How to find the best PPC agency for SaaS. Evaluation framework, red flags, budget realities, and directory links to agencies that understand LTV vs CPA.
Finding the best PPC agency for SaaS businesses means navigating three categories: exceptional partners who understand subscription economics, mediocre executors who apply generic playbooks, and actively harmful optimizers who make reports look good while burning cash on customers who churn.
The difference in SaaS PPC agencies isn't size or years in business. It's whether they track and optimize for customer lifetime value or just cost per acquisition—a distinction that determines whether your ad spend drives growth or just generates expensive signups.
SaaS PPC Agency Evaluation Checklist
Before hiring any agency, verify they meet these criteria:
SaaS Specialization
50%+ of clients are subscription businesses
Can explain LTV:CAC ratios without prompting
Shows 90-day+ retention metrics in case studies (not just signup volume)
Technical Capabilities
Implements cohort tracking from day one
Understands server-side conversion tracking
Knows how to use offline conversion imports or enhanced conversions
Realistic Expectations
Timeline: 4-6 months for profitable scaling
Won't promise specific ROAS in first 90 days
Charges $2k-6k monthly depending on ad spend
Warning Signs to Avoid
- No SaaS client references
- Optimizes only for CPA reduction
- All case studies are e-commerce or lead-gen
What Makes SaaS PPC Different
Standard agency playbook: optimize for cost per conversion, lower CPA month over month, show improved volume, celebrate low cost per lead.
For SaaS, this systematically fails. The value in subscription businesses shows up months after acquisition, not at the point of signup. Agencies need to understand how Google Ads actually works for SaaS—including LTV tracking, Smart Bidding requirements, and subscription-specific optimization.
Agency delivers 200 signups at $40 CAC. Looks great until 140 churn in 90 days. Real CAC for sticky customers: $133.
| What Agencies Track | What Actually Matters |
|---|
| Cost per signup | Cost per retained customer |
| Conversion volume | LTV by campaign |
| CPA reduction | Cohort retention rates |
Agencies tracking only top-funnel metrics optimize for wrong outcomes.
Red Flags
Translation: no specialization. SaaS needs specific expertise—LTV optimization, subscription metrics, cohort analysis. Generalists apply e-commerce playbooks.
"We work with all kinds of businesses."
Can't explain LTV:CAC ratios. Ask: "How do you think about LTV:CAC for SaaS?" Good answer discusses cohort tracking, retention, payback periods. Bad answer: "We focus on lowering CPA."
No server-side tracking expertise. Pixels miss 30-50% of conversions. Renewals happen server-side. Agency should know conversion value adjustments, Enhanced Conversions, or recommend platforms like LTV SaaS that automate this infrastructure.
Promises specific ROAS in 90 days. SaaS ROAS unfolds over time. Promising 3:1 in month one means they don't understand subscriptions. Realistic: 1.2-1.8:1 at 30 days, 2.5-3.5:1 at 90 days.
No SaaS case studies. All their examples are e-commerce or local? They don't know subscription businesses. Ask to speak with current SaaS clients.
What Good Agencies Do
They segment by customer value, not acquisition cost.
They'll say: "Campaign A costs $80 CPA with 72% six-month retention. Campaign B costs $55 with 45% retention. Shifting budget to Campaign A despite higher upfront cost."
Bad agencies celebrate Campaign B because CPA is lower.
Exceptional agencies track which campaigns drive high-LTV customers. They implement or help you implement LTV tracking. They understand churn impact on maximum CAC. They report on retention, not just conversions.
Questions That Reveal Expertise
Ask: "How do you handle the gap between signup and LTV realization?"
Good answer: "Track 30-day, 90-day, predicted LTV. Early optimization on activation metrics correlating with retention. Cohort data by month 4-6 for actual LTV optimization."
Bad answer: "We optimize for signups and track funnel metrics."
Ask: "Describe Smart Bidding approach for SaaS."
Good answer: "Need 30-50 conversions minimum. Start manual CPC, gather data. Implement conversion value adjustments. Switch to Target ROAS with LTV data. Timeline: 8-12 weeks."
Bad answer: "We use Smart Bidding, it's Google's best option."
Budget Realities
Below $10k total monthly (ad spend plus agency fees), specialized agencies won't take you. Their minimums don't justify account management time.
| Monthly Ad Spend | Agency Fee | Total Investment |
|---|
| $5k | $2k-3k | $7k-8k |
| $10k | $3k-4k | $13k-14k |
| $20k | $4k-6k | $24k-26k |
Based on industry averages - most agencies charge 15-25% of ad spend with $2k-3k minimums. Clutch's agency pricing survey shows similar ranges for specialized B2B agencies.
At $5k/month, work with freelancer or do it yourself. At $10k-15k, you hit the sweet spot for specialized agencies.
Timeline Expectations
Month one: Foundation. Setup, tracking, initial campaigns, negatives. Expect high CPA, low volume during learning.
Month two-three: Optimization. Smart Bidding if sufficient data, creative tests, audience refinement. CPA improving, volume increasing.
