White Label SEO Pricing: What Agencies Pay and How Much to Mark Up
White label SEO pricing comes in four models: per-keyword, monthly retainer, hourly and per project. Published 2026 guides put wholesale retainers at roughly $500 to $1,000 a month for entry-level local work, $1,500 to $3,500 for mid-tier packages and $5,000 or more for enterprise work. These ranges come from reseller blogs, not a market survey, so this guide names the source of each figure and shows the arithmetic, including the markup versus margin difference that most pricing guides get wrong. Ranges below are attributed to Clicks Geek (updated 28 March 2026) unless stated otherwise.
The four pricing models
| Model | Typical range (Clicks Geek, 2026) | How it works | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per keyword | $75 to $300 per keyword per month | You pay for each keyword the provider works on | The page says it is becoming less common. Keywords differ hugely in difficulty |
| Monthly retainer | Entry local $500 to $1,000; mid-tier $1,500 to $3,500; enterprise $5,000+ | A fixed monthly package of deliverables | Vague deliverables. Ask for numbers of articles, links and audits |
| Hourly | $75 to $200 per hour | You buy time for audits, fixes or consulting | Open-ended totals. Ask for an estimate and a cap |
| Project | $2,000 to $10,000 | A fixed price for a defined job | Scope creep. Define what is excluded |
What a package should list, so you can compare like with like
The price only means something next to the deliverables. A provider quote should name numbers, not categories:
| Service | What a clear package states | Questions to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Local SEO | Profile optimisation, citation audit and fixes, review process, pages optimised per month, monthly report | How many pages? Which directories? Who replies to reviews? |
| Content | Number of articles, word range, brief process, edit rounds, publishing to the client's site | Who writes and checks facts? How are sources cited? What if a draft is rejected? |
| Link building | Types of sites, how links are earned, a list of live URLs each month, a removal promise for bad links | How do you get links? Will you show me the pages? Any paid placements? |
| Technical SEO | Audit scope, issues list, who implements fixes, timing | Do you work in the client's CMS? How do you test changes? |
| Reporting | Metrics, frequency, branded or not, access to raw data | Can I see a sample report before I sign? |
What it costs by service
| Service | Typical range (Clicks Geek, 2026) |
|---|---|
| Single-location local SEO | $500 to $1,500 per month |
| 3 to 5 locations | $1,200 to $2,500 per month in total |
| 10 or more locations | $3,000 to $6,000 per month |
| National SEO | From about $2,500 per month, $10,000+ in competitive niches |
| Link building budget, 5 to 10 links | $750 to $1,500 per month |
| Link building budget, 15 to 25 links | $3,000 to $5,000 per month |
| Content | $200 to $400 per post |
Another reseller guide, DashClicks, gives project work such as audits and migrations as $500 to $5,000. Agency Platform lists the models and cost drivers without any figures. None of these sources publishes how its numbers were collected, so use them to sanity-check a quote, not to justify one.
Hidden costs that change your margin
Ask about these before you compare headline prices. The ranges below are also from Clicks Geek and are not verified by us:
- Setup and onboarding: $500 to $2,500 one-off.
- Content on top of the retainer: $200 to $400 per post, so a retainer plus four posts can add $800 to $1,600 a month.
- Reporting and technology: $100 to $300 per client per month for a white-label dashboard or reports.
- Volume discounts: the same guide mentions 10% to 20% off at five or more new clients a month and 25% to 30% at ten or more. Ask for them in writing.
How much should you mark up white label SEO?
Markup and margin are different, and mixing them up is the most common pricing mistake in this market. Markup is the percentage you add to your cost. Margin is the share of the final price that is profit.
- Price = cost x (1 + markup).
- Margin = (price - cost) / price.
- To hit a target margin: price = cost / (1 - margin).
| Markup on cost | Price if your cost is $1,000 | Profit | Margin (share of price) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25% | $1,250 | $250 | 20.0% |
| 50% | $1,500 | $500 | 33.3% |
| 75% | $1,750 | $750 | 42.9% |
| 100% | $2,000 | $1,000 | 50.0% |
| 150% | $2,500 | $1,500 | 60.0% |
Reseller guides commonly suggest a 50% to 100% markup, which equals a margin of 33% to 50%. So if a guide says "60% margin on a $1,500 package gives $2,400", check the arithmetic: $2,400 is a 60% markup, which is a 37.5% margin. To really get a 60% margin on a $1,500 cost, the price has to be $1,500 / 0.4 = $3,750.
