Facebook Ads Cost Per App Install Benchmarks for Public Administration

Introduction

Public Administration app install costs moved through a wide arc over the past year, starting mid-range, plunging to a January low, then surging to a June peak before settling into a higher plateau by early Q4. The standout moment was an abrupt mid‑year spike that more than tripled January’s level, with late‑summer and early‑autumn costs staying elevated versus the yearly norm. 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 Public Administration across all countries compared to the global benchmark.

The story in the data

Cost per app install (CPI) opened at $15.83 in November and closed at $19.14 in October, a 21% lift across the period. The average CPI for the year was $15.10. The low arrived in January at $7.13; the high landed in June at $27.90—nearly a 3x increase from the trough. The top-to-bottom spread was $20.78, and month‑to‑month volatility averaged $6.23.

The trend unfolded in distinct waves:

• Early softness: November ($15.83) slid into December ($11.30) and bottomed in January ($7.13).
• Spring rebound: February jumped to $12.52, March eased to $8.83, and April recovered to $12.59.
• Mid‑year surge: May held at $11.77 before a sharp June spike to $27.90—the largest monthly upswing (+$16.13). July corrected to $12.69—the sharpest drop (−$15.21).
• Elevated late summer: August rose to $18.24 and September climbed again to $23.31 before October cooled to $19.14.

Across the 11 monthly transitions, the series registered five increases and six declines, underscoring a choppy but upward‑tilting rhythm.

Seasonal and monthly dynamics

Seasonality shows clear contours: performance softened through late Q4 and into early Q1, with January marking the trough. Q1 averaged $9.49, then Q2 accelerated to $17.42 driven by the June spike. Q3 sustained the higher regime at $18.08, as August–September costs stayed well above the annual mean. Early Q4 (October) cooled from September’s peak but remained elevated at $19.14—about 26% above the yearly average. This cadence aligns with common paid social patterns where competitive intensity—and thus install pricing—often rises mid‑year and into late summer, while early‑year periods tend to be more forgiving.

Country vs. Global

For this view—Public Administration across all countries—the series mirrors the global benchmark one‑for‑one in both level and movement throughout the window. The gap to global is effectively zero in every month, and volatility is identical: a $15.10 annual average, a $7.13 January low, a $27.90 June high, and a +21% lift from November to October. The mid‑year spike and the elevated late‑summer plateau observed here are the same inflection points present in the broader market, indicating that Public Administration’s CPI trend tracked the global Facebook Ads benchmarks closely in this period.

Closing

Understanding Facebook Ads benchmarks for cost per app install in the Public Administration industry across all countries highlights a year defined by a January trough, a dramatic June surge, and a higher late‑summer plateau. While CPC trends, CPM analysis, and CTR performance offer additional context, this CPI view provides a clear read on country‑agnostic ad costs for app acquisition in Public Administration relative to global patterns.