The Numbers Behind HVAC Search — And What They Mean for Your Business

Before citing any number from this page, understand where it comes from. HVAC SEO data originates from three distinct source types, and they don't always agree with each other.

Source Types Used Here

• Industry-wide estimates: Published by platforms like BrightLocal, Moz, and Google's own Search Console documentation. These reflect broad trends across many industries, not HVAC specifically.
• Vertical-specific observations: Patterns observed across HVAC campaigns we've managed. These are directional, not statistically representative of the entire industry.
• Search platform data: Google Keyword Planner, Google Trends, and third-party keyword tools. Volume figures are estimates, not exact counts.

Where we cite a specific percentage or number, we'll note the source category. Where we say "industry benchmarks suggest" or "in our experience," that's deliberate — it means we're drawing on observed patterns rather than a published study you can look up.

Benchmarks vary significantly by market, firm size, and service mix. A two-person HVAC shop in a mid-size Midwest city competes in a fundamentally different search environment than a multi-truck operation in Miami or Phoenix. Use these figures as orientation, not as targets you should hold an SEO agency accountable to by month three.

This page is updated annually. Data points labeled "(2026)" reflect our most recent review cycle. Treat older figures from any source — including ours — with appropriate skepticism, since Google's algorithm and local search behavior shift meaningfully each year.

Understanding search behavior is the foundation of any effective SEO approach. The patterns below are drawn from keyword research tools and Google Trends data, cross-referenced with what we observe in Search Console across HVAC client accounts.

Local Intent Dominates

The vast majority of HVAC searches include a geographic qualifier — either explicitly typed ("AC repair Denver") or implied by the searcher's location when Google serves results. This means your rankings in a city 40 miles away matter almost nothing if you don't serve that area and have no local signals there.

Emergency vs. Planned Service Queries

HVAC searches split roughly into two behavioral categories:

• Emergency queries ("AC not cooling," "furnace stopped working") — high urgency, mobile-heavy, often late evening or weekend
• Planned service queries ("HVAC maintenance plan," "AC tune-up near me") — lower urgency, more comparison shopping, more likely to include reviews in the decision

Emergency searches convert faster but are harder to win organically because the searcher may call the first result they see. Planned service queries give you more time in the consideration window — which is where strong review profiles and helpful content pages pay off.

Seasonal Search Volume Shifts

Google Trends data shows consistent, predictable spikes in HVAC-related queries: cooling searches peak in May through July, heating searches peak in October through December. A well-executed SEO program positions new content and GBP posts 60-90 days before these peaks — not during them. By the time demand surges, your rankings should already be established.

Many HVAC contractors make the mistake of investing in SEO only when the phone slows down in the shoulder season. The contractors winning in peak season started their SEO work in the off-season before it.

Local SEO for HVAC companies is primarily a competition for two placements: the Google Map Pack (the three business listings that appear above organic results) and the top positions in the organic blue-link results below it.

Map Pack Click Share

Research from multiple SEO platforms consistently shows that the Map Pack captures a disproportionate share of total clicks on local service queries. Industry benchmarks suggest Map Pack listings receive a larger combined share of clicks than all organic results combined on queries with strong local intent. The exact split varies by query type, device, and whether ads appear above the Pack.

Key Ranking Factor Categories

BrightLocal's annual Local Search Ranking Factors survey (a widely cited industry study, though self-reported) consistently identifies these categories as most influential for local pack rankings:

• Google Business Profile signals: Category selection, completeness, service area accuracy, photo recency
• Review signals: Volume, recency, average rating, and whether you respond to reviews
• On-page signals: NAP consistency, city/service-area page quality, title tag relevance
• Link signals: Local business citations, industry directories, local press mentions
• Behavioral signals: Click-through rate from search results, direction requests, calls from GBP

In our experience working with HVAC businesses, the firms that move into the Map Pack fastest are usually those that address all five categories simultaneously rather than optimizing one in isolation. A perfect GBP profile with 12 outdated reviews and a slow website rarely breaks into the top three.

Review Benchmarks

Industry data consistently shows that most consumers read reviews before contacting a local service business. For HVAC specifically — where the technician enters someone's home — trust signals matter more than in lower-stakes categories. Many HVAC firms report that reaching a threshold of 40-50+ Google reviews with an average above 4.5 stars correlates with meaningful Map Pack stability, though market competition heavily influences this floor.

These benchmarks are drawn from keyword research tools, industry SEO studies, and patterns we observe across campaigns. They are ranges, not guarantees — treat them as calibration points for setting expectations with your team or an agency.

