The Definitive Guide to Lobbying and Lobbying Firms
Plain-English answers on what lobbying firms do, what they cost, and how to choose one — without the jargon or the runaround.
Most of what’s written about lobbying is built for journalists and watchdogs — who’s spending what, on whom. This site is for the other side of the table: the nonprofit director, association executive, growing company, or local government trying to understand how lobbying actually works and whether hiring a firm makes sense. It’s a big industry — organizations spent a record $4.44 billion on federal lobbying in 2024, working with more than 13,000 registered lobbyists (OpenSecrets) — and almost none of it is explained for the buyer. We fix that.
Start here
What is a Lobbying Firm?
The plain-English definition, who hires them, and how they’re regulated.
What They Actually Do
Monitoring, strategy, advocacy, and reporting — the real day-to-day.
How to Hire One
A 7-step buyer’s process, from defining your goal to signing a scope.
What It Costs
Typical retainers, what drives the price, and what transparency looks like.
How to Choose
Five criteria for picking the right firm — not just the biggest name.
Types of Firms
Big vs. boutique, law firms, federal vs. state, firm vs. in-house.
Why we built this
This resource is published by Lobbyit.com because we think the industry is needlessly opaque, and an informed buyer is a better client for everyone. Throughout, we use Lobbyit as a worked example of one firm’s approach — for instance, it publishes its pricing openly, which most firms won’t. We’ll also tell you when you don’t need a firm.
LobbyingFirm.com is an educational resource owned and operated by Lobbyit.com, a federal lobbying and government-relations firm.