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SEO for builders
SEO for builders is the work that gets a building firm found on Google Maps and in the free results by people planning a project. “House extension” averaged 5,400 UK searches a month from October 2025 to September 2026, going by Google Keyword Planner. That average hides a big swing. It reached 12,100 in November 2025 and sat at 3,600 from June to September. We take on building firms anywhere in the UK from our base in Hinckley. If you go ahead we work on your Google profile, your project pages and your reviews. Then we show you what’s coming in.
searches for “house extension” across the UK in November 2025.
a month from June to September 2026.
All building firms combined. Google Keyword Planner, October 2025 to September 2026. UK trade search data
What people search for when they plan a build
Most of a builder’s work is planned. Nobody plans a burst pipe, but plenty of people spend a winter planning a loft conversion. So they search for the project first and the builder later. That makes the searches below the ones to build your site around.
How building searches change through the year
Here’s each UK search month by month, for all building firms combined. A yearly average flattens all of this out.
| Month | builders near me | loft conversion | house extension | garage conversion | kitchen extension |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 22,200 | 14,800 | 9,900 | 6,600 | 3,600 |
| Nov 2025 | 18,100 | 14,800 | 12,100 | 6,600 | 2,900 |
| Dec 2025 | 12,100 | 12,100 | 5,400 | 5,400 | 2,400 |
| Jan 2026 | 27,100 | 18,100 | 8,100 | 8,100 | 3,600 |
| Feb 2026 | 22,200 | 14,800 | 5,400 | 6,600 | 2,900 |
| Mar 2026 | 22,200 | 14,800 | 5,400 | 6,600 | 2,900 |
| Apr 2026 | 22,200 | 12,100 | 5,400 | 5,400 | 2,900 |
| May 2026 | 18,100 | 12,100 | 4,400 | 5,400 | 2,400 |
| Jun 2026 | 18,100 | 9,900 | 3,600 | 4,400 | 1,900 |
| Jul 2026 | 18,100 | 9,900 | 3,600 | 4,400 | 1,600 |
| Aug 2026 | 18,100 | 9,900 | 3,600 | 5,400 | 1,900 |
| Sep 2026 | 18,100 | 9,900 | 3,600 | 5,400 | 1,900 |
| Average | 18,100 | 12,100 | 5,400 | 5,400 | 2,400 |
Three things stand out. All four project searches hit their lowest point between June and September. “Builders near me”, “loft conversion” and “garage conversion” all peaked in January 2026. And all five searches dropped in December, then jumped.
In our view that’s people planning over the darker months for work they want done later. It’s one year of rounded figures, so treat it as a pattern and not a rule. If it holds, the time to have your project pages up is before January, not once searches have already peaked. “House extension” peaked even earlier, in November 2025.
Loft conversions
“Loft conversion” is the biggest project search in the table. Dormer, hip to gable and rooflight conversions are different jobs at different budgets. If you do all three, your loft page should explain which suits which house.
House extensions
“House extension” moves more than any other search here, by more than three times from low to high. Rear, side return, wrap around and two storey extensions all belong on the page, along with single storey work.
Garage conversions
“Garage conversion” averaged the same as “house extension” but never fell below 4,400. In our view it’s usually a smaller job, so it suits firms that want steadier work between big builds.
Why a building project takes longer to win
A plumber’s customer has water coming through the ceiling and rings the first number that answers. Your customer is about to let someone take the back off their house. In our view a project like that means more looking around before anyone picks up the phone. Past work gets compared and planning permission comes up, and GOV.UK sends people to their local planning authority for that.
So a number at the top of the page isn’t enough on its own. Your site has to answer the questions people ask at each stage, from “is this even possible on my house?” to “who’s actually going to be on site?”.
In our view the first search is rarely the one that brings the call. Someone might read your extension page in November and come back in January, looking for you by name. Your Google profile, reviews and project photos need to back up what they read the first time.
What SEO for builders involves
This is our local SEO for trades, built around planned projects and kept up every month.
Your Google Business Profile
Google says “Local results are mainly based on relevance, distance, and popularity.” We set your profile up around that. Your project types go in as services, your towns are set as your service area and your finished work goes in as photos. Here’s how to set up a Google Business Profile for your trade.
A page for each type of project
Each project you want more of gets its own page. Each one covers what the job involves, the choices people have, how you handle the paperwork and photos of that kind of work. If you don’t want garage conversions, we don’t write a page for them.
Pages for the towns you cover
Builders work a patch, so town pages have to earn their place. “Builders coventry” and “builders leicester” each average 590 searches a month. “Builders hinckley” gets 110 and “builders warwick” 90. So a town page only goes up where there’s work worth having and something real to say, such as a job you’ve done nearby.
Reviews and project photos
Google says “More reviews and positive ratings can help your business’s local ranking.” In our view each review counts for more when a firm usually finishes fewer, bigger jobs a year. We help you ask at the end of every project. Here’s how to get Google reviews as a tradesman.
