If you’re looking for a link building agency in Chicago, the first thing to look at is how the agency actually builds links. Some agencies offer link building as part of their SEO services, while dedicated link building agencies handle everything from finding websites to outreach, content, and placements.
Before choosing an agency, check how they actually build links.
Some of the agencies below are based in Chicago and offer link building as part of their SEO services. Others work remotely with Chicago businesses and focus mainly on link building. Pricing also varies. Some agencies offer fixed link-building packages, while others charge per guest post or create a custom plan based on the business and its SEO competitors.
We compared these companies based on their services, link-building approach, who they work with, their Chicago presence, and available pricing.
The goal isn’t to pick a single agency as the best. It’s to show the differences between the agencies and what each one offers.
1. ProWhiteLabelGuestPosts
Best for: Agencies looking for white-label link building
ProWhiteLabelGuestPosts is focused on white-label guest posting and link building rather than full SEO campaigns.The service is designed for SEO and digital marketing agencies that need another team to handle website research, outreach, content, and placements while the agency keeps the client relationship.
Pricing: Starts at $80 per link, with prices increasing based on the website’s DR. Packages are also available for larger campaigns.
Best suited for: SEO agencies and digital marketing agencies that want to outsource link building and handle it under their own brand.
Chicago coverage: Serves Chicago businesses remotely.
2. Straight North
Best for: Businesses that need link building alongside other SEO services.
Straight North is a Chicago-based digital marketing agency that has been operating since 1997. Its SEO services cover content, technical SEO, local SEO, and link building. The agency offers these services together rather than focusing only on link building, and its current Chicago SEO page highlights high-authority links.
Pricing: Custom SEO plans start at $1,500 per month, while the agency says most Chicago clients invest $3,000 to $6,000 per month.
Best suited for: Chicago businesses looking for link building along with content, technical SEO, and local SEO.
3. Digital Third Coast
Best for: Digital PR campaigns built around data, research, and media coverage.
Digital Third Coast is a Chicago agency that combines SEO, digital PR, and content. Its PR and content services focus on getting media coverage and backlinks.
This is different from providers that sell a fixed number of backlinks each month. Digital Third Coast focuses on content and PR campaigns that generate media coverage and backlinks.
Pricing: Custom. Digital Third Coast says project costs are based on the hours and expertise required rather than fixed packages.
Best suited for: Companies looking for SEO, content, and digital PR from the same agency.
4. Marcel Digital
Best for: SEO campaigns that include link building.
Marcel Digital is a Chicago digital marketing agency offering SEO, content, analytics, and other digital marketing services. Link building is included in its SEO services.
Pricing: Custom quote.
Best suited for: Companies that want link building along with technical SEO and content.
5. SEO Design Chicago
Best for: Chicago-focused SEO and link building
SEO Design Chicago is a Chicago-based provider offering link building through methods such as guest posting and broken-link building. Its service focuses on these link-building methods rather than a fixed number of backlinks.
Pricing: Custom quote.
Best suited for: Chicago businesses looking for local SEO and link building.
6. Digital Authority Partners
Best for: Established businesses and larger SEO campaigns
Digital Authority Partners is headquartered in Chicago and offers SEO alongside other digital marketing services. Link building is included in its SEO services rather than offered as the main service.
Its local SEO service currently states that pricing starts at $4,000 per month, with the final cost depending on the location, competition, and business requirements.
Pricing: From $4,000/month for local SEO; custom pricing depending on the campaign.
Best suited for: Established businesses that need broader SEO support alongside link building.
7. Comrade Digital Marketing Agency
Best for: Chicago businesses looking for technical SEO, local SEO, content, and link building.
Comrade has a strong Chicago focus and promotes link building as part of its Chicago SEO campaigns. Its plans start at $3,000 per month, with higher tiers at $4,000 and $5,500 per month. The packages include 4,000, 6,000, or 8,000 words of content, along with link building, local SEO, and website updates.
