Should a dental practice run Google Ads or Facebook ads for dental implants?
It is not an either or choice, because the two channels do different jobs and a full arch practice generally needs both.
Google captures demand that already exists, at a high cost per click on implant terms. Meta creates demand among people who have not decided yet, at a much lower cost per click and a lower average intent.
Local Services Ads sit above both on the results page and charge per lead rather than per click, which makes them a third distinct purchase rather than a variation on search.
Last updated 2026-09-16
The detail
The question is usually asked as a budget question, but it is really a demand question. A person typing dental implants near me has already decided something. A person scrolling a feed has not, and reaching them is a longer job that starts earlier in the decision.
A search only program tends to run out of volume in smaller markets, because there is a fixed number of people searching implant terms each month and no amount of budget creates more of them. A feed only program tends to produce cheap leads at lower intent, which puts more pressure on intake speed and on the coordinator.
Running all three changes what each one is measured on. Search is judged on cost per seated arch. Feed campaigns are judged on cost per qualified lead and on how many of those leads survive the funnel. Local Services Ads are judged on cost per lead directly, because that is the unit being bought.
The three channels, compared.
| Channel | Position | Pricing model | Intent | Best at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local Services Ads | Above the paid search ads and above the map pack | Pay per lead | High. The person is contacting a provider | Prominence in an auction with fewer bidders |
| Google Ads | Below the Local Services Ads unit when one is present | Pay per click | High. The person is searching for treatment | Capturing demand that already exists |
| Meta ads | In feed and in stories, not on a results page | Pay per click or per impression | Lower. The person has not decided | Creating demand and reaching an older demographic at volume |
The part that matters most
One creative constraint is specific to this treatment. Before and after imagery is permitted on Meta for audiences 18 and over, and it is the highest performing and highest risk creative in the category, which is why it needs a real library of pairs and signed authorization from every patient shown.
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