Facebook Ads Cost Per App Install Benchmarks in India

Introduction

India’s all-industry cost per app install ran dramatically below the global benchmark for most of the year, punctuated by two sharp spikes that briefly lifted costs above market. After a January jump and a June surge, India’s CPI settled into a tight, sub‑$1 band through the back half of the year—steady, inexpensive, and far below global levels. The pattern suggests a market with occasional demand shocks against a backdrop of consistently low country-specific ad costs.

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.

The story in the data

• Starting point and finish: India opened at 0.13 in December 2024 and closed at 0.49 in December 2025—up from the start but still very low in absolute terms.
• Highs and lows: The year’s high came in June at 30.41; the low was December 2024 at 0.13. A secondary peak occurred in January (9.05).
• Average levels: India averaged 3.71 across the 13 months, heavily influenced by January and June. Excluding June, the average drops to 1.49; the March–December (ex-June) run averaged 0.43, illustrating how unusually cheap installs were for most months. The global benchmark averaged 13.85.
• Monthly rhythm: Big moves defined early and mid-year. From May (0.37) to June (30.41), CPI jumped roughly 83x before collapsing back to 0.71 in July. From August through December, India’s CPI ranged 0.20–0.54 with minimal month-to-month change, signaling a stable, low-cost runway.
• Volatility: India’s average absolute month-over-month shift was 6.54 points versus 4.10 globally—more volatile in aggregate due to the two spikes, but notably calm in H2.

Seasonal and monthly dynamics

Seasonally, India’s CPI showed two waves. Q1 opened with an elevated January (9.05) and normalized quickly by March (0.49). Q2 stayed low in April–May before the outsized June spike (30.41), which mirrors the broader pattern of mid-year competition seen in Facebook Ads benchmarks. Q3 (0.71 → 0.20 → 0.32) returned to sub‑$1 CPI, and Q4 held in a narrow 0.49–0.54 band even as global CPM analysis typically shows heightened auction pressure in the holiday window. The back half of the year was the most stable stretch for India.

Country vs. Global

India’s CPI levels were well below the global benchmark in 11 of 13 months. On average, India ran about 73% below global (3.71 vs. 13.85). Outside of January and June, the gap widened to the 95–99% range, with the widest gap in August (0.20 in India vs. 15.98 globally). The narrowest gap came in the two spike months—India actually sat above market in January (+28% vs. global) and June (+28%). Trend-wise, the global line rose from 10.62 in December 2024 to 17.03 by December 2025 (+60%), while India’s path was choppier: two surges amid an otherwise ultra-low, stable baseline. In volatility terms, India appeared “more volatile” in the math, though most of that variance is concentrated in two months; the rest of the year resembled a low, steady floor.

Closing

Understanding Facebook Ads benchmarks for cost per app install across all industries in India shows a market that is typically far cheaper than the global average, with brief spikes in January and June and a notably steady, sub‑$1 cadence from August through December. These CPI trends provide a clear read on country-specific ad costs and industry ad performance in India relative to global patterns, informing comparisons alongside broader CPM analysis and CTR performance benchmarks.