See how your app install costs compare. Explore mobile acquisition cost benchmarks by industry, region, and platform
November 2024 - November 2025
Detailed observation of presented data
Across all industries in India, Cost Per App Install (CPI) traced a dramatic arc: ultra-low costs through late 2024, a sharp lift in January 2025, a mid-year spike in June, and then a swift return to bargain levels by August. Compared to the global benchmark, India generally ran far below market, punctuated by two standout months where it briefly surged above. The story is extreme volatility around an otherwise low-cost baseline. This analysis is based on $3B worth of advertising data from our dataset, which provides strong directional benchmarks. This analysis explores ad performance trends for all industries in India compared to the global benchmark.
India’s median CPI opened at $0.19 in November 2024, dipped to a cycle low of $0.13 in December, then jumped roughly 70x to $9.05 in January 2025. Costs softened in February ($4.75) and March ($0.49), stayed low through April ($0.21) and May ($0.30), and then spiked to the period high of $43.21 in June before falling back to $3.03 in July and $0.20 in August. Across the 10-month window, India averaged $6.16, with the high at $43.21 (June) and the low at $0.13 (December). Excluding the June surge, the average settles at $2.04.
Month-to-month volatility was pronounced. Absolute monthly moves averaged $11.54, driven by outsized swings in January (+~$8.92), June (+~$42.92), and July (−~$40.18). Despite the turmoil, the ending point ($0.20 in August) landed near where it started ($0.19 in November).
Seasonality shows up in sharp relief. Q1 2025 (January–March) averaged $4.77, lifted by January’s spike and then cooling into March. Q2 (April–June) accelerated to $14.57—largely due to June’s outsized peak—before Q3-to-date (July–August) reset to $1.62. Late 2024 (November–December) was unusually soft, with both months under $0.20. The rhythm suggests a market that can run quiet for extended stretches and then rotate into brief, intense cost pressure, especially mid-year.
Against the global Facebook Ads benchmarks, India was mostly below market. Over the overlapping period, global CPI averaged $13.57 versus India’s $6.16—about 55% lower in India. The global line rose into June (low of $6.56 in January to a high of $27.78 in June) and remained elevated through August ($19.08). India trailed global levels in 8 of 10 months by wide margins—typically 61% to 99% lower—except in January (+38% above global) and June (+56% above global), when India temporarily ran hotter than the benchmark. Volatility was also higher in India, with average monthly absolute changes of $11.54 compared to $6.88 globally, reflecting choppier country-specific ad costs.
At its narrowest gap, India ran above market in June; at its widest, August’s CPI was about 99% below the global median. While the global trend climbed steadily into Q2, India’s path was more intermittent—surge, fade, surge, reset—around a low-cost baseline.
Understanding Facebook Ads benchmarks for Cost Per App Install across all industries in India highlights a market that is usually low-cost but capable of sudden spikes, especially mid-year. While CPC trends, CPM analysis, and CTR performance follow their own dynamics, this CPI view offers a focused read on industry ad performance and country-specific ad costs, helping teams contextualize app install efficiency in India against global patterns.
Insights & analysis of Facebook advertising costs
Facebook advertising costs vary based on many factors including industry, target audience, ad placement, and campaign objectives. Different industries see varying ad costs due to market competition, user demographics, and conversion value. For campaigns targeting India, advertisers should consider local market factors and user behavior. Different campaign objectives lead to varying costs based on how Facebook optimizes for your specific goals. The data shown represents median values across multiple campaigns, and individual results may vary based on ad quality, audience targeting, and campaign optimization.
We use the median CTR because the underlying distribution of click-through rates is highly skewed, with a small share of campaigns achieving extremely high CTRs. These outliers can inflate a simple average, making it less representative of what most advertisers actually experience. By using the median—which sits at the midpoint of all campaigns—we provide a more rigorous and realistic benchmark that reflects the true underlying data model and helps you set attainable performance expectations.
Note: This data represents industry median values and benchmarks. Your actual costs may vary based on specific targeting, ad creative quality, and campaign optimization.
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All data is sourced from over $3B in Facebook ad spend, collected across thousands of ad accounts that use Superads daily to analyze and improve their campaigns. Every data point is fully anonymized and aggregated—no individual advertiser is ever exposed.
This dataset updates frequently as new ad data flows in. It will only get bigger and better.
October (Diwali), Late November (Black Friday/Cyber Monday), December (Christmas), July–August (Raksha Bandhan, Ganesh Chaturthi)
CPMs might spike significantly during Diwali, especially in electronics, apparel, jewellery, and gifts. Black Friday/Cyber Monday and December could drive elevated ad competition. State-specific festivals might see regional campaign spikes. Bank closures during holidays may push online shopping to cluster in end-of-week periods.
iOS CPIs often range from $2 to $5 or more. Android is usually cheaper, between $1 and $3. Your CPI will depend on geo, creative, and optimization goal.
Some regions like the US, UK, and Canada have higher competition and stricter privacy regulations, which drive up costs. Countries with lower purchasing power typically have cheaper CPIs.
Short videos showing app benefits, UGC-style content, and localized messaging tend to perform best. Clear CTAs and fast-paced visuals help lower your CPI.
Optimizing for installs gets volume, but optimizing for actions like signups or purchases brings higher quality users. It depends on your goals and how much post-install behavior matters.
Align your creative with the app experience, avoid misleading ads, and exclude users who already installed. You can also test lookalike audiences based on high-quality users, not just all installers.
Discover detailed cost benchmarks for different Facebook advertising metrics:
Average cost per click benchmarks across industries
Cost per thousand impressions across different markets
Benchmark click-through rates for Facebook ads
Cost per lead across different markets
Average cost per purchase benchmarks across industries
See how much it costs to get users to install an app