have done for businesses with your problem, not their years in the industry. tenure is not the same as relevant thinking.
when the scope is vague
"full-funnel paid media management" is not a scope. if the proposal doesn’t list deliverables, meeting cadence, and what counts as extra, the price is not comparable to anything.
08common questions
how much does a paid media consultant cost per hour?
most charge between $75 and $300 an hour. the spread comes down to experience and how specialised the work is. hourly suits audits, strategy sessions, and second opinions. it suits ongoing management badly, because nobody wants to watch the clock before sending a question.
what is a typical monthly retainer for paid media management?
$1,500 to $5,000 a month for a single channel with a focused scope. $5,000 to $8,000 for senior support across one or two channels. $8,000 to $15,000 for multi-channel work with bigger budgets and more involvement in creative, testing, and reporting. above $15,000 you are usually paying for high spend, several markets, or a team rather than a person.
is percentage of ad spend a good pricing model?
it is simple and it scales cleanly for the person charging it. it often does not reflect the work. doubling a budget inside the same campaigns is not double the job. if someone quotes a percentage, ask what happens at higher spend, and whether it converts to a flat fee.
how much should i pay if i spend $10,000 a month on ads?
on a percentage model, roughly $1,000 to $2,000. on a flat retainer for one channel, roughly $2,000 to $3,000 depending on scope. i charge $2,500 per platform per month at that level, and the fee does not move when your budget does.
is a consultant cheaper than an agency?
usually on the invoice, not always in total. a consultant has no account manager layer and no minimum retainer to protect, so more of the fee goes to the work. an agency gives you more hands and cover when someone is away. the real comparison is hours of senior attention per dollar, not the monthly number.
what should be included in a paid media retainer?
get it written down. strategy, campaign builds, optimization, conversion tracking, reporting, creative briefs or ad copy, landing page feedback, and how often you actually speak. anything not listed is a change request later.
do paid media consultants charge a setup fee?
some do, usually one to two months of the retainer, for account builds, tracking setup, and migration. i don’t. the first month covers the build because that month is mostly build.
what does spencer consulting co. charge?
$100 an hour for audits, strategy sessions, and scoped reviews. $2,500 a month per platform for full account management. $500 a month on top when ongoing creative development is part of it. no spend-based calculation, no setup fee, and the price only changes when the scope does.
if you have a quote in hand and want a second opinion, or you are trying to work out what support should cost at your spend level, let’s chat. no pitch.