# Global Ad Benchmarks 2025–2026

> **Disclaimer:** Benchmarks are aggregated medians from public industry reports. Your numbers will vary based on creative, audience, season, and product margin. Use these as **diagnostic baselines, not targets**.

**Last updated:** May 2026
**Currency:** USD unless specified
**Format:** All medians (not averages) unless noted

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## Quick Reference — Global Medians (All Industries)

| Metric | Median | Top 25% | Bottom 25% |
|---|---|---|---|
| **CPM (Meta)** | $13–$20 | <$8 | >$25 |
| **CPC (Meta)** | $0.70–$1.72 | <$0.50 | >$2.50 |
| **CTR (Meta)** | 1.57%–2.19% | >3.0% | <0.9% |
| **CVR (Meta)** | 1.57%–9.21% | >10% | <1.5% |
| **ROAS (Meta)** | 1.93–2.79 | >4.0 | <2.0 |
| **CPA (Meta, global)** | $18–$38 | <$15 | >$50 |

*Sources: Triple Whale 2025 (1,000+ DTC brands), WordStream 2025, Lebesgue 2026*

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## By Region (Meta CPM, 2026)

| Region / Tier | CPM Range | CPC Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇺🇸 **United States** | $15–$25 | $1.40–$1.85 | Highest globally; $19.66 median 2025 |
| 🇨🇦 **Canada** | $12–$20 | $1.20–$1.60 | Tier 1, slightly below US |
| 🇦🇺 **Australia** | $12–$22 | $1.30–$1.80 | Tier 1, high purchasing power |
| 🇬🇧 **United Kingdom** | $10–$18 | $1.10–$1.50 | Tier 1, Western EU premium |
| 🇩🇪 **Germany / Western EU** | $5–$10 | $0.90–$1.30 | EU median CPM $4.90 in 2025 |
| 🇯🇵 **Japan** | $8–$15 | $1.00–$1.50 | Tier 1, mature market |
| 🇸🇬 **Singapore** | $6–$12 | $0.70–$1.20 | SEA leader |
| 🇹🇭 **Thailand / Malaysia** | $3–$7 | $0.40–$0.80 | SEA emerging |
| 🇻🇳 **Vietnam** | $1–$3 | $0.10–$0.30 | See `benchmarks-vietnam.md` |
| 🇮🇩 **Indonesia / Philippines** | $2–$5 | $0.20–$0.50 | SEA volume markets |
| 🇧🇷 **Brazil / Latin America** | $2–$6 | $0.30–$0.70 | LATAM Tier 2 |

*Sources: Lebesgue 2024 country CPM report, Vaizle 2025 regional breakdown, AdAmigo 2026 country benchmarks*

**Key insight:** Tier 1 (US/AU/CA/Western EU) costs 6–7× more than Tier 2 (SEA/LATAM). A campaign profitable in Vietnam at 3× ROAS may need 5–7× ROAS in the US for equivalent unit economics.

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## By Industry (Meta, 2026 Lebesgue Data)

| Industry | CPM | CTR | CVR | CPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Beauty & Health** | $12.46 (highest) | ~2.2% | 7.10% | $25.49 |
| **Clothing & Fashion** | $9–$11 | 2.84% (high) | 3.26% | $21.47 |
| **Art / Home Decor** | $8–$10 | 2.92% (highest) | ~4% | $22 |
| **Food & Beverage** | $8–$10 | 1.85% (lowest) | 2.02% (top) | $30 |
| **Electronics** | $7–$9 | ~2% | 1.20% (lowest) | $45 |
| **Pets & Animals** | $7–$9 | ~2.1% | ~3% | $20 |
| **Sports & Outdoors** | $7–$9 | ~2.2% | ~3.5% | $25 |
| **Home & Garden** | $7–$9 | ~2% | ~4.5% | $28 |
| **Hardware / Automotive** | $6.96 (lowest) | ~1.8% | ~1.5% | $38 |
| **Finance & Insurance** | $10–$15 | ~1.5% | varies (lead) | $50+ (CPL) |
| **B2B / SaaS** | $15–$30 | ~1.0% | varies (lead) | $80–$300 (CPL) |
| **Real Estate** | $8–$12 | 0.99% | 10.68% (lead) | $16.92 (CPL) |

*Sources: Lebesgue 2026, Trendtrack 2025*

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## ROAS by Industry (Meta, 2025)

| Industry | Median ROAS |
|---|---|
| Automotive | 2.54 (top) |
| Sports & Outdoors | 2.28 |
| Travel & Luggage | 2.25 |
| Home & Garden | 2.18 |
| Beauty & Health | 3.00+ (high CVR offsets cost) |
| Pets & Animals | 1.58 |
| Food & Beverage | 1.56 |
| **Global median** | **1.93–2.79** |

*Source: Triple Whale 2025 DTC dataset*

**Healthy ROAS guideline:** 3× is the rule of thumb for profitability at ~30% gross margin. For lower margins (commodity goods), aim for 5×+. For high-margin (digital/info products), 1.5× can be profitable.