Month four-six: Scale. Budget grows where economics work, LTV data feeds optimization. Should see profitable scaling or clear indication this won't work.
Any agency promising faster results doesn't understand subscription value timing.
What Actually Predicts Success
After 15+ agency relationships, the predictor isn't agency size, years, client roster, or awards.
It's: Do they track and optimize for long-term customer value or short-term conversion metrics?
Agencies optimizing for LTV systematically outperform those optimizing for CPA. Difference shows in month 4-6 when cohort data reveals retention rates.
Real Agency Horror Stories (And One Success)
A B2B SaaS founder shared on IndieHackers: Hired well-reviewed agency at $4k/month. First 90 days looked great—CPA dropped from $180 to $95, conversion volume up 40%. Celebrated. Month four, finance noticed something: MRR growth wasn't matching new customer count. Checked cohorts. The cheaper customers churned 2x faster. Agency had been optimizing for trial signups, not qualified leads. Switching back to higher-intent (more expensive) traffic took another 60 days.
Total cost: $24k in agency fees + $40k in wasted ad spend on customers who churned = $64k lesson in wrong optimization metrics.
Contrast with a founder who interviewed eight agencies, asked specifically: "How do you handle the gap between signup and LTV realization?" Seven gave vague answers about "tracking everything" and "optimizing for conversions." One said: "We implement cohort tracking from day one, won't scale budget until we see month-three retention data stabilize, and we adjust bids based on predicted LTV segments, not signup cost."
That agency charged more ($5.5k vs $4k monthly) but delivered 2.4x ROAS vs 1.8x because they understood subscription economics. The founder calculated they saved $30k in wasted spend over six months despite higher monthly fees.
A founder in a Slack community mentioned firing their PPC agency after discovering the agency claimed credit for "conversions" that were actually newsletter signups, not paid trials. The reports looked good—hundreds of conversions monthly. Reality: single-digit trial starts. Agency knew how to make dashboards look good, not how to drive actual business results.
Where to Find SaaS-Specialized PPC Agencies
Don't hire the first agency that cold-emails you. Here's how to find agencies that actually understand SaaS:
Agency Directories with SaaS Filters:
1. Clutch.co — Filter by "SaaS" industry, read verified reviews, check case studies. Look for agencies with 4.5+ stars and multiple SaaS client testimonials mentioning LTV or retention.
2. UpCity — Search "SaaS PPC agencies," sort by recommendations. Pay attention to agencies that specifically mention subscription businesses in their profile.
What to Look For in Agency Listings:
- Case studies showing 90-day or 180-day retention metrics, not just signup volume
- Client testimonials mentioning "understood our LTV" or "cohort analysis"
- Team bios mentioning SaaS experience or subscription business backgrounds
- Blog posts about SaaS-specific challenges (red flag if all posts are generic PPC tactics)
Questions to Ask During Discovery Calls:
- "How do you handle the gap between signup and LTV realization in your reporting?"
- "Show me a SaaS client report where CPA went up but ROAS improved—why did that happen?"
- "What percentage of your current clients are subscription businesses?"
- "How do you implement cohort tracking for paid channels?"
Red Flags During Interviews:
- Won't share SaaS client references (means they don't have them)
- Promise specific ROAS in month one (don't understand subscription timing)
- Can't explain LTV:CAC ratios without prompting
- All case studies show e-commerce or lead-gen, zero SaaS
The Bottom Line
Good SaaS PPC agencies understand subscription economics, track customer value beyond conversions, implement proper attribution, optimize for retention over signup volume, charge reasonable fees, communicate in metrics that matter.
Most agencies apply e-commerce playbooks, optimize for cheap conversions, track top-funnel only.
Interview 5-8 agencies. Ask hard questions about LTV tracking. Check references on retention results, not conversion volume. Start with 90-day trials before annual commitments.
No agency fixes bad product-market fit or 10% monthly churn with better ads. If retention is broken, fix that before scaling paid acquisition.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much should I spend on a PPC agency for SaaS?
Expect $2k-6k monthly in agency fees, plus ad spend. Most specialized SaaS PPC agencies require $10k minimum total investment ($3k-4k fees + $7k ad spend minimum). Below $10k monthly, work with a freelancer or manage in-house. Agencies typically charge 15-25% of ad spend with a floor of $2k-3k monthly.
What questions should I ask a SaaS PPC agency?
Ask these specific questions: (1) "How do you handle the gap between signup and LTV realization in your reporting?" (2) "What percentage of your current clients are subscription businesses?" (3) "Show me a case study where CPA went up but ROAS improved—why did that happen?" (4) "How do you implement cohort tracking for paid channels?" Good agencies answer specifically with frameworks. Bad agencies give vague answers about "tracking everything."
How long until I see results from a PPC agency?
Realistic timeline: 4-6 months for profitable scaling. Month 1 is foundation (setup, tracking). Months 2-3 are optimization (Smart Bidding if data permits, creative tests). Months 4-6 show whether economics work. Any agency promising specific ROAS in the first 90 days doesn't understand subscription value timing—SaaS ROAS unfolds over months as cohorts mature.