Worked example: a 10-client roster
Say your provider charges $500 a month per client and you bill each client $900.
- Markup: (900 - 500) / 500 = 80%.
- Margin: (900 - 500) / 900 = 44.4%.
- Across 10 clients: $9,000 revenue, $5,000 cost, $4,000 gross profit a month.
- Per hour: if you spend 3 hours per client each month on reporting and calls, that is 30 hours, so about $133 of gross profit per hour before sales and overhead.
The usual risk is time. If a client needs 6 hours instead of 3, the same $400 profit becomes about $67 an hour. Price your own account management into the markup, not just the provider's cost.
Pricing your own packages: a three-tier example
These figures are an example, not a recommendation. They show how to check your own margin and hourly profit:
| Package | Provider cost | You charge | Markup | Margin | Your hours | Profit per hour |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $500 | $900 | 80% | 44.4% | 4 | $100 |
| Growth | $1,000 | $1,800 | 80% | 44.4% | 8 | $100 |
| Pro | $2,000 | $3,400 | 70% | 41.2% | 14 | $100 |
Profit per hour is (price - cost) / your hours. If a package leaves you below the hourly rate you need, raise the price or cut the hours, for instance by using a clear report template and a fixed review schedule. Remember to add your sales time and overheads.
Cash flow: invoices start before results
Your provider invoices from the first month, while search results usually take months. As an example only: if a Starter client costs you $500 a month and results take three months to show, you have spent $1,500 before the client sees movement. Protect yourself with a client contract of at least three to six months, an onboarding fee that covers setup, and early proof that is not a ranking, such as pages published, profile fixes done and issues resolved.
How to compare two quotes
Reduce every quote to the same four lines before comparing:
- Cost per client per month, including setup fees spread over the first year.
- Exact deliverables per month: number of articles, links, audits and reports.
- Contract minimum and exit terms.
- Who does the work and what you can see before it goes out under your agency's name.
Ask every provider for a sample report and a sample deliverable. If they will not share one, that tells you something.
Before anything goes to a client: a quality checklist
- Facts: every claim, price and statistic has a source you can open.
- Originality: the page offers something the client's competitors do not, such as real examples or local detail.
- Readability: a person has read it start to finish and fixed awkward or repeated passages.
- Links: each link is relevant and earned, with no paid placements for ranking.
- Accuracy about the client: names, services, areas, prices and licences match what the client actually does.
- Formatting: headings, titles and descriptions are correct, and images have alt text.
- Tracking: you know how you will measure the result.
Google's rules every white label agency should know
When you resell SEO, a provider's shortcuts become your client's problem. Google's spam policies (updated 28 August 2026) define the practices to avoid:
- Link spam: links created "primarily for the purpose of manipulating search rankings". Buying or selling links for ranking purposes is one of the listed examples.
- Scaled content abuse: "many pages generated for the primary purpose of manipulating search rankings".
- Doorway abuse: pages created "to rank for specific, similar search queries".
- Keyword stuffing and hidden text: filling pages with keywords, or hiding text from users.
Google's guidance on helpful content adds that using generative AI to produce large amounts of text without manual oversight or curation "represents little to no effort". So ask every provider how their content is checked by a person, and how their links are earned. Answers like "we have a private network of sites" or "AI writes everything, we publish it" are reasons to walk away. Source: Google Search Central, "Spam policies" and "Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content".
Red flags in a white label contract
- Vague scope: "SEO services" with no deliverable list.
- Long minimum terms with no exit: a provider confident in its work does not need a long lock-in.
- No visibility of the work: if you cannot review it before it reaches your client, you cannot protect your reputation.
- Prices far below the ranges above: cheap packages are often automated. One reseller guide notes that very cheap "comprehensive" offers often rely on automation or low-quality links.
- Guaranteed rankings: no one controls Google's results.
