+1 570 955 3538Marketing Hire vs. Agency Calculator for NEPA Businesses
A marketing hire in Lackawanna County costs about $60,735 a year with the default numbers below: the county's average weekly wage for advertising agencies, a 25% load for taxes and benefits, and $300 a month for tools. An agency at $1,490 a month costs $17,880. Change any number and the page recalculates. The wage comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and every assumption is yours to edit.
Want a quote to compare? Ask us.
How the math works
Hire per year = weekly wage × 52 × (1 + load ÷ 100) + tools × 12. Agency per year = monthly retainer × 12.
The wage table below is the BLS average for advertising agencies in the county, second quarter of 2025. Samples are small, so treat each line as a guide.
| County | Weekly wage | Firms | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lackawanna | $879 | 10 | 43 |
| Luzerne | $1,065 | 9 | 24 |
| Carbon | $1,229 | 5 | 38 |
| Lehigh | $1,383 | 22 | 115 |
| Northampton | $1,436 | 17 | 64 |
Monroe County has no row because the BLS withheld its number.
What the calculator leaves out
Recruiting time. Finding and training a marketer takes weeks. The calculator does not price your time.
Coverage. One employee has one set of skills. Search, ads, email and design are different jobs. An agency retainer buys several skills for one price, but at fewer hours of attention per skill.
Pay that fits the work. An average for advertising agencies is a rough guide for a generalist. A specialist costs more. A junior costs less.
Results. Neither side of the comparison predicts leads or sales. For that, ask how many extra jobs a monthly fee must bring to pay for itself. Our GEO and AI search optimization page lists what each tier costs.
When a hire wins
A hire wins when you have steady work for one person all week, you want someone inside the business who knows the customers, and you can manage them. An agency wins when the work comes in bursts or needs several skills. Many small firms use both: one coordinator in house and an agency for specialist work.
Where the numbers come from
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), 2025 Q2, private ownership. Open data: data.bls.gov/cew. Pulled 2026-10-06.
The $1,490 default is the starting monthly price of one tier of our GEO plan at the time of writing. Your quotes will differ.
FAQ
How much does a marketing employee cost in Lackawanna County?
With the defaults here, about $60,735 a year. The wage basis is $879 a week from the BLS, which averages everyone at advertising agencies, not one job title.
Is a 25% load realistic?
It is an assumption, not a BLS figure. Payroll taxes, insurance and paid time off vary by business. Replace it with your own number.
Does an agency cost less than a hire?
With these defaults, yes. At higher retainers or in a county with lower wages, the answer changes. The calculator shows where the two lines cross.
Can the calculator include ad spend?
No. Ad spend is paid to the platform and is the same in both cases, so we left it out.
