If you've asked three agencies what Meta Ads management costs, you've probably had three wildly different answers and no straight numbers. Here's the honest version.
Pricing in this industry is deliberately vague. Most agencies won't quote until they've got you on a call, because the number is uncomfortable to say out loud. So let's start with the actual models, what each one really costs a UK Shopify store, and where the money goes.
The three pricing models you'll be quoted
1. The monthly retainer
A fixed fee, usually £750–£3,000 a month for a small-to-mid UK ecommerce brand, sometimes with a three or six month minimum term. You pay the same in a quiet month as you do in a launch month.
The problem isn't the price — it's the disconnect. Once your account is properly built, tracking is clean and campaigns are stable, a well-run Meta account might need four or five hours of genuine work in a month. You're still paying for twenty. That gap is where retainers make their margin, and it's why so many brands quietly feel they're paying for a monthly PDF.
2. Percentage of ad spend
Typically 10–20% of what you spend, often with a minimum fee attached. It sounds fair — the agency earns more when you grow.
Look at the incentive though. The agency's income goes up when your spend goes up, not when your profit does. Nobody on a percentage model has ever been enthusiastic about telling you to spend less, and there are absolutely months where spending less is the right call.
3. Hourly
You're billed for hours actually worked. A rebuild month costs more. A steady month costs less. There's no floor you're paying up to whether the work exists or not.
This is how I work, and it's a deliberate choice. No retainers, no minimum term, no percentage of your spend. I charge hourly and I only charge for work I've actually done. If your account has a quiet month, your invoice is small. That's the whole point.
What you're actually paying for
Whichever model you land on, the work behind a well-run Meta account is roughly this:
| Work | Rough time |
|---|---|
| Account audit and strategy | 3–6 hours, once |
| Account build, Pixel and Conversions API setup | 5–10 hours, once |
| Creative direction and briefing | 2–4 hours a month |
| Ongoing optimisation and testing | 3–8 hours a month |
| Reporting and review | 1–2 hours a month |
Front-loaded, in other words. The first month is genuinely heavy. Months four onwards, on a healthy account, are not. Any pricing model that charges you the same for both is charging you for month one, twelve times a year.
What's not usually included
Two things catch people out. First, ad spend itself — that goes straight to Meta and is separate from any management fee. Second, creative production. Some agencies include design; most don't, or charge extra. Ask directly, because "management" can mean very different scopes.
So what should a small Shopify store expect to pay?
As a sensible benchmark: if you're spending under £2,000 a month on ads, a £1,500 monthly retainer makes no commercial sense. You'd be spending nearly as much on management as on reaching customers. Below roughly £3,000 monthly spend, hourly or project-based support is almost always the better economics.
Above that, retainers start to become defensible — but only if the work genuinely fills the hours. Ask any agency quoting you a retainer to tell you, honestly, how many hours a month it represents. The good ones will answer. The answer tells you a lot.
Questions worth asking before you sign
- How many hours a month does this fee represent?
- Is there a minimum term, and what's the notice period?
- Who actually works on my account day to day — and will I speak to them?
- Do I own the ad account and the Pixel data if we part ways?
- Is creative production included, or billed separately?
That fourth one matters more than people realise. Always run ads through your own Business Manager and your own ad account. If an agency builds inside theirs, your pixel history and audience data leave with them.
The short answer
Meta Ads management in the UK ranges from around £75 an hour for a freelance specialist to £3,000+ a month for a full agency retainer. What you should pay depends far less on your revenue than on how much work your account genuinely needs this month.
If you'd like a straight answer on that, I'm happy to give you one. I run Meta Ads, Google Ads and Klaviyo email for Shopify brands, hourly, with no lock-in — and you can see the results I've got for other stores before you decide anything.
Not sure what your account actually needs?
Book a free discovery call. I'll look at your setup and tell you honestly what's worth doing — even if the answer is "not much yet".
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