Definition
The SEO budget represents all financial resources a company dedicates to improving its organic visibility in search engines. It typically breaks down into several categories: SEO tools (Semrush, Ahrefs, Screaming Frog), content creation (writing, optimization), technical optimization (development, high-performance hosting), and link building (buying links, sponsored articles). Budget distribution depends on the site's SEO maturity: a new site needs to invest more in technical and content, while an established site can focus efforts on link building to gain authority. It's essential to adapt the budget to objectives and sector competition, and to regularly measure ROI to optimize resource allocation.
Key Points
- Breaks down into technical, content, and link building
- Must be adapted to the site's maturity and competition
- Link building often represents the most impactful category
Practical Examples
SMB budget
An SMB allocates $500 per month to SEO: $200 in tools and content, $300 in links via LemmiLink to progressively strengthen its main pages' authority.
Agency budget for client
An SEO agency proposes a $3,000 monthly budget for its e-commerce client: $500 for audit and monitoring, $1,000 for optimized content creation, and $1,500 for link building via LemmiLink.
Frequently Asked Questions
There's no universal minimum, but a budget of $300-500 per month allows starting a basic SEO strategy including a few quality links. For significant results in competitive sectors, a budget of $1,000-3,000 per month is more realistic. Consistency is more important than one-time actions.
Generally, link building represents 40% to 60% of the total SEO budget for a site with solid technical foundations and content. For a technically well-optimized site, investing in quality links via LemmiLink is the most effective lever for gaining positions. If the site has technical issues, fix those first before launching link building.
Go Further with LemmiLink
Discover how LemmiLink can help you put these SEO concepts into practice.
Last updated: 2026-02-07