The agency focuses heavily on Chicago home service companies, including contractors, so its services are more relevant to this sector than to companies in unrelated industries.
Pricing: $3,000–$5,500 per month for its published Chicago SEO plans.
Best suited for: Chicago contractors and local businesses looking for a broader SEO campaign.
8. Brafton
Best for: Guest posting and content-based link building.
Brafton offers guest posting through its content marketing services. Its current catalog lists 8 units per guest post, with each Brafton unit priced at $100, putting the published rate at around $800 per post. Each guest post can include up to two backlinks.
Brafton also says it conducts outreach to find relevant sites and provides placement options based on authority, audience, and cost.
Pricing: Approximately $800 per guest post based on its published 8-unit rate, with custom quoting for more than 10 guest posts per month.
Best suited for: Companies that want content and guest posting handled together.
9. GrowthMate
Best for: Specialist link building
GrowthMate focuses on link building, outreach, guest posts, and link insertions rather than offering a full range of SEO services.
Pricing: Custom quote.
Best suited for: Teams looking mainly for link building, outreach, guest posts, and link insertions.
Chicago coverage: Serves Chicago but is not headquartered there.
10. Sure Oak
Best for: Dedicated link-building campaigns
Sure Oak says it uses competitor analysis and search operators to find relevant sites, then vets them based on organic traffic, relevance, domain authority, and TrustFlow before starting outreach.
Its current plans are:
- Starter: $3,500/month for 10 links
- Professional: $5,000/month for 15 links
- Enterprise: $10,000/month for 30 links
The per-link cost is approximately $350, $333, and $325, respectively. . The plans require a minimum DA 30+, while the actual links can have higher DA.
Sure Oak also explains its process publicly, including prospecting, vetting, outreach, and link building. Its vetting process considers organic traffic, relevance, domain authority, and Trust Flow.
Best suited for: Companies looking for a dedicated link-building campaign with monthly link placements.
How to Choose a Link Building Agency
There isn’t one obvious choice for every Chicago business.
SEO agencies looking for white-label fulfillment may prefer a specialist such as ProWhiteLabelGuestPosts, which focuses specifically on white-label link building.
Chicago businesses looking for a complete SEO campaign may consider companies such as Straight North, Comrade, Marcel Digital, or Digital Authority Partners, which offer link building alongside services such as technical SEO, content, and local SEO.
Businesses mainly looking for link building can compare specialists such as Sure Oak based on their approach to prospecting, vetting, outreach, content, and reporting.
What to Check Before Hiring a Link Building Agency
Don’t choose an agency based only on the number of backlinks it offers.
Check:
- How the websites are researched and selected
- Whether the outreach is done manually
- Website relevance and organic traffic
- Content quality
- Where the link is placed
- Whether you can approve the websites before publication
- What happens if a placement is rejected
- How live links are reported
- Whether removed links are replaced
- Whether the price includes content, outreach, and placement
A package promising 30 links is not automatically better than one delivering 10. The websites, relevance, traffic, content, and placement all need to be considered.
Chicago-Based vs. Agencies That Serve Chicago
Not every agency targeting Chicago needs to be based in Chicago.
A Chicago-based agency may be preferable if you want to work with a team located in the city and familiar with the local market.
A Chicago-serving agency can be a good option when link building is the main requirement. In that case, the agency’s location matters less than its website selection, outreach process, publisher relationships, and ability to deliver the type of links required for the campaign.
That’s why this list focuses on what each agency actually delivers, rather than whether it has a Chicago address.
Final Thoughts
Choose a link building agency based on how it researches websites, handles outreach, and manages placements, not the number of links included in the proposal.
For white label fulfillment, a specialist agency can handle the link building work for your agency. For a complete Chicago SEO campaign, a local full service agency can handle link building alongside the other SEO work. If link building is the main service you need, agencies with published link building packages make pricing easier to compare.
Before signing up, ask the agency to explain how they find websites, how they check them, who writes the articles, how they contact website owners, and what details are included in the final report.
