These Are Google’s 150 Most Expensive Keywords
Uncovering the Most Expensive Keywords on Google for Your PPC & SEO Campaigns
Google AdWords is a fast method to make money from search engine visitors. Google’s pay-per-click model, where you just pay for site visitors, makes this tempting. Yet, giving Google your money is unsettling, particularly if you’ve heard that bidding on some of the most costly keywords might be prohibitively pricey.
Google’s Most Expensive Keywords—Why Should You Care?
Search engine marketing is an invaluable tool for businesses that want to increase their online visibility and attract more leads. Knowing the most expensive keywords on Google can help you maximize the effectiveness of your search engine campaigns. With the right strategy, you can use these keywords to reach your target audience and generate more leads for your business. In this article, we will discuss what are the highest cost per click keywords on Google and why should you care about them.
How Does Google Adwords Price Keywords?
Google generates income from a wide variety of sources, but the advertisements that show up next to search results for certain phrases are one of the most obvious ways they make money. The frequency with which individuals search for a certain term affects the cost of that keyword; generally speaking, the higher the volume of searches for a particular phrase, the higher the cost of that keyword.
The placement of advertisements is chosen by an automated algorithm. When a person searches for your query, the combined effect of these two elements will decide whether or not your advertisement is shown and where on the page it appears:
Maximum keyword bid in Google.
- The quality rating that Google has assigned to your advertisement.
- Google’s determination of your ad rank will be influenced by these two criteria.
- To sum things up, the advertisements with the highest quality and the most bids earn the best locations.
Free Guide, Template & Planner: How to Use Google Ads for Business
If a user ends up clicking on your ad, Google determines the cost of that click using the following formula:
The ad rank of the person below you divided by your quality score plus $0.01.
With this in mind, as long as you have a solid keyword strategy and high-quality ads, you can win ad placements even over organizations that are spending more on Google Ads than you are. The only thing to keep in mind is how strict your competition is.
The Highest-Priced Keywords in Each Sector
The vast volume of data that is updated everyday makes it tough to quantify the most costly terms on Google, but we’ve split them down for some of the most prevalent industries:
Legal
Top CPC: $1090.00
Average CPC: $6.75
The legal industry has some of the highest CPCs in this article, primarily due to the high amount of competition they’re up against and the higher ticket service cost. For this industry, we looked at keywords relating to “lawyer,” “attorney,” “legal services,” and a few other related keywords
Google 150 Most Expensive Keywords on the list:
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| HOUSTON MARITIME ATTORNEY | $1,090.00 |
| offshore accident lawyer | $815.00 |
| best motorcycle accident lawyer | $770.00 |
| 18 wheeler accident lawyer san antonio | $670.00 |
| scranton personal injury lawyer | $560.00 |
| truck accident attorney dallas | $515.00 |
| houston trucking accident attorney | $500.00 |
| mesothelioma attorney assistance | $490.00 |
| new york construction accident lawyer | $485.00 |
| maritime lawyer new orleans | $485.00 |
| california auto accident laywer | $475.00 |
| auto accident attorney california | $465.00 |
| auto accident attorney colorado springs | $460.00 |
| car accident lawyer jacksonville | $430.00 |
| truck accident lawyer dallas | $425.00 |
Medical
Top CPC: $90.00
Average CPC: $2.62
What’s curious about this is that we targeted keywords around the top most common types of doctors, yet it was still urgent care and detox programs that dominated the highest costs per click.
