Most brands reach the same question once their Amazon ads budget passes a few thousand dollars a month: who should run it? Below, the three usual answers are compared at the same budget, using each vendor's published prices.
What Amazon PPC management involves
Amazon PPC management is the ongoing work of running Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands and Sponsored Display campaigns so that ad spend turns into sales at a cost the brand can afford. Launching campaigns takes a few days. Most of the work comes every week after that:
- Reading the search term report and moving the terms that sell into their own exact-match campaigns.
- Adding negative keywords for the terms that spend without selling.
- Adjusting bids by keyword and placement as costs and conversion rates move.
- Watching budgets so the best campaigns do not run out of money by early afternoon.
- Checking the listing when a campaign underperforms, because a weak listing makes every click more expensive.
- Reporting ACoS and TACoS, which show whether the ads pay for themselves and whether the whole account is getting healthier. Our post on ACoS vs TACoS explains the difference.
Whoever runs it needs time every week and access to the listings as well as the bids.
Option 1: manage it in-house
A dedicated specialist on your own team knows your products better than any outsider and can work directly with the people who handle inventory, pricing and creative.
What it costs
The average base salary for a PPC specialist in the United States is $67,713 a year, according to Indeed (updated 23 September 2026). That is about $5,640 a month before benefits, payroll tax and the software most specialists use.
When it fits
- You spend enough on Amazon ads to fill someone's week.
- PPC sits next to the rest of your Amazon work, so the same person can fix a listing that is dragging a campaign down.
Where it falls short
- One person is a single point of failure. Vacations, sick days and resignations pause the account.
- A specialist working alone has nobody to compare notes with across other categories and accounts.
- Hiring takes months, and a junior hire learns on your budget.
Option 2: use PPC software
PPC software connects to your Amazon Ads account and automates the repetitive parts: bid changes, search term harvesting, negative keywords and dayparting.
What it costs
Prices from each vendor's own pricing page, read 7 October 2026:
| Tool | Starting price | Ad spend fee |
|---|---|---|
| Teikametrics Essentials | $179 a month, or $149 a month billed yearly, for up to $10,000 a month in ad spend | Advanced and Enterprise plans add 3% of ad spend over $10,000 |
| Perpetua Essentials | $695 a month for up to $10,000 a month in ad spend | The Growth plan adds a percentage of spend above $10,000 |
| Helium 10 Ads, Diamond plan | $359 a month, or $279 a month billed yearly | 2% of the ad spend managed through Helium 10 Ads |
When it fits
- Accounts with so many keywords that manual bidding cannot keep up.
- A founder or marketing manager who knows the products and can give it a few hours a week to set rules and review results. It also frees up an existing specialist's time.
Where it falls short
Software follows the rules it is given. It will not notice that a listing lost its main image or that a competitor cut prices, and it cannot tell you the campaign structure was wrong from the start. Someone has to set the strategy and read the results.
Option 3: hire an agency
An Amazon PPC agency runs the campaigns for you, usually with a team behind one account manager.
What it costs
PPC Jumpstart's 2026 agency pricing guide (updated 6 October 2026) lists three common pricing models:
| Pricing model | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Percentage of ad spend | 10% to 20% of monthly ad spend, up to 30% at the high end |
| Flat monthly retainer | $1,500 to $5,000 a month for small and mid-size brands; $5,000 to $15,000 or more for enterprise |
| Hybrid | $1,000 to $2,000 a month plus 2% to 5% of ad-attributed revenue |
Many agencies also charge a one-time setup fee for the audit and the campaign rebuild.
When it fits
- You want experience from many accounts and categories from the first month, with cover that does not disappear when one person goes on holiday.
- PPC is tangled up with listings, A+ content and the catalog, and you want one team handling all of it.
Where it falls short
- An agency knows your products less well than your own staff, at least at the start.
- A percentage-of-spend fee pays the agency more when your budget goes up. Ask how the fee is set before you compare prices.
- Amazon DSP campaigns are sometimes run from the agency's own DSP account. If you leave, that history stays with them.
What each option costs at $10,000 a month in ad spend
Here is the same budget run three ways, using the prices above. The figures cover management cost only, not the ad spend itself.
| Option | Monthly cost | Who does the thinking |
|---|---|---|
| In-house specialist | About $5,640 in base salary, plus benefits and tools | The specialist |
| Software only | $179 (Teikametrics, billed monthly) to $695 (Perpetua); Helium 10 Ads at $359 plus 2% of spend comes to about $559 | You, a few hours a week |
| Agency | $1,500 to $5,000 on a flat retainer, or $1,000 to $2,000 at 10% to 20% of spend | The agency, with you approving the plan |
At this budget software costs the least by far, and an agency often costs less than a full-time hire. Software only saves money if someone has the time and skill to run it.
Which option fits your brand
Decide on your ad budget and the hours you can give it.
- Under about $3,000 a month in ad spend: run it yourself with Amazon's own tools or entry-level software. Many agencies set a minimum; PPC Jumpstart, for one, works with brands spending $3,000 a month or more.
- $3,000 to $10,000 a month: software plus a few owner hours a week works if you have the hours. If you do not, an agency on a flat retainer usually costs less than a hire.
- $10,000 to $50,000 a month: an agency or a dedicated specialist pays for itself at this level. Pick the agency if your listings and catalog need work as well; pick the specialist if they are in good shape and you can support one person well.
- Above $50,000 a month, or a large catalog: most brands end up with an in-house owner plus an agency or a software platform. The owner sets direction and the outside team handles the volume.
Change the setup when it shows strain, for example when ACoS has crept up for three months running or search terms are going unharvested.
What to ask an agency before you sign
- Will every campaign, including any DSP work, live in our own account?
- How is the fee set, and does it rise when our ad spend rises?
- Who works on the account each week, and how many other accounts do they run?
- What does the monthly report show? Ask for a sample with the numbers blanked out.
- Do you work on listings and A+ content, or only the ads?
- How long is the contract, and what is the notice period?
Riithink runs Amazon ads, listings and the catalog behind them as one plan, starting with a free audit of the account. See how our Amazon agency works or get in touch.