Google Ads can be one of the fastest ways to win new customers, and one of the fastest ways to burn money. Which one you get often depends on who is running your account. So if you are looking for the best PPC company in the UK, the real question is not who shouts loudest, but who will spend your budget as carefully as you would.

This guide explains how to choose a PPC agency in the UK: what good pay-per-click management looks like, the problems we see when businesses come to us from other agencies, how PPC agencies charge, the questions to ask before you sign, and the red flags that should make you walk away.

What a good PPC agency actually does

PPC (pay per click) management is far more than setting up a few ads. A good agency should be doing all of this, every month:

• Research: finding the searches your customers actually use, and the ones that waste money.
• Account structure: organising campaigns and ad groups so each search sees a relevant ad and lands on a relevant page.
• Conversion tracking: making sure every call, form and sale is tracked, so decisions are based on results, not clicks.
• Search term reviews: checking what people actually searched before clicking, and adding negative keywords to stop paying for the wrong clicks.
• Ad testing: writing and testing new headlines and descriptions.
• Bid and budget management: moving money towards what works and away from what does not.
• Landing page advice: because the best ad in the world will not convert on a slow or confusing page.
• Clear reporting: cost per lead or sale, return on ad spend and what is planned next.

What we see when businesses come to us from another PPC agency

At Delivered Social, a lot of the Google Ads accounts we take on have been managed by someone else first. When we open them up, the same four problems appear again and again.

1. Wasted spend. Broad keywords with no negative keyword lists, so the business was paying for clicks from people searching for jobs, free versions, DIY guides or completely different services.
2. No conversion tracking. The account was optimising for clicks because nobody had set up tracking for calls, forms or sales. Nobody could say which keywords actually brought customers.
3. The ad account was not theirs. The agency had set the account up under its own login. When the business wanted to leave, it risked losing years of data and history.
4. Set and forget. Campaigns built once and barely touched since. Old ads, old keywords and budgets that had not been reviewed in months.

Every one of those is avoidable if you know what to ask before you sign, which is what the rest of this guide is about.

How PPC agencies charge in the UK

Agency fees are separate from your ad spend, which you pay to Google. The most common pricing models are:

• Flat monthly fee: a fixed management fee, often tiered by how much you spend. Easy to budget for.
• Percentage of ad spend: commonly somewhere around 10% to 20% of what you spend with Google, sometimes with a minimum fee.
• Set-up fee: some agencies charge for building or rebuilding an account at the start.
• Performance-based: less common, where part of the fee depends on results. Make sure the targets are clear and fair.

Whatever the model, you should know exactly what you are paying for and how much of your budget actually goes to Google. Our guide to the cost of PPC management in the UK goes into more detail.

What the best PPC companies in the UK have in common

• You own the ad account. They work inside your Google Ads account, with you as the owner.
• Tracking comes first. They will not scale spend until conversions are being tracked properly.
• They show their work. Search term reviews, negative keywords and changes made are visible in the account and in reports.
• Fair contracts. Rolling monthly terms or a short minimum, not a year-long lock-in.
• They talk about profit, not clicks. Cost per lead, cost per sale and return on ad spend are the numbers they care about.
• They will tell you when PPC is not right. Sometimes SEO, social ads or fixing your website will give a better return, and a good agency will say so.

Questions to ask a PPC agency before you sign

1. Will the Google Ads account be in our name, with us as the owner?
2. How will you track calls, forms and sales?
3. How often do you review search terms and add negative keywords?
4. Who will actually manage our account, and how much time will they spend on it each month?
5. What will the monthly report show, and can I see an example?
6. How do you charge, and what happens to the fee if we change our ad spend?
7. What is the minimum term and notice period?
8. Are you a Google Partner, and what experience do you have in our sector?
9. What would you change in our current account first? (If you already run ads, ask for an audit.)
10. How do you decide when to increase or decrease budgets?

Red flags when choosing a PPC company

• They want to create a new account in their own name.
• They promise a set number of leads or a guaranteed return before seeing your data.
• They cannot explain how conversions will be tracked.
• Reports only show impressions, clicks and click-through rate.
• Long contracts with heavy exit fees.
• They never mention negative keywords or search term reviews.
• Your account manager changes every few months, or you never speak to the person doing the work.

How to check an existing PPC agency is doing a good job

If you already have an agency, you can check a few things yourself in Google Ads, even without being an expert:

• Change history: in Google Ads, look at Change history. Are changes being made every week, or has nothing happened for a month?
• Search terms: look at the search terms report. Are you paying for searches that have nothing to do with your business?
• Conversions: do the conversion numbers in Google Ads roughly match the enquiries and sales you actually receive?
• Access: are you listed as an admin on the account?

Related reading: our no-nonsense pay per click agency guide

PPC agency or doing it in-house?

• In-house can work for businesses with a simple offer and someone who has the time to learn and manage Google Ads properly every week.
• An agency brings experience across many accounts, specialist tools and the time to test and optimise. It usually makes sense once spend grows, or when results have stalled.
• A mix works well for some: an agency for strategy and set-up, with someone in-house handling day-to-day checks.

PPC also works best alongside SEO. Our guide to how SEO and PPC work together explains why.

Frequently asked questions about choosing a PPC agency

How much does a PPC agency cost in the UK?

It varies by spend and complexity. Many agencies charge a flat monthly fee or a percentage of ad spend, often around 10% to 20%. Always check what is included.

Should I own my Google Ads account?

Yes. Your account holds your data and history. Make sure you are the owner, with the agency given access, so you keep everything if you ever change provider.

How long before PPC delivers results?

Ads can bring traffic from day one, but most accounts need several weeks of data and optimisation before cost per lead settles.

What is a Google Partner?

Google Partner status shows an agency meets Google’s requirements for certification, spend and performance. It is a useful signal, but not a guarantee of good service.

Can I switch PPC agencies without losing results?

Yes, if you own the account. The new agency can work in the same account and build on the existing data.

Choose a PPC partner who spends like it is their own money

The best PPC agency for your business is the one that tracks what matters, keeps your account in your name, cuts waste every week and talks to you about leads and profit rather than clicks. Use the questions above with every agency you speak to, and you will quickly see who knows what they are doing.

If you would like a second opinion on your current account, our Google Ads team can take a look. Get in touch, or find more practical guides on the Delivered Social website.