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| URGENT CARE EMR | $90.00 |
| hospital alcohol detox | $65.00 |
| dermatological problem | $65.00 |
| fort lauderdale hospital detox | $65.00 |
| transporter hospital | $60.00 |
| children’s hospital emergency room near me | $60.00 |
| kensington hospital detox | $60.00 |
| urgent care jasper tx | $55.00 |
| childrens oakland hospital | $55.00 |
| weight loss surgery dallas tx | $55.00 |
| urgent care snider plaza | $50.00 |
| dallas bariatric | $45.00 |
| endocrine weight loss | $45.00 |
| urgent care 77041 | $45.00 |
| urgent care electronic medical records | $40.00 |
Marketing & Advertising
Top CPC: $165.00
Average CPC: $3.33
Marketing professionals in this space presumably know advertising tricks to help keep costs down, but this industry is also more likely to put value in Google Ads. That’s why the average CPC is relatively reasonable compared to these top CPC keywords:
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| WHAT IS MARKETING CHANNELS | $165.00 |
| call tracking marketing | $125.00 |
| marketing your law firm | $120.00 |
| seo and social media marketing services | $115.00 |
| affiliate marketing software free | $110.00 |
| law firm marketing los angeles | $100.00 |
| marketing automation for agencies | $100.00 |
| what does cpm stand for in advertising | $95.00 |
| 3 p of marketing | $95.00 |
| marketing cloud software | $90.00 |
| ppc advertising management | $80.00 |
| marketing integration | $80.00 |
| email marketing automation software | $80.00 |
| what does ppc stand for in marketing | $75.00 |
| best marketing quotes | $75.00 |
Business Software
Top CPC: $95.00
Average CPC: $3.80
For this category, we didn’t want to include “SAAS” since that would not be a keyword a consumer would use to find the software of their choice. Instead, we used aggregate keywords around “business software” to see what the most expensive CPCs would be:
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| COMPLETE BUSINESS SOLUTION | $95.00 |
| top 10 help desk software | $95.00 |
| help desk software for small business | $90.00 |
| small business call center software | $85.00 |
| accounting online program | $70.00 |
| best online accounting program | $60.00 |
| business performance management software | $60.00 |
| employee management software for small business | $60.00 |
| email marketing software for small business | $55.00 |
| best medical billing software for home based business | $55.00 |
| marketing automation software for small business | $55.00 |
| best crm software for small business | $55.00 |
| crm software for small business | $55.00 |
| best hr software for small business | $50.00 |
| small business marketing software | $50.00 |
Real Estate
Top CPC: $95.00
Average CPC: $2.37
Curiously, despite pooling all keywords related to “real estate agent” and “REALTOR” along with the other service-based keywords, it was the descriptive keywords using “fast” or “with cash” that seemed to outpace all others when it came to cost per click.
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| SELL HOUSE FAST AUSTIN | $95.00 |
| sell my house fast phoenix | $70.00 |
| sell my house fast austin | $65.00 |
| sell my house fast san diego | $65.00 |
| selling a house as is by owner | $60.00 |
| teacher home buying programs texas | $60.00 |
| sell my house fast orlando | $60.00 |
| quickly sell house | $55.00 |
| we buy houses fast for cash | $55.00 |
| will my house sell | $55.00 |
| sell house cash | $55.00 |
| buy house cash or mortgage | $50.00 |
| sell house fast for cash | $50.00 |
| buy my home for cash | $50.00 |
| worst month to sell a house | $60.00 |
Home Improvement Services
Top CPC: $320.00
Average CPC: $6.40
The home improvement industry is a large one, but we focused primarily on services such as HVAC, plumbing, and restoration and renovation. It seemed as though air conditioning and water damage seemed to be the ones with the dominant CPC in this group:
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| AC REPAIR CORAL SPRINGS FL | $320.00 |
| emergency flood repair | $265.00 |
| flood restoration san diego | $210.00 |
| air conditioning repair weatherford tx | $210.00 |
| best ac repair phoenix | $185.00 |
| air conditioning repair boca raton | $150.00 |
| water damage restoration portland oregon | $145.00 |
| water damage restoration los angeles | $145.00 |
| air conditioning repair phoenix | $140.00 |
| air conditioning repair mesa az | $135.00 |
| air conditioning repair simi valley | $125.00 |
| air conditioning repair plano tx | $120.00 |
| water damage restoration mesa az | $120.00 |
| water damage restoration dallas | $120.00 |
| water damage restoration vancouver wa | $115.00 |
Automotive
Top CPC: $50.00
Average CPC: $2.46
For this industry, we decided to pull keywords relating to “auto repair,” “auto body,” and “dent removal,” taking care to remove any insurance or car accident litigation keywords. You’ll notice that lower ticket items such as oil changes and tire services are not present on this list. We can reasonably assume that advertisers in this category want to put their advertising dollars toward higher ticket items:
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| AUTO REPAIR SHOP MODESTO CA | $50.00 |
| paintless dent repair denver colorado | $45.00 |
| abs unlimited auto repair | $45.00 |
| paintless dent repair mn | $40.00 |
| denver auto hail repair | $35.00 |
| change oil light | $35.00 |
| automotive repair lubbock tx | $30.00 |
| auto repair shops stockton ca | $30.00 |
| paintless dent repair colorado springs | $25.00 |
| auto ac repair las vegas | $25.00 |
| auto repair shops omaha ne | $25.00 |
| auto repair shop mesa az | $25.00 |
| aftermarket automotive warranty | $25.00 |
| dent repair colorado springs | $25.00 |
| paintless dent repair denver | $25.00 |
Insurance
Top CPC: $280.00
Average CPC: $3.44
Car insurance completely dominated the insurance industry:
