Shops have been debating whether to show prices online for years. While they’ve been thinking about it, Google started doing it for them… badly. Here’s what’s actually happening in the market.
How Drivers Are Searching Online
Data from The State of the Shop: 2026, built on observed behavior across 5,000+ tire and service shops, shows a consistent pattern:
- 54.06% of drivers are researching shops outside of standard business hours
- 63% of consumers say knowing the cost of a repair is the primary factor in whether they move forward with it
- 71% of drivers prefer an online quote to one given over the phone
Customers are forming a shortlist before they call anyone. They’re evaluating shops at 9 PM on a Tuesday, with Google’s AI Overview giving them a rough estimate built from national averages. By the time they pick up the phone in the morning, they’ve already decided who they’re calling first.
The shops winning that 9 PM moment are the ones giving customers something to act on.
More than 20% of tire and service shops offer online service quoting today.
These shops have stopped treating online pricing as a liability. They’re treating it as a opportunity to stand out. It’s a major factor in who gets found, who gets the call, who’s already in the customer’s head when they decide to make a call.
The Customer Already Has a Number
When a driver searches “how much does a brake job cost,” Google’s AI Overviews now answer right at the top of the page. That answer is built from national averages, forum threads, and parts databases that have nothing to do with your shop, your suppliers, or your labor rate.
It’s almost certainly wrong for your market, but now it’s the number your customer is working from.
When you put pricing online, with a quote built on your actual rates, it replaces the Google guess with a number the customer can act on. That number becomes an anchor for them, and gives them a reason to reach out to your shop first.
How Are Top Shops Responding?
Shop owners who’ve added online quoting have changed the way they think about it. Kam Butcher, General Manager at Lynn Wood Service Center, put it directly:
“I was super hesitant about putting pricing online. But if you don’t move with the times, you’re missing it. Once they get in the door, I know I can have a good conversation with them and get the sale on it.”
Kam doesn’t treat the quote like a final estimate. For him, it’s doing the work of an opener. He leans on his team to build trust with the customer and make sure they understand their service needs in-person.
“It gets people in the ballpark, and I think that’s what people are looking for. Is this going to be a big repair or a small repair. If you’re not doing that, chances are you’re probably not going to get the business.”
What Changes When You Put Pricing Online
Shops that put real pricing online tend to see three things compound over time:
- More inbound conversations. Customers who would’ve called somewhere else now have a reason to call you first.
- Better-qualified leads. A quote request comes in with the year, make, model, and service — which means the service advisor isn’t starting from zero.
- A follow-up list that didn’t exist before. Every quote that doesn’t convert is still a contact with context. Shops can email or call to ask if the customer has questions, which turns near-misses into work that wouldn’t have happened otherwise.
The shops doing this don’t think of online quoting as a marketing feature. They think of it as the front of their sales process, and one that can run while the shop is closed.
