On this page
- 01What are Meta ads and Google Ads?
- 02What it costs: the numbers side by side
- 03Worked example: 1,000 euros a month
- 04Choose Meta ads when, choose Google Ads when
- 05What a good ad needs on each platform
- 06Measuring what a customer costs
- 07What is different in the EU
- 08TikTok and LinkedIn
- 09A one-month test, step by step
Meta ads or Google Ads? Choose Google Ads when people already search for your service: a plumber, an accountant, a product with a clear name. You pay per click, in a Western European market such as Belgium usually between 0.30 and 8 euros. Choose Meta ads when people do not know they need you yet, or when your offer sells on visuals: a holiday home, a renovation, a restaurant. A thousand impressions there usually cost 4 to 10 dollars across Western Europe, a click 0.35 to 0.77 dollars as a monthly median per country. If you sell something that is both searched for and seen, test both with a small budget and measure what an enquiry costs. How TikTok compares, with its minimum budget, is in TikTok ads cost.
How we handle each: Google Ads and Facebook and Instagram ads. Prices differ by country; the table below uses Belgium, where we run campaigns, as the example market.
What are Meta ads and Google Ads?
Meta ads run on Facebook and Instagram, and on Meta's other placements. You choose whom to reach by region, age and interests, and your ad appears between those people's posts, stories and reels. You set a budget and pay for impressions or results. What that costs: how much do Facebook ads cost.
Google Ads are ads in Google, mainly in search results. You choose search terms, and whoever searches for them sees your ad above or among the results. You usually pay per click. What that costs: how much does Google Ads cost.
Searching against scrolling
Google Ads
Someone searches, right now
- 1Your ad
- 2The page that matches
- An enquiry
Strong at enquiries from people who already want to buy.
Meta ads
Someone scrolls, and sees your image
Ran as an ad, December 2025 to January 2026
Strong at awareness and at offers that sell on visuals.
Meta ads and Google Ads side by side
- Where your ad appears
- Meta adsOn Facebook and Instagram, between posts, stories and reels.
- Google AdsIn Google's search results, and optionally on YouTube and other sites.
- Whom you reach
- Meta adsPeople by region, age and interests.
- Google AdsPeople searching right now for what you offer.
- Format
- Meta adsImages and video: photos, carousels, reels.
- Google AdsMostly text, with your site as the destination.
- Strong at
- Meta adsAwareness, visual products, creating new demand.
- Google AdsEnquiries from people already ready to buy.
- Cost
- Meta adsYou set your budget and pay for impressions or results.
- Google AdsYou set your budget and usually pay per click.
- Measuring
- Meta adsWith the Meta pixel, in the EU only after the visitor consents.
- Google AdsWith conversions in Google Ads, also after consent.
Google Ads catches demand that already exists, Meta ads create demand that does not exist yet. Use both and Meta introduces people, Google finds them when they are ready to buy.
What it costs: the numbers side by side
| Measure | Meta ads in Belgium | Google Ads in Belgium |
|---|---|---|
| Per 1,000 impressions | 4 to 10 dollars (monthly median) | Not the usual measure for search ads |
| Per click | 0.32 to 0.86 dollars | 0.30 to 8 euros, depending on sector |
| Per lead | In most months 46 to 132 dollars, with outliers | Depends on your conversion rate: at 4 percent and 1.50 euros a click about 38 euros |
| Suggested start | 15 to 25 euros a day | At least 1,000 euros a month for a local firm |
The Meta figures are monthly medians of Belgian campaigns. They are a direction, not a promise: a Meta click in the UK or Germany costs about a third more than in Belgium, in France and Spain less, and your own cost depends on sector, visuals and landing page. Full figures: how much do Facebook ads cost and how much does Google Ads cost.
A click on Meta is often cheaper than one on Google. But whoever clicks on Google was searching for your service; whoever clicks on Meta was scrolling. So compare on the cost of an enquiry or a customer, not of a click.
