What percentage of revenue should go to marketing?

Six to ten percent for most established small businesses. Ten to fifteen percent for new businesses or aggressive growth targets. Below five percent usually means you are maintaining, not growing.

Should a new business spend more on marketing?

Yes. You are buying awareness that an established business already has. Front-load the spend, especially before and during opening.

Guide6 min readMoney & ROI

How Much Should a Small Business Spend on Marketing?

Six to ten percent of revenue for most, ten to fifteen if you are new or pushing growth.

By Lance Wagner · Published August 21, 2026 · Last Updated August 21, 2026

How much should a small business spend on marketing?

Most small businesses should budget 6 to 10 percent of revenue for marketing. Newer businesses and aggressive growth goals push toward 10 to 15 percent. Established businesses with strong word of mouth can sit lower. Margin, maturity, geography and goal move the number more than industry does.

Most small businesses should put 6 to 10 percent of revenue into marketing. Newer businesses and aggressive growth goals run 10 to 15 percent, and established businesses with steady word of mouth can sit under 6.

Margin, maturity, geography and goal move that number more than industry does. The steps below get you to a budget you can explain and hold.

1Start with a percentage of revenue

Six to ten percent is a common starting range for small businesses, and the final number should follow the business model.

Use revenue you booked last year, not the number you hope for.

2Adjust for how established you are

A business before opening has to buy awareness it has not had time to earn. Budget higher, sometimes much higher, for the first two years.

A 20 year old business with a waiting list can spend less and put the difference into retention.

3Adjust for your goal

Holding steady costs less than growing 25 percent. Growth has to be bought, either with money or with time.

Write the growth number down first. The budget follows from it.

4Adjust for margin

A 70 percent margin business can outbid a 25 percent margin business for the same customer all day long.

Low margin means efficiency matters more than volume. Spend narrower and closer to the sale.

5Adjust for geography and locations

One neighborhood is cheap to cover. Adding metros increases the work unevenly because each market has its own competition, pages and media costs.

Each additional location needs its own local presence, even if the media is shared.

6Separate working media from everything else

Working media is money that buys attention. Everything else is production, tools, fees and websites.

Know the split. Plenty of businesses think they spend a lot on marketing when almost none of it reaches a customer.

7Decide how the total gets allocated

A reasonable starting split for an established local business: about a third to paid acquisition, a sixth to local search, and the rest across content, website, retention and brand.

Leave five percent for experiments. That's where next year's best channel comes from.

8Sanity check against acquisition cost

The percentage tells you what you can spend. Your acquisition cost tells you what happens when you do.

If the budget divided by your target new customers gives you an acquisition cost above a third of lifetime value, the plan doesn't work yet.

9Hold it for a quarter

The most common budget mistake isn't the amount. It's turning spend on and off every month.

Set the number, run it for 90 days, then judge it.

10Review quarterly, not weekly

Weekly reviews create panic decisions. Quarterly reviews create compounding.

Watch the weekly numbers. Change the budget quarterly.

The short version

6 to 10 percent of revenue is the working range for most small businesses.
New businesses and aggressive goals justify 10 to 15 percent.
Know how much of the budget is working media.
Consistency beats size. Stopping and restarting is the most expensive habit there is.
Set the number once a year. Spend it monthly.

Questions people ask

What percentage of revenue should go to marketing?: Six to ten percent for most established small businesses. Ten to fifteen percent for new businesses or aggressive growth targets. Below five percent usually means you are maintaining, not growing.
Should a new business spend more on marketing?: Yes. You are buying awareness that an established business already has. Front-load the spend, especially before and during opening.

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Looking for industry and city specific advice? That lives in Two Cents. Want a hand with any of this? Talk to Mettle.