What a client costs
Acquisition cost ranges from nothing to $600 a client depending on the channel. The trap is that the published figures measure different things: some are per lead, some per booked call, some per client. A $30 lead and a $200 client are not comparable numbers.
Read the unit, not the number
Meta Ads look cheapest in this table at $30 to $80. That is per lead. Google Ads look expensive at $65 to $150, but that is per booked discovery call, which is several steps further down the funnel. Paid directories at $200 to $600 are per client, the furthest down of all.
Converted to the same unit, the ordering changes completely. A $30 lead that books at 10% and closes at 16% costs roughly $1,875 per client. A $600 directory client costs $600.
This is the single most common error in coaching marketing advice, and it is why we show the unit next to every figure rather than a tidy league table.
Close rate changes the arithmetic more than cost does
- ReferralsLowest cost of any channel. Paid in time rather than money.Cost$0–$50Close rate40–70%
- Google and Microsoft AdsPer booked discovery call, not per client.Cost$65–$150Close rate14–18%
- Podcast appearancesTime and production cost per appearance.Cost$100–$300Close rate30–50%
- Cold emailCheap to send, expensive in reputation and time.Cost$50–$300Close rate0–1%
What coaches actually spend
- $0 to $100ProfileEarly stage, organic and referral dependent
- $100 to $500ProfileGrowing, limited paid acquisition
- $500 to $2,000ProfileEstablished, consistent paid channels
- $2,000 to $5,000ProfileScaling with proven funnels
- $5,000+ProfileHigh volume or high ticket with strong return
Estimated industry average for full-time coaches: $300–$800 a month. Est · Estimate