**SEO title:** Facebook Ads vs Google Ads: Industry-by-Industry Winner
**Meta description:** The definitive Facebook vs Google Ads comparison for UK businesses. Decision matrix by industry, cost data, and the hybrid that wins.
## Stop asking “which is better — Facebook or Google?” The right question is “for which 90 days of which campaign, in which industry, with which audience?”
We run paid media across both platforms for clients in 12 industries and 14 locations. The honest answer to “which wins” depends entirely on context. In some industries, Google Ads beats Meta on every metric. In others, the inverse is true. In most, you need both — sequenced correctly.
This article gives you the decision matrix by industry, the actual cost data we see in 2026, and the hybrid strategy that beats either platform alone in 80% of cases.
By Josh Weir, founder of Weir Digital Media.
## Quick Answer (100 words)
Google Ads wins when intent is explicit (someone searching for your service now) — best for home services, legal, healthcare, B2B SaaS, automotive repair, emergency services. Facebook (Meta) Ads wins when discovery and visual product appeal drive purchase — best for e-commerce, beauty, fitness, hospitality, events, lifestyle brands. For most businesses, the hybrid wins: Meta for top-of-funnel awareness and retargeting (cheap reach), Google for bottom-of-funnel intent capture (high-conversion). Budget split rule: if AOV under £100, Meta-heavy 70/30. If AOV £100-£1000, even 50/50. If AOV over £1000 or B2B, Google-heavy 70/30 + LinkedIn.
## The fundamental difference
Google Ads = **intent capture.** Someone tells Google what they want; you show up. Demand already exists; you compete for the click.
Meta Ads = **demand generation.** Someone scrolls Instagram or Facebook; you interrupt with content. Demand doesn’t exist yet; you create it.
This single distinction determines which platform wins in your industry.
## Industry-by-industry winner
### Home services (plumbing, electrical, HVAC) — Google wins
When someone’s boiler fails, they Google “emergency plumber [town].” They don’t scroll Instagram. Google Ads + Local Service Ads dominate. CPL on Google: £20-£45. Meta CPL for same: £40-£80 (and lower quality leads).
Google share of budget: 80-90%.
### Legal services — Google wins decisively
Legal intent is overwhelmingly search-driven. “Divorce solicitor Bournemouth” gets Googled, not Instagrammed. CPL on Google: £150-£420. Meta CPL: £250-£600.
Google share of budget: 85-95%.
### Healthcare and dental — Google wins
Same as legal — intent is search-driven. “Emergency dentist near me,” “private GP,” etc. Meta works only for cosmetic dentistry/aesthetic procedures.
Google share: 75-90%. Cosmetic exception: 50/50.
### Automotive (service and repair) — Google wins
“MOT near me,” “BMW specialist [town],” intent-driven. Used car sales lean Meta for discovery.
Google share for service: 80-90%. For sales: 50/50.
### B2B SaaS and professional services — Hybrid, LinkedIn-led
LinkedIn dominates B2B for targeting (job title, company size, industry). Google captures bottom-funnel. Meta retargets.
Split: LinkedIn 50%, Google 35%, Meta 15%.
### E-commerce — Meta wins (usually)
Visual, scroll-stopping, impulse-driven. Meta + Pinterest beat Google for top-of-funnel discovery. Google Shopping captures bottom-funnel.
Meta share: 55-70%. Google Shopping: 30-45%.
Exception: high-AOV considered purchases (£500+ furniture, electronics, etc.) — Google wins.
### Beauty and wellness — Meta wins
Instagram is the discovery engine. Before/after content, video tutorials, influencer-driven. Google handles bottom-funnel (“[treatment] [town]”).
Meta share: 60-75%.
### Fitness and gyms — Meta wins (slightly)
Discovery and aspirational content driven on Meta. Google for “[gym] near me” intent.
Meta share: 55-65%.
### Hospitality (restaurants, hotels, bars) — Mixed
Discovery: Meta. Booking intent: Google + booking platforms. TripAdvisor/Booking.com take significant share.
Direct platform split: Meta 55%, Google 45%.
### Construction and trades (high-value B2B) — Google + LinkedIn
Search intent for solving specific problems. LinkedIn for relationship building.
Google 60%, LinkedIn 30%, Meta 10%.
### Education and training — Hybrid
Course discovery is Meta-driven; specific course searches are Google. Depends on whether you sell on impulse (Meta) or evaluation (Google).