Contract clauses to ask for
Ask your lawyer to review any agreement. These are the points to raise:
- Ownership: you or your client own the deliverables once paid for.
- Access: the client owns their Business Profile, Search Console and Analytics, and the provider works through delegated access.
- Confidentiality and white label: the provider does not contact or market to your clients.
- Non-solicitation: the provider will not hire or sell directly to your clients.
- Quality and rework: a stated process for revisions and for fixing errors.
- Link standards: a promise to follow Google's spam policies and to remove or disavow links that turn out to be problematic.
- Exit: notice period, handover of work and access, and no penalty for reasonable cancellation.
- Liability: who is responsible if the client's site is penalised because of the provider's methods.
White label, in-house or freelancers?
| White label provider | Hiring in-house | Freelancers | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost shape | Per client or per package | Salary and tools, fixed | Per project or hour |
| Control | Lower. You rely on their process | Highest | Medium |
| Scaling | Fast. Add clients without hiring | Slow. Hire as you grow | Depends on availability |
| Main risk | Quality and methods you cannot see | Idle capacity if clients leave | Reliability of one person |
| Often best when | You have few clients and want to test | Steady demand and a stable roster | You need specialist help for a project |
Reporting that keeps clients
Clients stay when they can see what they are paying for. A monthly report should show:
- Search Console: clicks and impressions for the pages that matter.
- Business Profile: calls, direction requests and website clicks, for local clients.
- Enquiries: leads, calls and bookings the client can connect to revenue.
- Work done: pages published, issues fixed and links earned, with URLs.
- Next month: what you will do, and why.
Avoid reports that are only keyword position screenshots. They hide the question the client actually asks, which is whether more customers are arriving.
Onboarding a new provider: the first 30 days
- Week 1: sign the agreement, agree deliverables in writing, set up delegated access, and ask for a sample report and a sample deliverable.
- Week 2: start with one pilot client, not your whole roster.
- Week 3: review the first deliverables against the quality checklist above.
- Week 4: compare the cost, hours and quality with your target margin before adding more clients.
Glossary
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| White label | A provider does work that you sell under your own brand |
| Reseller | An agency that sells another company's services |
| Markup | The percentage added to your cost to get the price |
| Margin | The share of the price that is profit |
| Retainer | A fixed monthly fee for an agreed scope |
| Churn | Clients leaving, usually measured per month |
| Deliverable | A specific piece of work, such as an article or an audit |
Where Rocketito fits
Rocketito is not a white label SEO provider and does not offer a re-branded dashboard today. If you manage several client sites, there is an agency plan described on its own page. For named white label providers, see our comparison of white label SEO services for agencies.
Calculate your real agency margin before you quote a client Rocketito generates client-presentable AI visibility reports under your client's own domain - no white-label contract required. Check pricing for agencies managing 5+ clients. Calculate Your Agency Margin
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does white label SEO cost?
One 2026 reseller guide puts entry-level local retainers at $500 to $1,000 a month, mid-tier at $1,500 to $3,500 and enterprise at $5,000 or more. Treat these as benchmarks from a reseller, not a market survey.
How much should I mark up white label SEO?
Common advice is a 50% to 100% markup on your cost, which is a 33% to 50% margin. Decide your target margin first, then use price = cost / (1 - margin).
What is the difference between markup and margin?
Markup is profit as a percentage of your cost. Margin is profit as a percentage of the price. A 100% markup is only a 50% margin.
Are there setup fees?
Some providers charge them. One guide gives $500 to $2,500 one-off. Ask for the total first-year cost, not just the monthly price.
Is per-keyword pricing a good idea?
It is becoming less common. The cost does not reflect keyword difficulty, so it can be a poor guide to value. Prefer a defined list of deliverables.
Is white label SEO cheaper than hiring someone?
For a small number of clients it is usually cheaper than a full-time hire, because you pay only for the work. As the client count grows, building in-house capacity can start to make sense. Compare your total cost per client under both options.
*Price ranges come from Clicks Geek's white label SEO pricing guide (updated 28 March 2026) and DashClicks, both read in October 2026. They are reseller figures with no published method. The markup and margin arithmetic is ours and can be checked with the formulas shown. Rocketito sells content software, so weigh the last section accordingly.*