B2B Comparison · 2026
For B2B SaaS, consultancy and premium services in 2026: where to start, when to layer the other in, and when to run both. Notes from someone who's run lead gen with ACVs from £4k to £120k and CPLs from £35 to £400 — no inflated numbers, no platform religion.
TL;DR
Google Ads catches people who are already searching for a solution (intent). LinkedIn Ads catches the right ICP before they start searching (demographics + behaviour).
If your ACV is below £5k, Google dominates. If you sell premium B2B with long cycles to specific decision-makers, LinkedIn becomes mandatory — but rarely on its own.
Side-by-side
| Criterion | Google Ads | LinkedIn Ads |
|---|---|---|
| Targeting model | Intent (keywords + audiences) | Demographic (job title, company, industry) |
| Average CPC UK/IE B2B | £1.80–£7.50 | £5.50–£17 |
| Average CPL UK/IE B2B | £35–£140 | £110–£320 |
| Minimum viable budget | £1,500/month | £3,000/month |
| Ideal ACV | Any (£500 to £100k+) | ≥£5k (ideally £15k+) |
| Time to useful data | 1–3 weeks Search | 4–8 weeks (low volume) |
| Lead Gen Forms | N/A (always landing page) | Yes — CPL -30/50% but variable quality |
| ABM / Matched Audiences | Customer Match (limited) | Native account lists, strong ICP fit |
| Tracking 2026 | GA4 + Enhanced Conversions + GTM Server | Insight Tag + server-side CAPI |
| Multi-touch attribution | Mature data-driven model | Opaque — long cycles, multi-stakeholder |
| Creative formats | Text + image + video (YouTube) | Single image, video, carousel, Document, Thought Leader |
| Optimal frequency | N/A (intent-based) | 5–8 touches per account in 30 days |
| Reverse-IP / account engagement | Not native | Yes — Company Reporting |
| Creative fatigue | Low | Medium–high in tight ABM |
UK/IE 2026 ranges — see free audit for a written diagnosis of your account.
When to use each
Google Search Ads (40-50% of budget) for immediate demand capture + LinkedIn Ads (35-45%) for ICP outside of search + Meta retargeting (10-15%) to warm up Search/LinkedIn visitors. At ACV £20k+ with a 90+ day cycle, splits tilt closer to 30% Google / 55% LinkedIn / 15% Meta. With low search volume (new category) it inverts: 60% LinkedIn / 25% Meta / 15% Google brand defence.
FAQ
If there's already search volume for the problem you solve (someone types 'crm for construction' on Google), start with Google Search Ads. Capturing existing demand is cheaper and more predictable (typical UK/IE B2B CPL £35–£140). LinkedIn comes next to open accounts that aren't searching yet but match the ICP — typical CPL £110–£320, but much higher quality leads when ACV is £5k+.
Google Search Ads for UK/IE B2B run £1.80–£7.50 per click in common verticals (SaaS, consultancy, services). LinkedIn Ads land at £5.50–£17 CPC in UK/IE — almost always 2-4x more expensive than Google. What justifies it is demographic precision: you filter by job title (CFO, Head of Engineering), company size, industry, seniority. On Google you pay for intent but you don't control who clicks.
Practical minimum is ≥£3,000/month for LinkedIn Ads to function as a serious channel. Below that, the learning window never closes — CPCs climb, frequency drops, match quality degrades. Google Ads B2B only needs ≥£1,500/month for Search to gather data. Rule I use: LinkedIn needs at least 2x the budget of an equivalent Google Search test to deliver defensible results.
On LinkedIn, Lead Gen Forms (native pre-fill) typically cut CPL 30-50% vs an external landing page, BUT lead quality drops because the user never read your offer in detail. Practical rule: use Lead Gen Forms for top-funnel (whitepapers, webinars, quick demos). Send to landing page when the offer needs education (cold outbound to a CFO needs case studies before submit).
In UK/IE the B2B universe is large enough that ABM via Matched Audiences with 500-2,000 account lists works very well — frequency climbs and after 5-7 touches recognition lands. For Ireland-only campaigns the pool is tighter, so lean on tighter ICP definitions (company size + industry + tech-stack). In any case, LinkedIn ABM is practically the standard for any B2B SaaS with ACV >£10k.
LinkedIn Conversions API (CAPI) is mandatory in 2026 — server-to-server feed for LinkedIn to optimise without cookies. Even so, multi-touch attribution in B2B is always frustrating: 60-180 day cycles, multiple decision-makers. What works: combine LinkedIn Insight Tag + CAPI + disciplined UTM tagging + reverse-IP (Leadfeeder/Albacross) to see accounts that engaged but didn't convert directly.
Yes, and they're clearly underused in 2026 by UK/IE B2B brands. Thought Leader Ads (promoting an organic post from a person rather than the company page) get 2-3x higher CTR than standard Sponsored Content, similar cost, and they build the founder's personal brand. For PLG SaaS or consultancy where the person is the product, this is mandatory.
If you sell B2C, ACV under £3-5k, or your ICP doesn't actively use LinkedIn (manual workers, local retail, hospitality). Also skip if your budget is <£2k/month — there's no room to learn. And don't try to 'port' Meta creative to LinkedIn: tone, format and expectations are different. LinkedIn doesn't reward impulse creative — it rewards proof, authority and specificity.
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