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| COMPARE VEHICLE INSURANCE | $280.00 |
| oklahoma auto insurance quotes | $210.00 |
| insurance companies okc | $185.00 |
| cheapest auto insurance reddit | $170.00 |
| insurance strategy | $160.00 |
| texas auto insurance quotes online | $155.00 |
| preferred auto insurance companies | $150.00 |
| what is insurance deductible | $140.00 |
| what is premiums in insurance | $135.00 |
| fort myers auto insurance | $130.00 |
| auto insurance connecticut | $125.00 |
| definition collision insurance | $125.00 |
| hail damage car insurance claim | $120.00 |
| car accident other driver has no insurance | $120.00 |
| define insurance brokers | $120.00 |
Loans & Finance
Top CPC: $320.00
Average CPC: $3.44
In the finance space, we compiled keywords relating to banking, credit, debt, loans, mortgages, and more. The common theme among the high-CPC keywords was debt relief or loan acquisition (VA loans being especially popular):
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| IRS TAX DEBT RELIEF PROGRAM | $320.00 |
| va loan multi family | $190.00 |
| tax credit for college students | $135.00 |
| va loan after chapter 7 | $130.00 |
| how to get preapproved for a va home loan | $125.00 |
| structured settlement loan | $105.00 |
| national guard va home loan | $95.00 |
| cost to refinance home loan | $95.00 |
| how long does a credit card balance transfer take | $90.00 |
| va home loan specialist | $85.00 |
| will refinancing hurt my credit | $85.00 |
| maximum fha loan amount | $85.00 |
| does opening a checking account affect credit | $80.00 |
| fha loan foreclosure waiting period | $80.00 |
| tax debt relief program | $75.00 |
Education
Top CPC: $140.00
Average CPC: $2.40
It’s clear that online learning overtook the list of high-CPC keywords. This is likely due to smaller ticket educational items such as certifications, courses, and training not providing high enough ROI to justify such high costs per click.
| KEYWORD | CPC |
|---|---|
| ONLINE BUSINESS DEGREE PROGRAMS ACCREDITED | $140.00 |
| online accredited psychology degree | $135.00 |
| online degree in educational psychology | $135.00 |
| online business degree florida | $135.00 |
| online university college | $125.00 |
| online psychology bachelor’s degree | $125.00 |
| online college business degree | $125.00 |
| fastest criminal justice degree online | $125.00 |
| online masters degree in business administration | $125.00 |
| parapsychology degree online | $125.00 |
| online degree criminal justice | $120.00 |
| online school for business degree | $120.00 |
| online masters degree programs in healthcare administration | $120.00 |
| masters degree in human resources online | $120.00 |
| public administration masters degree online | $115.00 |
A Few Remarks About Our Methods:
Among around 10,000 relevant keywords per industry, the top CPC keywords were selected. It should only be used for editorial reasons since there are many more keywords available, CPC is subject to vary depending on the state of the business and the economy, and keyword tools will produce different data. This information was acquired from Ahrefs and collected on April 3, 2020. Do your own keyword research before choosing your advertising strategy.
Little datasets make it impossible to estimate the average CPC per industry, thus we obtained this data from WordStream’s keyword benchmarking report.
Not seeing your sector represented? To get the keyword prices for your most relevant keywords, follow the procedures listed below.
How Can I Determine the Price of a Keyword?
Fortunately, not all of the Google AdWords platform’s offerings are that pricey. Indeed, according to WordStream, the typical CPC on Google is between $1 and $2.
With those CPCs, you could be prepared to:
- Choose if Google Advertising is appropriate for your company.
- Find out how much your most sought keywords really cost.
- Determine how much money you’ll need to power your lead creation engine.
The terrible thing is that you can no longer utilize Google’s Keyword Planner if you don’t have an account. It implies that before you are prepared to build your first campaign, you would have to go through the full process of joining up and supplying your payment information upfront.
As a result, you must have a method for obtaining keyword cost estimations before to launching a campaign. This is how:
Use a Third-Party Tool for Keyword Research
The good news is that you can get information regarding keyword cost and volume in other places than Google. You may estimate CPC for the terms you wish to target in your campaign using a variety of keyword research tools.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQP5-b-AWwc
Set up a Fake Campaign in Google Ads
If the cost of a third-party keyword research tool turns you off, you can still use Google’s Keyword Planner. You just have to go through the campaign process and then turn the campaign off.
Note: By doing this, you’ll see a temporary $50 authorization which Google uses to verify your payment information. This is typically removed within a week. If you don’t turn off your campaign, your card will be charged every 30 days or when you reach your billing threshold. Be sure to review Google’s billing policies yourself before taking this advice.
Here are the steps:
- Sign up for a Google Ads account.
- Go through the prompts to set up your first campaign.
- Once complete, click Explore Your Campaign.
- In the first card that shows the campaign you just created, click the arrow next to Pending.
- Select Pause campaign.
Once you verify that you really want to pause the campaign, you now have a Google Ads account and can use the Keyword Planner for free (once the verification money is returned to you, of course). The plus side to this approach is that if you decide to move forward after your keyword research, you already have an account set up and a jump start on building a campaign.
