Source: https://oguzerol.com/en/google-ads-management-fees/

Google Ads

# Google Ads Management Fees | Which Model Is Right

[Oğuz Erol](https://oguzerol.com/en/about-me/)  |  4 min read

The [Google Ads management](https://oguzerol.com/en/google-ads-management/) fee is a separate line item from ad spend. You pay ad spend directly to Google; the management fee goes to whoever runs the account, whether that’s a freelancer or an agency. This page covers the fee models that exist and which side each one favours.

What you pay Google is covered separately on the [Google advertising costs](https://oguzerol.com/en/google-advertising-costs/) page.

## The percentage-of-spend model

This is the most common model in the industry: the manager takes a fixed percentage of your monthly ad spend. The logic is that their income grows with your growth.

The problem sits right there. In this structure, cutting the budget lowers the manager’s income. So finding and cutting waste — often the highest-return work in an account — gets financially penalised. The model doesn’t require bad intent; the incentives just point the wrong way.

If you choose this model, build a separate framework for discussing budget cuts.

## Fixed monthly fee

Many managers define the scope in writing and charge the same fee every month: how many campaigns, which campaign types, how often changes are made, what gets reported. Incentive-wise this is healthier than a percentage, because reducing your spend doesn’t touch the manager’s income.

The weak spot is that both sides can end up watching the wrong thing: you watch a fixed cost, the other side watches how many more accounts they can carry for the same fee. The fee is identical whether the month was quiet or busy, so what you pay can drift away from the real value of the work.

## Work-hour package: how I work

I work neither on a percentage of your spend nor on a fixed monthly fee; I work with work-hour packages. You pick a block of 5, 10, 20 or 40 hours. The hourly rate drops as the block gets bigger: today it is €60 per hour for the 5-hour block and €35 per hour for the 40-hour block, excluding VAT. Current amounts are in the package table further down this page.

A package is net working time spent directly on your account. There is no monthly fee and no contract, and hours you don’t use don’t expire. Your spend going up or down doesn’t change my fee, so I can say what needs cutting without hesitation. We can compress the hours into a few days or spread them over months, whatever the work calls for.

The downside, honestly: “how much will this cost in total?” has no upfront answer, because the time depends on the work itself. In return you pay only for the time set aside for your business, and you see where that time went, start to finish.

## Hourly and project-based

For a specific piece of work — an [account audit](https://oguzerol.com/en/google-ads-account-audit/), a [setup](https://oguzerol.com/en/google-ads-setup/), or a one-off fix — project pricing or a small work-hour block makes sense.

The general drawback of a plain hourly rate is that tracking time is a burden for both sides and a quickly-solved problem gets paid less, which penalises experience. With packages I balance that by selling the hours as a block up front and showing clearly what was done and how many hours it took.

## Performance bonus

Sounds fair on the surface: pay more as results improve. In practice it has two problems.

First, results aren’t entirely under the manager’s control — your product, price, landing page and stock also decide the outcome. Second, if the bonus is measured short-term, it creates an incentive to push the account for short-term gain, which can hurt its long-term health.

It can work as an added component, but I don’t think it belongs as the sole fee structure.

**How do we start?** First, we talk through what you need, then we choose the right work-hour block together. You can reach me from the [contact page](https://oguzerol.com/en/contact/).

## Frequently Asked Questions

### Is the management fee deducted from ad spend?

No, they’re separate. You pay ad spend directly to Google from your own account; the management fee is paid separately. That separation ensures your full budget goes to advertising.

### Does a management fee make sense on a small budget?

Below a certain threshold the fee becomes disproportionate to spend and stops being economical. In that case, [Google Ads training](https://oguzerol.com/en/google-ads-training/) and managing your own account may make more sense.

### How long should the contract be?

In my model there is no contract or commitment, and unused hours don’t expire. Still, since meaningful results in Google Ads usually take a few months, I suggest planning for at least three. In general, avoid long binding contracts that force you to continue.

[Back to top ↑](https://oguzerol.com/en/google-ads-management-fees/#icerik)

## You may also find these useful

[Google Ads Agency or Expert? | An Honest ComparisonShould you hand Google Ads to an agency or work with an independent expert? The real differences, the cost, and which business each model actually suits.](https://oguzerol.com/en/google-ads-agency/)[Google Advertising Costs | What You Pay GoogleGoogle ad cost is set per click and is never fixed. What determines the price, why costs differ so much by industry, and how to measure your own.](https://oguzerol.com/en/google-advertising-costs/)[Google Ads Pricing | How Management Fees Are SetGoogle Ads costs come in two parts: the ad budget you pay Google, and the management fee. How they differ, which pricing models exist, and a realistic start.](https://oguzerol.com/en/google-ads-pricing/)

[Browse all articles →](https://oguzerol.com/en/articles/)

WHAT YOU CAN ASK FOR

## How do I work?
Work-hour packages

Tell me about your business and what you need on WhatsApp or by phone; we agree on **a work block of somewhere between 5 and 40 hours** and I start doing what is needed. What you get is not a calendar window — it is net working hours spent directly on your business. I can use 40 hours working three days straight, or deliberately spread it out and finish it over a year — whatever the work calls for. I do not spend my time estimating how long something will take, I spend it doing the work; every hour I spend leaves a lasting result in your business. We keep going for as long as you find it useful.

WORK BLOCKS

## Why not monthly?
Is 40 hours a week?

On a fixed monthly fee both sides are watching the wrong thing: you watch a fixed cost, the other side watches how many more contracts like this they can line up. Working by the hour puts us both in front of the same thing — the real value of the work that got done. I know not having an upfront answer to "how much will this cost in total?" is the natural cost of this model. But instead of paying a fixed fee for months to a setup that is not producing results, you only pay for the qualified time spent on your work — and you see exactly where that time went, start to finish. That is why my clients keep coming back.

5hours300€ + VAT60€ per hour[Choose this block](https://wa.me/905496546489?text=Hi%2C%20I%27d%20like%20info%20about%20the%205-hour%20work%20block.)

10hours500€ + VAT50€ per hour[Choose this block](https://wa.me/905496546489?text=Hi%2C%20I%27d%20like%20info%20about%20the%2010-hour%20work%20block.)

20hours800€ + VAT40€ per hour[Choose this block](https://wa.me/905496546489?text=Hi%2C%20I%27d%20like%20info%20about%20the%2020-hour%20work%20block.)

40hours1,400€ + VAT35€ per hour[Choose this block](https://wa.me/905496546489?text=Hi%2C%20I%27d%20like%20info%20about%20the%2040-hour%20work%20block.)