AEO and GEO pricing: what the budget should cover
Neaptide · September 7, 2026 · 6 min read
Separate setup, monthly implementation, tools and staff time. A fictional three-month AEO/GEO budget shows how to compare proposals on a clear scope.
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To assess an AEO/GEO quote, you need to know which services, markets and languages it covers, what will change on the website and who will make those changes. A fee for “AI visibility” leaves too much unspecified. Ask for an itemised estimate of the work and a separate explanation of how results will be measured.
Separate the cost categories
Distinguish setup, recurring work and external costs. Setup establishes the baseline, questions and first change plan. Monthly work covers actual edits, fact checking, implementation support and repeat observations. External costs cover agreed tools and other paid resources.
Show internal contributions alongside the invoice: who supplies facts, approves service details and publishes releases? Staff time may not create a new payment, but it limits delivery capacity. An expert available only once a month affects the content plan.
A fictional three-month estimate
All figures below are invented to explain the calculation. They are not Neaptide rates, tool prices or market averages. Assume one service group, one language, one agreed recurring question set and no separate PR campaign. The hypothetical rate is €60 per hour, excluding tax.
Assume 20 setup hours costing €1,200 to collect baseline data, fix the question set and prepare a plan. The monthly tasks below are separate ongoing work, not a second charge for the original assessment.
| Monthly task | Hours | Illustrative cost |
|---|---|---|
| Review new observations and plan changes | 6 | €360 |
| Prepare and edit content | 12 | €720 |
| Website changes and publication checks | 8 | €480 |
| Repeat measurements and interpret results | 6 | €360 |
| Total work | 32 | €1,920 |
Add a hypothetical €80 per month for tools: recurring costs total €2,000. Month one including setup is €3,200; months two and three are €2,000 each. Three months cost €1,200 + 3 × €2,000 = €7,200. Tax, additional work and internal staff time are excluded.
If your team also spends eight hours a month on facts and approvals, that is 24 internal hours over three months. Record them separately. Apply your company’s costing method if needed; do not automatically present them as an extra invoice.
What changes the budget
- Languages and markets: translation does not replace local question, service-condition and source research.
- Content readiness: substantiated case studies and clear terms reduce fact gathering; missing evidence needs expert and writer time.
- Publishing workflow: an editor may publish directly, or a developer and release process may be required.
- Measurement coverage: more questions, systems and repeats create more checking and analysis, not automatically a more valuable report.
- External work: interviews, original research and placements need explicit scope and approval when included.
Avoid counting SEO, AEO and GEO work twice
Compare the actual tasks in each proposal. If your SEO team already checks whether search engines can access the site, edits the content and verifies facts, the AEO/GEO quote should identify what extra work is needed. The same page edit should not be charged for again under a different service name.
Google requires no special markup or additional files for AI Overviews and AI Mode. An “AI package” label alone does not justify a surcharge.
Reduce the first stage sensibly
Choose one service group and a limited set of buyer questions. Retain baseline measurement, implementation and a follow-up check so the stage has a complete purpose. Monitoring without capacity to make changes suits a research assignment, not an expectation of website improvements.
Avoid setting a growth target before you have initial measurements. First agree when it would make sense to expand: the planned changes have been published, measurements can be repeated, approvals arrive on time and the findings point to useful next steps.
Questions before accepting a price
- What deliverables are included in setup and each month?
- Who writes, checks facts, implements and publishes?
- Which expenses and taxes are included or separate?
- How are hour overruns or scope changes approved?
- What do we retain: content, changes, measurement data, instructions and access?
For a Neaptide estimate, share services, markets, languages and available materials. Tell us whether you have an editor and developer. The agreed promotion scope follows that brief; the example above is not a commercial offer.