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How Much Does Baidu Advertising Cost to Get Started and Run?

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Baidu now allows almost any overseas business (except for specific industries: gambling, medical, auction, pharma, etc.) to run ads on Baidu. Even companies without a legal presence in China are now able to advertise on Baidu, which is great news for businesses looking for exposure in the Chinese market. For a successful Baidu campaign, the cost could range from 7,000 RMB to over 100,000 RMB, depending on a multitude of factors. 

But how much do you need to spend on Baidu for a successful campaign? Estimating the cost for Baidu advertising can be difficult for non-Chinese speakers, and Baidu is frequently changing its prices. This blog goes through all the fees and costs when setting up a Baidu advertising account.

Baidu Account Set-Up Fees

Although a Baidu account is technically free, the amount of deposit greatly varies the benefits you receive. There are two channels for deposits when setting up a Baidu account, the Baidu Official site or through a Hong Kong agency. 

For the sake of cost-saving, we recommend the Baidu Official site when possible, but for some countries, it is only possible through a Hong Kong agency.

With Baidu Official China

The official deposit is for any Chinese companies or overseas companies, excluding ones based in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Singapore, United Kingdom, and France. We’ve simplified the services in the chart below for a straightforward look at what is offered for each deposit amount.

Note: Baidu will deduct a 1000 RMB service fee (one time) and a 600 RMB company verification fee (annually) from the deposit.

 

Baidu Ads Deposit Options - Mainland Company (Beijing)

Deposit

(RMB)

Annual Fee

Company Verify Fee

Coupon 

(After opening account)

Coupon 

(After activating account)

Baidu Feed Ads Coupon

Baidu Search Ads Coupon

Total Account Balance

(RMB)

6,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+1,000

1,300

7,300

10,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+1,000

+1,300

+500

11,800

20,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+1,000

+1,300

+1,400

22,700

30,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+1,000

+1,300

+2,400

33,700

50,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+1,000

+1,300

+5,000

56,300

60,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+1,000

+1,300

+5,000

66,300

 

 

Baidu Ads Deposit Options - Overseas Company (Beijing)

Deposit

(RMB)

Annual Fee

Company Verify Fee

Coupon 

(After opening account)

Baidu Search Ads Coupon

Baidu Feed Ads Coupon

Total Account Balance

(RMB)

6,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+1,000

+1,300

7,300

10,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+1,500

+1,300

11,800

20,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+2,400

+1,300

22,700

30,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+3,400

+1,300

33,700

50,000

-1,000

-600

+600

+6,000

+1,300

56,300

 

 

Baidu Ads Deposit Options - Overseas Company (HK)

Deposit

(RMB)

Annual Fee

Company Verify Fee

Baidu Search Ads Coupon

Baidu Feed Ads Coupon

Total Account Balance

(RMB)

Note

7,000

-1,500

-600

4,900

Hard to apply with Baidu headquarters.

20,000

-1,500

-600

17,900

Needs to apply with Baidu headquarters.

40,000

-1,500

-600

37,900

Normal deposit amount.

 

  • Hong Kong-based companies must apply via a Hong Kong office
  • Beijing office can't open an account for the company in HK, Macao, Taiwan, Singapore, UK and France

Baidu Set Up in Hong Kong

For companies based in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and France, you’ll need to open a Baidu ads account via the Hong Kong office. Expect to pay 2,100 RMB in verification fees annually when depositing through a Hong Kong agency.

 

Benefits/Rights

Deposit 7,000 RMB

 (this offer needs to apply first)

1,500 annual verification fee

The ad account balance will be 5,500 RMB after the 1,500 RMB annual verification fee is deducted.

Basic Baidu Service

HK Baidu consultant

Ads portfolio

Various basic Baidu ad products

Insight report

Baidu ads data report

600 RMB annually Baidu company authentication fee 

This will be free for the first year and charged for the second year.

 

Daily Costs of Baidu

When determining the ad budget for your campaign, take the daily costs of running the Baidu ads into consideration. The bare minimum spending for Baidu ads currently stands at 50 RMB. However, similar to Google ads, competitive keywords cost more due to demand. With that said, expect niche industries to fetch a daily price of 200–300 RMB and high-demand industries to fetch 500–800 RMB daily. This daily budget can be gauged daily and depends on the Baidu Index, which measures the market’s competitiveness.

Taking an average estimate of daily prices based on niche and high-volume industries, here’s how much you would expect to pay every month.

 

Monthly Price for Niche

Monthly Price for High-Volume Industries

3,000 RMB

20,150 RMB

 

Extra Costs

Although it may seem simple enough, running an effective Baidu ads campaign as an overseas company can require extra costs. This is because Baidu has restrictions, one being that it complies with China’s censorship laws.

If you don't have or aren't willing to open a company in China, you can register a Baidu account as an international company. However, in order to use a Baidu ad as a landing page, you need to send the website URL for review. In this case, we recommend using Baidu landing pages as your website won't load fast enough in China without a local hosting solution. Cost-wise, expect around 3,000 RMB per year to host your website on Alibaba cloud servers.

Agency Handling Fee

If you aren’t prepared to handle Baidu advertising on your own, you can always hire external help in the form of a Baidu agency. To learn more about this, take a look at our blog regarding finding the right Baidu agency to help with your marketing efforts in China. The costs of this service are typically a percentage of the advertising budget. They will usually be 10–20% of the budget for the service fee and set-up fee. This can be useful; however, these agencies typically require monthly spending upwards of 100,000 RMB per month, meaning that this option is not recommended unless a large company is looking to invest heavily in Baidu ads.

Conclusion

The cost of Baidu advertising can significantly differ based on how your company chooses to approach it. Going with a bare minimum deposit and target niche words can let you get away with a 7,000 RMB budget per month; however, when considering the campaign’s success and your industry, realistically, be prepared to pay a little more.

Want to learn more about Baidu advertising? We’ve compiled a master guide for you to learn everything you need to know about Baidu.

Does your company need assistance with advertising in China? Speak with one of our marketing experts to find out how we can help. We’re a Baidu Hong Kong agency ready to help you take your brand into China.

Baidu blog cta ebook 2023
Laurent Ross

About the Author

11+ years of work in client and project management in China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Thailand - Laurent is uniquely qualified to manage campaigns which require a deep knowledge of both Western and Chinese digital systems.

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