Worked example: 1,000 euros a month
A renovation company tests one month with 1,000 euros per channel. Assumptions: on Google 1.50 euros a click and 4 percent enquiries; on Meta 0.55 euros a click (around the middle of the Belgian range) and 1 percent enquiries, because the visitor is less far along in their decision. One in three Google enquiries becomes a customer, one in five from Meta.
| 1,000 euro budget | Google Ads | Meta ads |
|---|---|---|
| Clicks | 667 | 1,818 |
| Enquiries | 27 | 18 |
| Cost per enquiry | about 37 euros | about 56 euros |
| Customers | 9 | 4 |
| Cost per customer | about 111 euros | 250 euros |
| On top | At a click-through rate of 0.75 to 2 percent, around 90,000 to 240,000 impressions in your area: awareness that later shows up in Google |
In this example Google wins on cost per customer. Meta delivers reach you see later when people search your name. The balance flips for an offer nobody searches for but people want to see, such as a new holiday home or a product without a known name yet. Whether a campaign pays, work out with the ROAS calculator.
Choose Meta ads when, choose Google Ads when
| Your offer | Choose | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A service people search for when they have a problem (plumber, accountant, lawyer) | Google Ads | You are there at the moment of the question |
| An offer that sells on visuals (holiday home, interiors, food) | Meta ads | Visuals create the demand |
| Something new nobody searches for yet | Meta ads | There is no search term to bid on yet |
| Local awareness for an opening or event | Meta ads | Reach within a radius around your business |
| Reaching your site's visitors again | Both | Meta and Google can both show ads to past visitors, with consent |
| B2B with a clear job title | LinkedIn Ads or Google Ads | Meta is weaker for business audiences |
Torn between advertising and SEO instead? Read SEO or Google Ads.
What a good ad needs on each platform
On Google the ad that best matches what someone typed wins: the search term in the headline, a concrete benefit, a price indication or a region, and a page that gives exactly that answer. You compete in text, within seconds.
On Meta the image that makes someone stop scrolling wins: a real photo or video of your work, a strong first second, subtitles because many people watch without sound, and a format that fills the screen (vertical for reels and stories). A stock photo with a slogan disappears between friends' posts. What a shoot day costs to make that footage: corporate video cost.
Measuring what a customer costs
Whichever channel you choose: measure enquiries, not only clicks. A click says nothing; a filled-in form or a call does. At Park & Wash the Meta pixel measures contacts and leads, and only after the visitor consents. That shows which ad brings enquiries without tracking visitors without their agreement. Since March 2026 Meta also counts only real link clicks as click-through; see Meta ads click attribution change.
Let your ads land on a page that matches the ad. An ad about bathroom renovation that lands on your homepage wastes part of your budget. A dedicated landing page per offer often pays for itself quickly.
What is different in the EU
- ConsentPixels and tags load only after the visitor consents; see do I need a cookie banner. Without consent you see fewer conversions, which you must factor into your numbers.
- Personalised ads on MetaAfter a commitment under the Digital Markets Act, Meta gives EU users more choice about personalised ads. That can limit interest-based reach.
- Political and social issue adsended on Meta in the EU on 6 October 2025.
TikTok and LinkedIn
- TikTok adsuse short vertical video, like Instagram reels. With good videos and an audience on TikTok, it is worth a test next to Meta.
- LinkedIn adsreach people by job title, sector and company. That makes them interesting for B2B, at a higher price per click than Meta.
A one-month test, step by step
- Type your service into Google: do you see competitors' ads? Then people search for it.
- Check whether you have your own visuals: photos or video of your work, premises or team. Without them, start with Google.
- Set up tracking that counts enquiries, with consent.
- Test one month with a small budget per channel and compare the cost per enquiry.
Questions about Meta ads and Google Ads
Which is better, Meta ads or Google Ads?
Google Ads is better when people already search for your service. Meta ads are better for awareness and for selling offers with strong visuals. Many companies combine them: Meta for reach, Google for the enquiry.
How much does a Facebook or Instagram ad cost?
You set the budget yourself. Most small businesses start at 15 to 25 euros a day, enough to see after a week which ad brings enquiries. What a click and a thousand impressions cost is in the table above.
How much does a Google Ads click cost?
It depends mostly on your sector: a lawyer or an installer pays more per click than a hair salon. You only pay when someone clicks, and you set your own daily budget.
Can I advertise with a small budget?
Yes. On both platforms you choose your budget. Start small, measure enquiries and scale what works. Let a campaign run at least a week before judging, so the system can learn.
TikTok ads or Meta ads?
Both work with short video. Meta reaches a broad audience through Facebook and Instagram. TikTok is worth a test if your audience is there and you have strong video.
Do I need consent for the Meta pixel in the EU?
Yes: the pixel sets cookies and processes data for advertising, so you load it only after consent. Without consent you measure less, which you have to account for in your figures.