Meta Ads vs Google Ads: Which Should Your Small Business Start With?

This is the question we get most from new clients, and the honest answer is: it depends on whether people already know they want what you sell.

Google Ads works best for what's called "high intent" searches — someone typing "AC repair near me" is ready to book, today. If your business solves a problem people actively search for, Google Ads usually gets you faster, cheaper conversions.

Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram) work differently — you're interrupting someone's scroll to introduce them to something they weren't actively searching for. This works well for visual products, food businesses, fashion, and anything where seeing it is what creates the desire to buy.

For most local service businesses, we recommend starting with Google Ads for the immediate-intent searches, then layering in Meta Ads once you have a retargeting audience built from website visitors. Running both from day one with a small budget usually means neither gets enough data to perform well.