Most advice on a marketing budget for small business stops at a percent-of-revenue rule. A medical practice can do better, because it knows what a new patient is worth and Google publishes what each click costs. This hub gives you two ways to set the number (percent of revenue, or cost per new patient), real Google Ads click prices for 17 patient searches, what each channel costs and why, and a cost guide for every line item. Medfy's own price is stated plainly at the end.
Two ways to set a budget: percent of revenue or cost per new patient
Method 1: a percentage of revenue
This is the common shortcut: pick a share of annual revenue and spend it. The U.S. Small Business Administration doesn't set a figure. Its 2019 blog post on marketing budgets (opens in a new tab) says there's no hard and fast answer and that the range is wide. It relays third-party averages of 1.08% of revenue spent on advertising (Small Business Trends) and 7.9% of revenue on marketing in 2018 (Web Strategies), with consumer-facing service businesses averaging 11.8%. For startups, it suggests basing the percentage on projected revenue.
Treat those numbers with care. They're cross-industry, years old and not specific to healthcare. A percentage is useful as a sanity check: if your plan is far above or below it, ask why. It's a poor way to decide what to spend, because it ignores whether you have open appointments to fill.
Method 2: cost per new patient
Work backward from what you need:
- New patients needed per month, by service, given your open schedule.
- What you can afford to pay for one, based on what a new patient is worth to the practice over time, after costs.
- Monthly ceiling = new patients needed × affordable cost per new patient.
Hypothetical arithmetic: a practice that wants 10 more new patients a month, and decides it can pay up to $300 to acquire each one, has a ceiling of 10 × $300 = $3,000 a month for all marketing. Fixed costs come off the top; the rest is available for ads. Both inputs are assumptions you set; neither is a benchmark.
The SBA's own marketing plan guidance (opens in a new tab) asks for a complete breakdown of the costs of your marketing plan. That breakdown is the next section.
What each channel costs, and what drives the cost
| Line item | What you pay for | What drives the cost | Cost guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Ads clicks | Each click on your search ad | Specialty, location, competition, ad quality | How much Google Ads cost |
| Facebook and Instagram ads | Impressions, clicks or leads | Audience size, creative, offer, health targeting limits | Facebook ads cost |
| Website build or redesign | Design, pages, forms, migration | Number of service pages, HIPAA-compliant forms, integrations | What a practice website costs |
| Hosting and upkeep | Hosting, updates, backups, edits | Platform, plugins, number of forms, edit volume | Website maintenance cost |
| Agency retainer | People's time across channels | Scope, fee model, minimum term | How agencies price their work |
| Ads management | Daily work on your ad accounts | Flat fee vs percent of spend, account complexity | Google Ads management pricing |
| Marketing leadership | Strategy, budget and vendor oversight | Hours, seniority, scope | Fractional CMO cost |
SEO and content usually arrive bundled: inside an agency retainer, inside a platform subscription, or as your own staff's time. Reviews and Google Business Profile upkeep cost mostly time.
For how each paid channel works, see our guides to Google Ads for medical practices and Facebook and Instagram ads for practices. If you're weighing outside help, our guide to choosing a marketing agency covers fee models, contracts and the BAA.
Not sure where your money would do the most good? Our free marketing audit scores your website, SEO, Google listing, AI visibility, social and ads from 0 to 100 and lists the five fixes that matter most, before you spend anything.
Real Google Ads click costs by specialty
These are average costs per click (CPC) for common patient searches in the US. The bid range is Google's top-of-page bid estimate: Keyword Planner's low and high range (opens in a new tab) approximate the 20th and 80th percentile of what advertisers have paid to appear at the top of the page.
| Patient search | Specialty | Avg. CPC | Top-of-page bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| dental implants near me | Dentistry (implants) | $38.76 | $10.46–$50.20 |
| invisalign near me | Orthodontics | $26.29 | |
| tirzepatide near me | Weight management | $24.31 | |
| therapist near me | Mental health | $24.19 | $7.71–$29.28 |
| orthodontist near me | Orthodontics | $19.80 | |
| psychiatrist near me | Psychiatry | $18.16 | |
| laser hair removal near me | Med spa and aesthetics | $16.94 | |
| dentist near me | General dentistry | $14.71 | |
| fertility clinic near me | Fertility | $14.66 | |
| weight loss clinic near me | Weight management | $13.15 | |
| audiologist near me | Audiology | $10.69 | |
| chiropractor near me | Chiropractic | $10.02 | |
| physical therapy near me | Physical therapy | $6.61 | |
| eye doctor near me | Eye care | $5.87 | |
| dermatologist near me | Dermatology | $5.52 | |
| pediatrician near me | Pediatrics | $5.11 | |
| urgent care near me | Urgent care | $3.79 |
Google Ads Keyword Planner data via DataForSEO, US, 12-month average to Sep 2026.