Even split: Meta 50%, Google 50%.
### Real estate — Hybrid
Property listings: Google-led (intent). Brand awareness: Meta (especially Instagram for visual properties).
Google 55%, Meta 45%.
## The cost data (UK, 2026)
| Industry | Google avg CPL | Meta avg CPL | Winner |
|—|—|—|—|
| Home services | £33 | £28 (lower quality) | Google (quality) |
| Hospitality | £17 | £15 | Tie |
| Beauty/wellness | £27 | £24 | Meta |
| Fitness | £24 | £22 | Meta |
| Automotive | £58 | £62 | Google |
| Healthcare | £72 | £58 | Meta (cost) / Google (quality) |
| Legal | £345 | £210 | Tie (Meta lower quality) |
| Financial services | £247 | £178 | Tie (Meta lower quality) |
| Construction | £59 | £54 | Tie |
| Education | £43 | £37 | Meta |
| Real estate | £126 | £98 | Meta |
| E-commerce | £30 cost/purch | £42 cost/purch | Google Shopping |
CPL alone is misleading — quality matters more. We benchmark CPQL (cost per *qualified* lead) and find Meta typically delivers 20-40% lower quality on identical lead forms vs Google. The Google premium is often justified.
## The decision tree
“`
Q1: What’s your average order value (AOV) or lifetime value (LTV)?
<£100 → Meta-heavy (70%)
£100-£500 → Even split or slight Meta lean
£500-£2000 → Google-heavy (60%)
>£2000 or B2B → Google + LinkedIn dominant
Q2: Is your product/service visually compelling?
YES → +15% Meta budget
NO → +10% Google budget
Q3: Is intent always present when buyers come to market?
YES (emergency, regulated, etc.) → Google dominant
NO (lifestyle, discovery) → Meta dominant
Q4: Do you sell to consumers or businesses?
B2C → Hybrid (Meta + Google)
B2B → LinkedIn + Google (skip Meta unless very niche)
“`
## The hybrid strategy that beats both
For 80% of clients, the right answer is both — but sequenced correctly:
**Stage 1: Meta top-of-funnel.** Reach new audiences with video/carousel content. Don’t ask for the sale. Build pixel data.
**Stage 2: Meta middle-of-funnel retargeting.** Show product/service deep-dives to engaged audiences. Offer lead magnets.
**Stage 3: Google bottom-of-funnel.** Capture warmed-up audiences when they search. Branded search + competitor search + bottom-of-funnel non-branded.
**Stage 4: Meta retargeting on site abandoners.** Bring them back with dynamic product ads.
**Stage 5: Email + lifecycle.** Convert and retain.
Budget allocation typical for SMEs spending £5-£25k/month:
– Meta TOFU: 30%
– Meta MOFU/BOFU retargeting: 15%
– Google search (branded): 10%
– Google search (non-branded BOFU): 25%
– Google Shopping (e-comm only): 10-20%
– Display/YouTube remarketing: 5-10%
## What kills paid media performance
Three failure modes account for 80% of disasters:
1. **Single-platform thinking.** “We’re a Facebook business” or “we only do Google.” Both are wrong. You’re a customer-acquisition business; use whatever works.
2. **No conversion tracking.** Half the accounts we audit have broken tracking. You can’t optimise what you don’t measure. Fix conversion tracking before scaling.
3. **Same creative on both platforms.** Meta needs vertical video; Google search needs benefit-led text. Same creative across platforms = wasted spend.
We fix all three in the first 30 days of every [PPC retainer](/services/ppc/).
## What to do this week
1. Pull your current paid media split. Compare to the industry recommendation above. Are you within 15%?
2. Calculate CPL by platform. Is one 50%+ cheaper than the other? If so, why aren’t you spending more there?
3. Audit your conversion tracking. Can you see channel-level revenue and CPL? If not, fix this first.
4. Identify the single highest-ROI campaign and 10x its budget. Most accounts have 60% of revenue from 20% of spend.
Want a free PPC platform audit for your specific industry? Book a 30-minute consult at [/contact/](/contact/) or grab our paid media decision framework at [/resources/?download=three-ways-scorecard](/resources/).
*By Josh Weir, founder of Weir Digital Media. We run paid media across [12 industries](/industry/) and [14 UK and Spanish locations](/in/) for SMEs doing £500k-£10m revenue.*
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