The short answer
If your trade is eligible, Local Services Ads are often the cheapest leads you can buy: you pay per lead, you show above everything else, and the Google Guaranteed or Screened badge builds trust. Search ads give you control over keywords, services, ad copy and landing pages, and cover the searches LSA doesn't. Most plumbers, HVAC companies, roofers, electricians and law firms get the best results running both.
Local Services Ads vs Google search ads
| Local Services Ads | Google search ads | |
|---|---|---|
| How you pay | Per lead (call, message or booking) | Per click |
| Where they show | Very top of results, above search ads | Top and bottom of results |
| Trust signal | Google Guaranteed / Google Screened badge | Your ad copy, reviews via assets |
| Control over searches | Low: job types and areas only | High: keywords, match types, negatives |
| Landing page | Your LSA profile | Any page you choose |
| Ranking driven by | Reviews, responsiveness, proximity, budget | Bid, Quality Score, ad relevance |
| Setup | Background checks, licence and insurance verification | Account and campaign build |
Why Local Services Ads are so good (when they work)
Paying only when a customer actually contacts you removes a lot of risk. You're not paying for people who click, look and leave. And because LSA sits above everything else with a green badge, it gets a lot of attention on mobile.
The catch is control. You can't choose exact searches, write custom ads or send people to a landing page. Google decides when to show you, based heavily on reviews, how fast you answer and how close you are. Businesses with few reviews or slow response times often find LSA barely shows them.
Why you still need search ads
Search ads let you target the jobs you want most, in the areas you want, with the message you want. You can push high-value work like replacements and installs, run offers, show financing and send people to pages built to convert.
They also cover what LSA doesn't: services outside LSA's job types, searches where LSA doesn't appear, and customers who scroll past the top box to compare.
How to run both together
- 1
Get verified for LSA
Complete background checks and verification so the badge and top placement are available.
- 2
Feed LSA reviews and speed
Ask every happy customer for a review and answer leads quickly. That's what moves LSA ranking.
- 3
Use search ads for high-value jobs
Dedicated campaigns and landing pages for the work with the best margins.
- 4
Compare cost per booked job
Track both through to booked and completed jobs, then move budget to whichever is cheaper per job this month.