There are only three models, plus combinations. Each one aligns your agency with something slightly different, and that alignment matters more than the headline figure.
Flat retainer
A fixed monthly fee regardless of spend. Predictable, easy to budget, and good value at high spend.
What it incentivises: keeping you as a client with the least work that achieves that. There is no upside for them in scaling you, and a big account costs them more to run for the same money.
Percentage of spend
Typically 8–15%. Scales with you, no big fixed cost while small.
What it incentivises: spending more. This is a genuine conflict and anyone who pretends otherwise is not being straight with you. The honest counterweight is short billing cycles and no notice period — if the agency scales you unprofitably, you can leave immediately.
Retainer plus percentage
The most common agency model, usually with a setup fee and a six-month minimum term.
What it incentivises: signing you. The term protects their revenue whether or not the work lands. Run the numbers on the first year including setup — it is often double what the monthly figure suggested. Fee comparison calculator.
The questions that matter more than the fee
- Who owns the ad account? If campaigns live in the agency's account, leaving means starting from zero. This is non-negotiable and you should walk if the answer is wrong.
- Who pays Google? If they pay with their card and bill you, you never see the real media cost. Insist on billing directly.
- What is the notice period? A six-month term is six months of invoices whether or not it works.
- Who is actually in the account, and how many others do they run that week?
- Is there a setup fee, and what exactly does it buy that the first month's fee does not?
What we charge, since it would be odd not to say
10% of ad spend, calculated weekly on what Google actually charged your card. No setup fee, no markup, no minimum, no lock-in, no notice period. It is published in full, including the conflict of interest above.
We are not always cheapest. At high spend a flat retainer can win, and we will say so rather than pretend otherwise.