Remodeling leads cost $25–$165 per inquiry depending on the source — but that sticker price is almost never the real price once you factor in shared competition and actual close rates.
Not sure what your market’s lead cost should be? Run your numbers in the ROI calculator — it takes two minutes and outputs your cost per booked job target by channel.
What Does Each Lead Source Actually Charge?
Here is the verified 2026 landscape by channel — sticker price, exclusivity, and what it actually means for your close-rate math:
- Google Local Services Ads: $25–$80 per lead. You pay only for a call or message, and the lead is not shared.
- Google Search Ads: $90.92 average cost per lead for home services, rising to $165.67 for Construction & Contractors, per LocaliQ (LocaliQ).
- Facebook/Instagram lead ads: $41.26 per lead for Home & Home Improvement, per WordStream (WordStream).
- Shared-lead platforms (Angi, HomeAdvisor-type): $15–$150 per lead, sold to 3–5 contractors simultaneously.
The range is wide because intent and exclusivity differ. A Google Search lead is actively searching for a remodeler right now. A Facebook lead saw an ad while scrolling. A shared lead is a race against three other contractors dialing the same homeowner.
What Is the Real Cost Per Booked Job by Channel?
The sticker price is not the real price — cost per booked job is the only number that tells you whether a lead source is profitable at your close rate.
A $40 Facebook lead that closes one in ten times costs $400 per booked job. A $150 Google Search lead that closes one in three costs $450. The cheap lead is not automatically the better lead.
Shared leads show the trap most clearly. At $60 per lead and a 10% close rate — typical for shared inquiries where you’re competing against 3–5 other shops — effective cost per booked job is $600. Add platform membership fees, time spent chasing non-answers, and the speed tax (fastest to respond usually wins), and the real number climbs higher still.
CabinetBoost clients who track cost per booked job by source consistently find shared leads are the most expensive channel in their mix — not the cheapest.
Want to see what your cost per appointment should be at your margins? Run the ROI calculator — enter your average job value, close rate, and the model does the math.
What Are the Red Flags When Shopping for Remodeling Leads?
Vendor sales pitches hide shared-lead economics behind low sticker prices. These are the signals to watch for before signing up:
- A vendor promises lead volume without defining what a “qualified lead” means (in writing).
- The lead is sold to multiple contractors but the rep doesn’t proactively disclose it.
- Reporting stops at cost per lead, never showing cost per booked job or close rate by source.
- No trial period, no cancel clause, and fees are charged whether leads convert or not.
If any of those conditions exist, the $20 sticker price will turn into $600+ per booked job before you have data to make a change.
When 3–5 contractors receive the same homeowner's info at the same second, the first caller wins the appointment — regardless of quality, portfolio, or price. If your team doesn't respond in under 5 minutes, you're likely losing most shared leads before the first ring.
How Do You Set Your Own Maximum Lead Cost?
Start with your average job value and target gross margin, then work backward to the lead cost your margin can actually support.
If a kitchen remodel is worth $20,000 and you need 30% gross margin, you have $6,000 in job budget before overhead and owner pay. Decide what share of that can go to acquisition — typically 5–15% for healthy cabinet and remodeling businesses. At 10%, that’s $600 per booked job maximum. Divide by your close rate to get your maximum acceptable cost per lead:
- At 25% close: $600 max per job ÷ 0.25 = $240 max per lead
- At 10% close: $600 max per job ÷ 0.10 = $60 max per lead (with exclusive leads only; shared leads at 10% close = not viable)
This math makes lead-source decisions straightforward: anything that exceeds your max-per-lead at your real close rate is unprofitable by definition, regardless of sticker price.
For a deeper cut on every channel’s real economics, read how much does cabinet marketing cost — it includes the full channel comparison table and the formula for a monthly marketing budget.
What’s the Best Lead Strategy for a Remodeling Business?
Exclusive owned channels (Google Ads campaigns for cabinet businesses, LSA, SEO) beat shared platforms on cost per booked job for most established cabinet and remodeling businesses — and compound rather than stop when you pause spending.
Bienal Closets came to CabinetBoost generating shared leads at $234 each. After rebuilding their Google Ads campaign around exclusive search terms, cost dropped to $47 per lead within 90 days — a real booked-job cost that made scaling straightforward.
Our offer is simple: 20 showroom appointments in 90 days, or you don’t pay. Month-to-month after the guarantee window — no long contracts to hide behind.
Ready to see what your market’s exclusive lead cost looks like? Get a free audit or book a strategy call and we’ll model your numbers before you spend a dollar.