Time to Measurable Results

Most HVAC websites that start SEO from a low baseline (thin content, few citations, minimal backlinks) see the first meaningful ranking movement in months 3-4. Significant organic lead volume typically begins appearing in months 5-8. This timeline compresses if the website has an existing domain authority base, and extends in highly competitive markets like major metro areas.

Conversion Rate Ranges

Organic search visitors who find an HVAC website through a service-specific query ("AC repair + city") tend to convert at higher rates than general traffic. Industry benchmarks from conversion rate optimization studies suggest local service pages in home services verticals typically convert between 3-8% of visitors to a phone call or form submission, depending on page quality, load speed, and offer clarity. Sites with strong social proof (reviews embedded, certifications visible) trend toward the higher end.

Cost Per Lead Comparison

In our experience managing HVAC campaigns across different channels, organic leads become cost-competitive with PPC leads somewhere in the 6-12 month window, assuming consistent SEO investment. Before that window, PPC typically delivers more volume faster. After it, organic leads often cost less per acquisition — but the math depends heavily on your market's cost-per-click rates, which vary dramatically by city and season.

• PPC leads: Higher upfront cost, immediate volume, stops when budget stops
• Organic leads: Lower long-run cost, 4-8 month ramp, compounds over time
• LSAs (Local Services Ads): Pay-per-lead model, good for new businesses building reviews simultaneously

None of these channels works in complete isolation. The HVAC companies with the most consistent lead flow typically run LSAs and PPC during the SEO ramp period, then shift budget ratios as organic begins to contribute.

Technical performance isn't a niche concern for HVAC companies — it's a direct ranking factor and a conversion factor simultaneously. A page that loads slowly costs you both rankings and calls.

Mobile Search Share

Google's own data and multiple third-party studies confirm that mobile devices account for the majority of local searches. For HVAC specifically, the mobile share trends even higher on emergency and same-day queries — people searching "AC broken" at 9pm are almost certainly on a phone. Industry estimates suggest mobile accounts for 60-70%+ of HVAC-related search volume, though this varies by market demographics.

Page Speed Benchmarks

Google's Core Web Vitals documentation establishes thresholds for what constitutes a "good" user experience. For HVAC websites, the practical targets are:

• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Under 2.5 seconds on mobile
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Under 0.1 (no jarring layout jumps)
• Interaction to Next Paint (INP): Under 200 milliseconds

Many HVAC websites we've audited fall short on LCP specifically — often because of large, unoptimized hero images or slow hosting. Fixing this typically yields modest ranking improvements alongside measurable improvements in time-on-page and form completion rates.

Schema Markup Adoption

LocalBusiness and HVAC-specific schema markup (service types, service areas, review schema) remains underused among small HVAC contractors. This creates an opportunity: structured data helps Google understand your service offerings and can trigger rich result features in search. It won't override weak content or thin GBP signals on its own, but it's a relatively low-effort technical win for sites that already have strong fundamentals.

Link building for local HVAC businesses looks different from link building for national brands. The volume targets are lower, but the relevance and locality requirements are higher.

Citation Consistency

Local citations — mentions of your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) across directories like Yelp, Angi, HomeAdvisor, and industry-specific listings — remain a foundational local SEO signal. Industry studies consistently identify citation consistency as a meaningful local ranking factor. Inconsistent NAP data (old addresses, phone number variations) creates trust confusion for Google's local algorithm.

The practical benchmark: most HVAC businesses operating in competitive markets should have accurate listings across 30-50 major directories and data aggregators before investing heavily in more advanced link building.

Local Link Acquisition

For HVAC companies, the most effective links typically come from:

• Local chamber of commerce memberships (most include a directory link)
• HVAC manufacturer and distributor partner pages
• Local news coverage of community involvement or business milestones
• Home builder and general contractor referral relationships (where a link is natural)
• Trade association memberships (ACCA, PHCC, and similar organizations)

In our experience, HVAC companies that build 8-15 high-relevance local links in their first year of SEO see materially better Map Pack performance than those that focus only on on-page optimization. The link signal tells Google you're a real, established business in the community — not just a website.

Domain Authority as a Relative Metric

Third-party domain authority scores (Moz DA, Ahrefs DR) are useful only as competitive benchmarks, not absolute targets. What matters is whether your authority score is higher than the local competitors ranking above you. In most mid-size markets, HVAC websites with domain authority scores in the 20-35 range can be highly competitive for local queries. In major metros, the floor is often higher.