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## Seasonal Patterns (Meta Global, 2025)

| Period | Median CPM | vs. Average |
|---|---|---|
| **January** | $15.74 | -21% (post-holiday reset) |
| **Q1 average** | $18.29 | baseline |
| **Q2–Q3** | $18–$21 | rising |
| **October** | $22 | +10% |
| **November (peak)** | $25.22 | +27% |
| **December** | $22.04 | +11% |
| **Q4 average** | $22.98 | +26% above Q1 |

*Source: Superads.ai 2025 dataset, $3B ad spend tracked*

**Strategic implications:**
- 🟢 **Q1 (Jan–Mar):** Cheapest acquisition. Stock budget here if cashflow allows.
- 🔴 **Q4 (Oct–Dec):** Most expensive. Either front-load brand spend in Q3 or reserve 30%+ higher budget.
- 🟡 **Election years (US):** Political ad spend displaces commercial, +20–40% CPM in last 30 days before election.

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## Other Platforms (2025–2026 Approximate)

| Platform | CPM Range | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| **Instagram (Feed)** | $6–$10 | Visual brands, fashion, beauty |
| **Instagram (Stories)** | $5–$8 | Quick CTAs, brand moments |
| **TikTok Ads (global)** | $5–$15 | Gen Z, virality, brand awareness |
| **Google Search Ads** | $1–$2 CPC (broad); $5–$50+ CPC (commercial intent) | Bottom-funnel, high-intent |
| **YouTube Ads** | $9–$30 CPM | Brand awareness, long-form |
| **LinkedIn Ads** | $30–$100+ CPM | B2B, SaaS, recruiting |
| **Pinterest Ads** | $5–$15 CPM | Home, fashion, DIY, female 25–54 |
| **X (Twitter) Ads** | $4–$8 CPM | News, tech, B2B |

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## Email Marketing Benchmarks (Global, 2025–2026)

| Metric | Median | Top Performers |
|---|---|---|
| **Open Rate** | 22–27% | >35% |
| **Click-Through Rate (CTR)** | 2.5–3.5% | >5% |
| **Click-to-Open Rate (CTOR)** | 10–14% | >18% |
| **Unsubscribe Rate** | <0.5% | <0.2% |
| **Bounce Rate** | <2% | <1% |
| **Conversion Rate (ecom)** | 1–3% | >5% |

*Sources: Mailchimp 2025 benchmark report, Klaviyo 2025 industry data*

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## How to Use These Benchmarks

### ✅ DO
- Use as **diagnostic baselines** — "is my CPM 2× median? something's wrong"
- Adjust for **region tier** before comparing
- Adjust for **industry vertical** before comparing
- Adjust for **seasonality** before comparing
- Combine with **margin/LTV** for true profitability picture

### ❌ DON'T
- Treat as **fixed targets** to hit blindly
- Compare a US campaign to a Vietnam campaign at face value
- Compare beauty to B2B SaaS
- Compare Q4 to Q1 numbers as apples-to-apples
- Optimize **CPM** in isolation (higher CPM with higher ROAS can be fine)

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## Diagnostic Heuristics

When a campaign underperforms, check in this order:

1. **CTR below median?** → Creative problem (hook, visual, format)
2. **CTR good but CVR below median?** → Landing page or offer problem
3. **CVR good but ROAS low?** → AOV/margin problem, not ad problem
4. **CPM 2×+ above region median?** → Audience too narrow, or competitive auction
5. **All metrics good but unprofitable?** → Margin or fulfillment cost problem

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## Source Notes

Primary references compiled May 2026:

- **Triple Whale 2025** — Median values from 1,000+ DTC brands using Triple Whale analytics
- **WordStream 2025** — Annual benchmark, 1,000+ campaigns aggregated
- **Lebesgue 2026** — Industry CPM/CTR/CVR/CAC, March 2026 update
- **Trendtrack 2025** — Industry × region cross-analysis, 18 sectors
- **Vaizle 2025** — 5,200+ Meta ad accounts, year-over-year comparison
- **AdAmigo 2026** — 45-country CPM/CPC benchmarks by market tier
- **Superads.ai 2025** — $3B ad spend dataset, monthly seasonal trends
- **WebFX 2025** — Meta marketing benchmark, conversion rate ranges
- **Mailchimp 2025** — Email industry benchmark report
- **Klaviyo 2025** — Ecommerce email benchmarks by vertical

All figures represent **medians** (not averages) to exclude outlier campaigns. Where reported, top-25% and bottom-25% percentiles included.

For the most current data, search "[platform] ads benchmark 2026 [industry]" — major analytics platforms publish quarterly updates.

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**Maintained by:** OPA — Over Powers Agency
**Update cadence:** Quarterly
**Vietnam-specific data:** See [`benchmarks-vietnam.md`](benchmarks-vietnam.md)
