How Much Do Google Ads Cost for Plastic Surgery? (Real 2026 Data)

The Real Cost Breakdown (2026)

Most plastic surgery practices running Google Ads spend between $2,500 and $15,000 per month. That's just ad spend, not including management fees if you're using an agency. The wide range exists because cost depends heavily on procedure type, geographic market, competition, and account quality.

Cost per click (CPC) is your first cost layer. Plastic surgery keywords average $12–45 per click. Rhinoplasty and facelift are on the higher end ($30–45), while non-surgical procedures like Botox range $8–18. The CPC you actually pay depends on your Quality Score, bidding strategy, and keyword competitiveness in your specific market.

But CPC is misleading. What matters is cost per lead (CPL). If your conversion rate is poor, a cheap CPC becomes an expensive CPL. High-performing practices hit $40–100 CPL. Most practices spend $100–250 CPL, and struggling practices often exceed $400 CPL on the same keywords.

CPC by Procedure Type

Different procedures have different cost profiles:

**Surgical Procedures (Higher CPC):** - Rhinoplasty: $28–42 CPC - Facelift: $32–48 CPC - Breast augmentation: $18–32 CPC - Liposuction: $15–28 CPC - Tummy tuck: $20–35 CPC

**Non-Surgical Procedures (Lower CPC):** - Botox/filler: $8–18 CPC - Laser skin resurfacing: $10–20 CPC - Chemical peels: $8–16 CPC - Microneedling: $10–18 CPC

The pattern: higher-value procedures command higher CPCs because competition is more intense. Rhinoplasty and facelift are moneymakers, so more practices bid aggressively. Botox has lower CPCs but often higher search volume.

Your actual CPC will vary by Quality Score. If your landing pages are slow, your ad copy is generic, or your CTR is below average, you'll pay the higher end of these ranges. A Quality Score of 4/10 might pay $45 for the same rhinoplasty keyword that costs a Quality Score 9/10 practice $28.

Geographic Cost Variations

Plastic surgery is location-sensitive. The more competitive the market, the higher the costs. Top-tier markets are significantly more expensive:

**Tier 1 Markets (Highest Cost):** - Miami: $35–52 CPC average - Los Angeles: $30–48 CPC - New York: $28–45 CPC - San Francisco Bay Area: $32–50 CPC

**Tier 2 Markets:** - Dallas, Houston, Phoenix: $18–32 CPC - Atlanta, Denver, Seattle: $16–28 CPC - Charlotte, Austin, Portland: $14–25 CPC

**Tier 3 Markets (Lower Cost):** - Secondary cities and rural markets: $8–16 CPC

This matters strategically. A practice in Miami pays roughly 3–4x more per click than a practice in a secondary market running the same keywords. That's why geographic radius targeting is crucial. Bidding on a 50-mile radius in Miami drains budget fast. A tight 5–10 mile radius keeps costs manageable.

Monthly Budget Reality Check

Here's what $3,000–$10,000/month gets you:

**$3,000/month budget:** - ~75–250 clicks (depending on CPC) - ~8–20 leads at 10% conversion rate - ~1–3 consultations (assuming 15% book rate) - Realistic if you're in a lower-cost market or focusing on non-surgical procedures - Minimum spend to get meaningful data. Lower and you don't have enough conversions to optimize.

**$5,000/month budget:** - ~125–400 clicks - ~13–40 leads at 10% conversion rate - ~2–6 consultations - The sweet spot for most practices. Enough scale to test, enough data to optimize. - Expected spend for single-market, single-procedure focus

**$8,000–$15,000/month budget:** - ~200–800 clicks - ~20–80 leads - ~3–12 consultations - Right size for practices scaling aggressively or bidding in high-cost markets like Miami or LA - Often paired with multiple procedures or geographic markets

The math: at $50 CPL and a 20% consultation-to-lead conversion rate, a $5,000/month spend yields about 5 consultations. At a 15% surgery close rate (typical for cosmetic surgery), that's less than one surgery per month. This is why many practices run $8,000+ monthly budgets. One facelift at $12,000 profit covers months of Google Ads spend.

The Hidden Costs: Agency Fees and Management

If you're using an agency, expect additional costs on top of ad spend:

**Performance-based agencies:** - Typically take 25–40% of ad spend as commission - $5,000 ad spend = $1,250–$2,000 agency fee - Total cost: $6,250–$7,000/month - Upside: you only pay if spend is happening; downside: can incentivize inflated budgets

**Retainer agencies:** - Typically $1,500–$5,000/month plus ad spend - $5,000 ad spend + $2,500 retainer = $7,500 total - More predictable, but you pay whether the account performs or not

**In-house management:** - Salary cost of a specialist: $50,000–$80,000/year ($4,200–$6,700/month) - Realistic if you're spending $10,000+ monthly (ROI-positive) - Not realistic if you're testing with $2,000–$3,000/month

Most practices overpay for management. A $3,000 ad budget with a $1,500 agency retainer is actually $4,500 total monthly cost. But the ad spend might only generate 1–2 leads. Compare that to a $5,000 ad budget managed in-house (or by a smart, lean agency), which might generate 5–10 leads.

Factors That Drive Your Actual Costs Up or Down

Not all practices pay the same CPC for the same keyword. These factors determine your actual cost:

**Higher CPC:** - Low Quality Score (below 5/10) - Slow landing page load times (above 3 seconds) - Low click-through rate (below 2% for search ads) - Irrelevant landing page content - Weak ad copy - Low conversion rate (signals to Google that traffic is low-quality)

**Lower CPC:** - High Quality Score (8–10/10) - Fast landing pages (under 1.5 seconds) - High CTR (above 4% for top positions) - Perfect ad-to-landing-page alignment - Strong social proof and trust signals - Proven conversion rate on the keyword

Quality Score is Google's grading system (1–10). A practice with Quality Score 9/10 might pay $18 for a rhinoplasty keyword while a practice with Quality Score 4/10 pays $38 for the exact same keyword. Fixing Quality Score is often the fastest way to lower costs without cutting budget.

The Cost-Per-Consultation Reality

CPL is useful, but cost per consultation is what actually matters for your business decision. Here's the chain:

Cost per click → Cost per lead → Cost per consultation → Cost per surgery

Assuming industry-average conversion rates: - CPC: $20 - 10% click-to-lead conversion: $200 CPL - 20% lead-to-consultation conversion: $1,000 cost per consultation - 15% consultation-to-surgery close rate: $6,667 cost per surgery

At that math, if your average surgical profit is $8,000–$12,000, the Google Ads spend pays for itself on the first conversion. But this assumes industry averages. Most practices don't hit them.

Practices paying $40+ CPL often have poor landing pages, broad keyword targeting, or low-intent traffic. Fix those first before scaling budget. A $20 CPL with a strong landing page (20% conversion) is better than a $15 CPL with a weak landing page (5% conversion).