Solar lead costs
Solar lead costs are driven by three things: how urgent the job is, what the job is worth, and whether the lead is exclusive or shared. Because solar installers compete for full residential solar installations, cost per booked job matters far more than cost per lead. HomeTradesMedia prices by managed plan, pay-per-call or pay-per-lead.
What drives the number
Anyone quoting a flat cost per lead for solar installers before seeing your market is quoting a number they made up. These are the variables that actually decide it.
Solar work centres on full residential solar installations. A lead worth several thousand dollars in revenue supports a very different acquisition cost than a low-ticket callout, which is why a single cost-per-lead benchmark across the trade tells you almost nothing.
Utility rate hikes and tax-credit deadlines are the highest-converting ad triggers for this category.
Cost per lead tracks how many solar installers are bidding in your service area. The same campaign costs materially more in a dense metro than in a smaller market, which is why we quote after looking at your actual geography rather than from a rate card.
A shared lead looks cheaper per lead and is usually more expensive per booked job, because you are paying to race other solar installers to the phone. HomeTradesMedia leads go to one contractor, so the close rate is not split.
Definitions
Total ad spend divided by the number of leads delivered. The figure most often quoted, and the least useful on its own, because it says nothing about whether the leads booked.
What it costs to make your phone actually ring. Measured through dedicated tracked numbers per campaign, so it is observed rather than estimated. For solar installers this is usually the more honest number, since solar buyers call rather than fill in forms.
Ad spend divided by jobs actually booked. The only figure that decides whether the marketing paid for itself. Calculating it requires your booking data, which is why we ask for it.
On a marketplace the same inquiry is sold to between three and twelve contractors. Your true cost per lead is the quoted price divided by your share of the wins, not the price on the invoice.
What you can actually be charged
$1,345 a month
Foundational lead generation to match your growth stage.
$2,000–$3,000 a month
Advanced lead generation plus a scalable marketing foundation.
Availability depends on the trade and the market. Ask during the audit whether solar qualifies.
Ad spend sits outside every one of these and is paid by you directly to the ad platform, with no markup. See full pricing.
By job type
Lead cost varies more between job types inside solar than it does between markets. These are the 6 we build dedicated campaigns around.
the core high-ticket, tax-credit-driven search in the category
Solar Panel Installation lead generationfast-growing, high-intent search tied to grid outage concerns
Battery Storage Installation lead generationlower-volume but low-competition searches from existing solar owners
Solar Panel Repair & Maintenance lead generationlarger-contract leads with a longer, more complex sales cycle
Commercial Solar Installation lead generationrecurring-service searches that keep systems performing at rated output
Solar Panel Cleaning lead generationniche, high-ticket searches from rural homeowners without utility access
Off-Grid Solar Installation lead generationWhy we publish no benchmark
Plenty of agency pages publish a confident cost-per-lead figure for solar installers. Most are either cherry-picked from a single favourable campaign or invented outright, and neither tells you what your market will cost.
We publish our pricing, we explain what moves the number, and we quote against your actual service area and job mix. When we have client results we can show with permission, they will appear on the results page with the reporting behind them. Until then, ask us for client references and we will connect you with a contractor directly.
There is no single honest answer, and any agency quoting one without seeing your market is guessing. Cost depends on your service area, the job types you want, and how competitive solar bidding is locally. HomeTradesMedia offers managed monthly plans from $1,345 a month, plus pay-per-call and pay-per-lead options for some trades. The free lead audit produces a real number for your market.
Per lead, usually yes. Per booked job, usually no. Marketplace leads are resold to several solar installers at once, so you pay for inquiries you never win, and you pay whether or not you win them. Exclusive leads cost more up front and are not split across competitors.
Yes, and you pay it directly to the ad platform rather than through us. There is no markup and no bundling, so you can see exactly what reached the platform. Our fee covers strategy, setup, management, creative and reporting.
A good cost per lead is one your close rate and average job value can carry. Because solar installers work on full residential solar installations, a higher cost per lead with a higher close rate frequently beats a cheap shared lead. Judge the campaign on cost per booked job.
Call tracking and landing pages go live from day one, so attribution starts with the first campaign. You will have directional cost per call within the first weeks and a reliable cost per booked job once enough jobs have closed to be meaningful.
A free lead audit, no pitch deck attached. We'll show you the calls you're missing and what it takes to catch them.
No contracts · Cancel anytime · Ad spend set & paid by you