Facebook ads or Google Local Services Ads: which should a remodeler run first?
They are not competing for the same homeowner. One finds people already searching. The other finds people before they search.
PJC Media · · 6 min read
Should a remodeler use Facebook ads or Google Local Services Ads?
It depends on how urgent the job is. Google Local Services Ads catch homeowners who are searching right now, so they suit urgent and fast-decision work like roofing and repairs. Facebook and Instagram ads reach homeowners before they search, so they suit large, considered projects like kitchens, baths and full remodels, as long as the follow-up can carry a six to ten week decision. Most established remodelers end up running both, with Meta for volume and LSA for intent.
Two different homeowners
A homeowner with water coming through the ceiling opens Google and calls the first company with a badge and good reviews. A homeowner who has hated their kitchen for three years is not searching for anything tonight. They are scrolling, and they will stop for a before and after of a kitchen that looks like theirs.
Google Local Services Ads are built for the first homeowner. Facebook and Instagram ads are built for the second. Asking which is better is like asking whether a shop window is better than a phone line.
How each one works
- Google Local Services Ads
- The listings above the map pack with the Google Guaranteed or Google Screened badge. You pay per lead rather than per click, and the homeowner is already looking. Volume is capped by how many people search, and you have limited control over which jobs come in.
- Facebook and Instagram ads
- Shown to homeowners in your area based on who they are, not what they typed. You control the creative and the form, so you can ask budget, timeline and scope before the lead arrives. Volume is much less capped, but the homeowner is earlier in their decision.
When to start with LSA
When the job is urgent or the decision is fast. Roofing, repairs, anything after a storm. The homeowner is choosing within hours, the badge carries a lot of trust, and paying per lead keeps the risk low while you learn what your market costs.
LSA also rewards something you may already have: reviews. Ranking inside LSA leans heavily on review count and rating and on how quickly you answer, so a contractor with a strong profile can do well from the first week.
When to start with Meta
When the job is large and considered. Kitchens, baths, basements, full remodels, outdoor living. Most of the homeowners who will sign one of those this year are not searching for it today, and the ones who are searching are being fought over by everyone in your market.
Meta lets you reach them first and show them your own work. The cost is that the lead is earlier, so it needs a form that qualifies and a follow-up sequence that runs for weeks. Without that, Meta leads look worse than they are.
Meta leads are not worse leads. They are earlier leads, and early leads need a longer follow-up.
Why most remodelers end up running both
Because they cover each other. Meta builds a steady pipeline of large projects months ahead. LSA and the map pack catch the homeowners who are ready now, including the ones who saw your ad weeks ago and searched your name.
The order matters less than the follow-up. Both channels are paying you for a homeowner's attention, and both stop paying the moment an enquiry sits for four hours.
Questions people ask
- Are Google Local Services Ads worth it for remodelers?
- For urgent and fast-decision work, usually yes, because the homeowner is already searching and you pay per lead. For large considered remodels, LSA volume is limited and works best alongside Meta rather than instead of it.
- Do Facebook ads work for contractors?
- Yes, for large projects, when the creative is your own finished work, the form asks budget and timeline, and the follow-up replies inside five minutes and keeps going for weeks.
- Which is cheaper, Facebook ads or Google LSA?
- Per lead, Meta is often cheaper. Per signed job, it depends on the trade and on how well each lead is followed up. Compare cost per signed contract, not cost per lead.
Keep reading
- How to write a remodeling estimate that wins the jobHomeowners compare estimates by the total on the last page. Here is how to write one that makes the comparison work in your favor.
- How hardscapers win the job when their quote is higherYour patio costs more because of the base nobody sees. Here is how to make the homeowner see it before they compare numbers.
- How to sell more bathroom remodels at a higher ticketMost remodelers lose bathroom jobs on the first phone call, not on price. Here is how to fill the calendar with primary suites instead of vanity swaps.
- Remodeling marketing trends for 2027: what is changing and what to do about itFive shifts in how homeowners find and choose a remodeler, and the practical response to each.
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