Hey everyone! I’m really excited to dive deeper into this topic: How much should you pay for lead generation? I’m curious about the types of lead generation costs, the average cost per lead by industry, the average cost per lead by different channels, and how company size or revenue can change those costs.
Could we explore those areas in detail? I’d love some real numbers or examples so I can compare industries and see how budgets might shift depending on a business’s scale.
This is one of those topics where the answer is always, “It depends.” But I’ll do my best to explain it to you 
You know how we have multiple types of lead-gen costs—advertising, marketing, sales team salaries, and so on… Well, each of those inputs has a direct impact on what your final cost per lead (CPL) looks like.
There’s a helpful YouTube video on this topic that breaks it down further. You can check it out for quick insights:
Take financial services; for example, CPLs can easily hit $600+ per lead. Look high, right? But when one closed lead could mean a high-value contract or mortgage, companies don’t mind spending big to get high-quality leads.
On the other end, Ecommerce is way lower, around $91 per lead (shoutout to First Page Sage’s 2025 Report). Makes sense because E-commerce is more about digital traffic and quick conversions instead of long sales cycles. 
| Industry | Cost per Lead |
|---|---|
| E-commerce | $91 |
| Real Estate | $448 |
| Engineering | $287 |
| Higher Education | $982 |
| B2B SaaS | $237 |
| Entertainment | $114 |
| Hotels & Resorts | $266 |
| Staffing & Recruiting | $497 |
| Environmental Services | $278 |
| Manufacturing | $553 |
| Financial Services | $653 |
| Healthcare | $361 |
| Fintech | $452 |
Different Channels Mean Different Lead Generation Costs. Where you get leads from also makes a big difference in cost. For example, here’s what I’m thinking based on the datas from the same report:
| Lead Generation Channel | Cost per Lead |
|---|---|
| Online Retargeting | $31 |
| Search Engine Optimization (SEO) | $31 |
| Email Marketing | $53 |
| Social Media Advertising | $58 |
| Display Advertising | $63 |
| Webinars | $72 |
| Referrals | $73 |
| LinkedIn Advertising | $75 |
| Content Marketing | $92 |
| Search Engine Advertising | $110 |
| Video Marketing | $174 |
| Public Relations | $294 |
| Traditional Marketing (TV, Radio, Print) | $619 |
| Event & Tradeshows | $811 |
I think the average cost per lead by company size and revenue is a more straightforward topic.
Smaller businesses tend to pay more per lead because they’re still building brand awareness and don’t have huge marketing budgets.
Bigger brands? They usually have better ad deals, more brand recognition, and bigger campaigns, so their CPLs tend to be lower.
That said, if a smaller company has a super niche audience and knows exactly who to target, they can keep their CPL low by being ultra-specific with their marketing. It’s really about being smart with your targeting and not wasting money on broad audiences.
At the end of the day, CPL only matters in the context of what a lead is actually worth to you. Like, if you’re paying $500 per lead, but each customer brings in $5,000+, that’s a solid return.
Some industries (like Higher Education) have CPLs that top $900, but when a single student is paying tens of thousands in tuition, it still makes sense.
So, it’s not just about the number but what that lead brings in. Hope it helps Michelle 
that’s so insighfull thank you! 
now I’m curious about a couple more things. 
First, how do I figure out exactly how many leads I need to hit my revenue goals? I keep hearing about formulas and break-even points, but I’m not sure how it all works in practice.
Also, I’d love to learn more about costs of lead generation service providers—like if I decide to outsource. And can u suggest any tools that could help me generate more leads? I want a sense of what’s out there before I jump in.