Before, during and after photos show how you work, not just how it ended. One line on the job and the town is enough. We add them to the project page and your Google profile. Your own photos only, never stock.
Tracking what comes in
We track taps on your call button and form enquiries, so you can see what’s coming in each month. Building work has a long gap between the enquiry and the job. So our monthly call is where you tell us which enquiries were worth having.
Our work for builders. We built the website for Thomas Ford Construction, a building firm in Rugby. We look after their SEO too.
Domestic, commercial and insurance work
These are three different customers, and one page can’t speak to all of them. If you do more than one, each gets its own place on your site.
Domestic work
A homeowner is usually doing this once. In our view they want to know what it’ll be like and who they’ll deal with. These pages need plain words and lots of photos.
Commercial work
A facilities manager or a business owner buys differently. In our view they care about keeping the business open during the work, your insurance and your health and safety paperwork. So commercial pages show similar jobs you’ve done, by type of building. One solid commercial page beats scattering the work through your domestic pages.
Insurance work
After a fire, flood or storm the homeowner may search, but the insurer and the loss adjuster are often involved too. So this page has to work for two readers. It should explain how you work with adjusters and handle the paperwork. Google is only part of this one, and your relationships with adjusters matter too.
Building regulations and trade bodies on your site
Homeowners have questions about the rules before they ring. GOV.UK says you “must check if you need approval” for building regulations, and it warns that the owner may need certificates of compliance when they sell. It also says “You must tell your neighbours” about work on or near a shared boundary in England and Wales.
Your project pages should carry a short line on how you handle each of these, so the customer has one less worry. It only goes on if it’s true of how you work. The same goes for trade bodies. FMB membership or TrustMark registration goes on your site only if you hold it.
SEO for construction companies
SEO for construction companies follows the same groundwork, for a different buyer. In our view a larger firm is often chosen by a developer, a business or a public body, and a lot of that work comes through tenders and relationships. So the pages lead with sectors, past projects and capacity, and SEO backs those routes up rather than replacing them. We’ll tell you honestly in your forecast if that’s your situation.
How we'd start
First we look at what’s searched for in your towns, who’s being found for it now and where your Google profile and website stand. Then we ask which projects you want more of and which you’d rather not do. That’s your free forecast. If you go ahead we put the missing pieces in place in the order that matters most and keep them going every month. If your website is the weak spot we’ll tell you straight. Here’s more on websites for trades.
For the wider picture, including ads, see marketing for builders.
What you get each month
- A monthly report showing what’s coming in. Here’s what an SEO report should show a trade business.
- A monthly call to go through it with you.
- Phone us any time. You don’t have to wait for the call.
Questions builders ask us
How much does SEO for builders cost?
Going by providers’ own published prices, local SEO for a UK trade business mostly costs between about £350 and £1,000 a month. That’s a guide rather than a quote. It depends on the projects you want, how many towns you cover and how many other builders want the same work. We give you a straight figure after your free forecast, on a rolling monthly contract. Here’s how much local SEO costs for a trade business.
Is SEO worth it for a small building firm?
Yes, in our view, as long as the work it brings in is worth more than it costs. A small firm only needs a few of the right jobs a year, so it pays to be choosy about which projects and towns you go after. Your free forecast shows what’s searched for in your area, so you can judge it for yourself.
I'm booked up for months. Do I need SEO?
No, not to fill this month, because planned work is booked ahead. In our view SEO is for the gap you can see coming in six or twelve months. It’s also easier to be choosy about jobs when you’re not relying on one source of work.
How long does SEO take to work for a builder?
Nobody can honestly give you a date. It depends on how much competition there is in your towns and where you’re starting from. SEO is the long term job. If you need enquiries sooner, Google Ads for tradesmen is the quicker route and we’ll tell you if it’s right for you. There’s more in our guide to SEO vs Google Ads for trades.
Can you get me to the top of Google?
No. Nobody can honestly promise that, because Google decides who it shows. Google’s own advice is that “No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.” What we do is get the groundwork right, keep it going and show you what’s coming in.
Can I do SEO for my building firm myself?
Yes, you can do a lot of SEO for your building firm yourself. Your Google profile, photos and review requests are all things you can do between jobs. Start with our local SEO checklist for a trade business.
Do I own everything you create?
Yes. Your website, your domain, your Google profile and your accounts are all in your name. Small website changes like an extra area page or new photos are included. You won’t get a surprise invoice for a five minute job.
See what building work is searched for in your towns
Before you spend a penny, do one thing today. Search “house extension” and your town on your phone and see who comes up. If it isn’t you, someone else is in front of that customer while they’re still deciding.
Then tell us your trade and the towns you cover. Your free forecast shows how many people search for your work in your towns and who’s already getting found for it. Then you get an honest plan, whether you do it yourself or get us to. It’s with you within 3 working days.
Other trades: SEO for plumbers · SEO for electricians · SEO for roofers