Your own price will differ by city, competition and ad quality. The pattern holds, though: high-value elective treatments cost the most per click, and services patients need quickly and locally cost the least. For more searches per specialty, see Google Ads CPC by specialty.
A sample budget for a small practice (hypothetical)
Hypothetical arithmetic. A single-location family dental practice runs Google Ads on "dentist near me". The budget is invented, and the conversion and booking rates are assumptions for the example, not industry benchmarks. Replace them with your own numbers.
| Step | Input | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly ad budget | $1,500 (assumption) | |
| Average CPC | $14.71 ("dentist near me", data above) | |
| Clicks | $1,500 ÷ $14.71 | ≈ 102 clicks |
| Conversion rate, click to call or form | 8% (assumption) | ≈ 8 leads |
| Booking rate, lead to new patient | 50% (assumption) | ≈ 4 new patients |
| Ad cost per new patient | $1,500 ÷ 4.08 | ≈ $368 |
Add fixed costs to see the true cost. If the practice also paid $500 a month for its website, SEO and ads management (another assumption), total monthly cost would be $2,000, or about $490 per new patient at the same assumptions.
Two levers matter most. A better landing page that lifts conversion from 8% to 12% would produce about 12 leads and 6 new patients from the same spend. A front desk that books 70% of leads instead of 50% does the same. Both are cheaper than raising the budget.
Fixed costs vs ad spend
Fixed costs are what you pay whether or not anyone clicks: the website and hosting, SEO and content, software, agency retainers and management fees. They build assets that keep working: a site that converts, pages that rank, listings that stay accurate.
Ad spend is variable. It buys clicks and impressions for as long as you pay, and stops the day you stop. On Google Ads you set an average daily budget, and Google can spend up to twice that on a given day (opens in a new tab) while keeping the month to no more than 30.4 times the daily figure.
A sound small-practice budget gets the fixed basics right first. Paying for clicks that land on a slow site with a form patients won't fill in wastes the most expensive part of the budget.
When to spend more, and when to stop
Spend more when:
- cost per new patient has stayed under your target for two or three months;
- you have open appointments in the services you're advertising;
- your ads stop showing partway through the day because the budget runs out;
- the front desk answers and books inquiries promptly.
Pull back or stop when:
- the schedule for that service is full for weeks ahead;
- a campaign has produced no tracked calls, forms or booking clicks after enough clicks to judge (decide that number in advance);
- calls go unanswered, so you pay for leads you lose;
- cost per new patient is above what a new patient is worth to you.
What Medfy costs
Medfy publishes its prices:
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Base plan: website, automated SEO, AI visibility tracking, analytics, Google reporting, AI CMO dashboard, patient CRM and inbox | $349/month |
| Add-on: Google Ads management | $199/month |
| Add-on: Meta ads + AI creatives | $199/month |
| Add-on: HIPAA AI chat widget | $49/month |
Ad spend is paid directly to Google and Meta, never marked up. Medfy is billed monthly, cancel anytime. See Medfy pricing for what each plan includes.
Frequently asked questions
How much should a medical practice spend on marketing?
Work it out from your goals rather than a rule of thumb. Decide how many new patients you need each month and what you can afford to pay for one, based on what a new patient is worth to the practice. Multiply the two to get a monthly ceiling, cover fixed costs like the website first, and put the rest into ads where click prices fit.
What percentage of revenue should a small business spend on marketing?
There is no official number. The U.S. Small Business Administration says there's no hard and fast answer and that the range is wide. A 2019 SBA blog post relayed third-party averages of 1.08% of revenue on advertising and 7.9% on marketing, but those figures are cross-industry and dated. Use a percentage as a sanity check, not as your budget.
What is a good marketing budget for a new practice?
A new practice has no revenue history, so the SBA suggests basing a percentage on projected revenue. In practice, fund the fixed basics first: a fast website with HIPAA-compliant forms, a complete Google Business Profile and tracking. Then size ads to the open appointments you need to fill, using real click prices for your services, and review the numbers monthly.
How much do Google Ads cost for doctors?
It depends on the search. Average US cost per click ranges from $3.79 for 'urgent care near me' to $38.76 for 'dental implants near me', with 'dermatologist near me' at $5.52 and 'therapist near me' at $24.19 (Google Ads Keyword Planner data via DataForSEO, US, 12-month average to Sep 2026). Your monthly cost is the budget you set; clicks are what it buys.
Is ad spend included in Medfy's price?
No. Medfy's $349 a month base plan and its add-ons cover the software and management. Ad spend is a separate budget you pay directly to Google and Meta from your own ad accounts, and Medfy never marks it up or takes a percentage. You set the budget, and the Google Ads add-on keeps spending inside a monthly ceiling you control.