Local Services Ads management for eligible UK trades.
Local Services Ads sit at the top of some Google searches, carry the Google Verified badge and charge per lead rather than per click. We get you through set-up and verification, keep the profile working, and tell you plainly if your trade is not eligible.
A different kind of Google ad.
There are no keywords and no landing page. You choose your services, areas, hours and weekly budget, and Google decides when to show you.
Where they appear
At the top of Google for some local service searches, above the standard search ads, showing your business name, reviews, hours and the Google Verified badge.
What you pay for
Leads, not clicks. You are charged when a customer contacts you through the ad, by phone call or message. Google sets the price of each lead, and it varies with your location, the job type, the type of lead and your bidding mode.
Missed calls can still be charged: a call during your opening hours counts if the caller stays on the line for more than 20 seconds. Answering matters.
Verification
Google screens every business before the ads can run. Depending on the trade, that may include background, business registration, insurance and licence checks. We prepare the documents with you and deal with Google’s questions, and keep them current when insurance or licences renew.
Budget
You set an average weekly budget. Your monthly maximum is that figure multiplied by the average number of weeks in a month, and the ads stop for the rest of the month once it is reached.
Poor leads
Google does not charge for leads it judges invalid. Beyond that, its help pages say lead credits are not available for advertisers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, which includes the UK. Getting the job types and areas right matters more here than in the US guides you may have read.
Local Services Ads are moving into Google Ads.
Google is moving Local Services Ads out of their separate dashboard and into the main Google Ads platform. It began with US accounts in August 2026, and UK accounts are due to move in 2027.
Local Services Ads themselves are not going away. What changes is where they are managed, how they are reported and some of the settings. Google emails each business about 14 days before its account moves.
- We handle the move for you. When your notice arrives, we plan the switch with you inside those 14 days.
- Your history kept. We export your lead and performance reports before the old dashboard closes, in case they do not carry over.
- Settings checked straight away. Budgets, bidding and job types reviewed in Google Ads after the move, and performance watched while it settles.
- Google Business Profile optimised. In Google Ads, Local Services Ads use your Google Business Profile as the source of your business information, so we make sure it is complete, accurate and up to date before the move.
Is your trade eligible?
Google publishes a list of eligible categories, and the job types inside each category vary by area. This is how our seven trades looked when we checked Google’s UK pages in October 2026. We confirm yours in Google’s sign-up tool before you spend anything.
| Trade | Google category | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Roofers | Roofing | Eligible. Repairs and urgent calls tend to suit this format best. |
| Plumbing and heating | Plumbing; HVAC | Eligible. Breakdown and repair calls fit well; installations need careful job type settings. |
| Air conditioning | HVAC | Eligible as heating or air conditioning work. |
| HVAC companies | HVAC | Eligible for domestic heating and air conditioning work. Commercial contracts are better handled by search campaigns. |
| Heat pumps | HVAC | Heat pump work sits under HVAC. Which heat pump job types are offered can vary, so we check this first. |
| Windows and doors | Window services | Window work is listed. Door fitting is not named separately, so we check the job types available to you. |
| Solar and battery | Not listed | Solar installation is not a category of its own. Google Ads search campaigns are the main route. |
Sources: Google’s Getting started with Local Services Ads and the UK Local Services Ads page, checked 26 October 2026. Google changes these lists without notice.
Set-up is the easy part. Keeping it worth the money is the job.
- Profile and verification. Business details, services, areas, hours and photos, plus the documents Google asks for.
- Job types. Switched on for the work you want, and off for jobs that are too small, too far or not worth a paid lead.
- Service areas. Matched to where you will really travel, so you are not paying for leads you will turn down.
- Hours and availability. Set to when someone can answer, because missed calls can still be charged.
- Budget and bidding. A weekly budget and bidding mode reviewed against the leads you actually get.
- Lead review. Every lead checked with you, rated in Google’s lead feedback, and counted in your monthly report.
- Reviews. Your Google reviews appear on the ad, so we help you set up a simple routine for asking happy customers.
- The LeadCentre app. Every client also gets LeadCentre, our app for iPhone and Android, for seeing and answering enquiries on your phone. More about LeadCentre.
Local Services Ads questions.
Are Local Services Ads better than Google Ads?
Neither is better in general. Local Services Ads can produce calls with less set-up and no wasted clicks, but you have far less control over which searches trigger them. Search campaigns take more work and give more control. For eligible trades we often run both and compare the enquiries. How we run them together.
How much does a Local Services Ads lead cost?
Google sets the price, and it varies by location, job type, lead type and bidding mode. Message leads generally cost less than calls. Google’s sign-up tool shows an estimate for your area, and we review real prices with you once leads start coming in.
Do I need a Google Business Profile?
Yes, in practice. Your Local Services Ads profile is linked to your Google Business Profile, and your reviews appear on the ad. If your profile needs work, we will tell you what to fix first.
Can I get money back for bad leads?
Google does not charge for leads it judges invalid, but its help pages say lead credits are not available to advertisers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. So in the UK the protection comes from the settings: job types, areas and hours. You can still rate each lead in the dashboard, and we do.
Related
Find out if Local Services Ads suit your business.
Tell us your trade and the areas you cover. We will check eligibility in Google's sign-up tool and tell you honestly whether it is worth doing.