Facebook Ads Cost Per Lead Benchmarks for Marketing & Advertising

Introduction

Marketing & Advertising lead costs ran slightly above the market on average, but with far sharper swings than the global benchmark. The year opened with an elevated November 2024, saw a midsummer surge, and then a steep slide into October 2025 — finishing well below global levels. The story is one of choppy momentum: short bursts of inflation punctuated by quick resets. 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 Marketing & Advertising in all countries compared to the global benchmark.

The story in the data

Across all countries, Marketing & Advertising cost per lead (CPL) averaged $41.90 from November 2024 to October 2025, versus a $40.94 global all‑industry median. The period started high at $62.59 in November 2024 and ended at a low of $27.18 in October 2025 — a 56.6% decline from start to finish.

Highs and lows were pronounced. The category peaked in November ($62.59) and again in July ($54.61). The trough came in October ($27.18), with softer reads in June ($37.24) and September ($36.71). Month-to-month moves underscored the volatility: average absolute changes were $8.93, roughly 2.8x the global benchmark’s $3.22. Notable swings included a December drop (−35% vs November), a February rebound (+32% vs January), a July spike (+47% vs June), and a three-month slide from August to October (−30%).

By comparison, the global benchmark rose more smoothly. It averaged $40.94, climbed from $41.47 in November to a September high of $48.29, then eased to $45.08 in October — an 8.7% lift across the same window.

Seasonal and monthly dynamics

Seasonality showed familiar contours but with sharper amplitudes. Late Q4 2024 carried a premium for Marketing & Advertising, led by November’s peak. Q1 2025 blended a February surge into otherwise mid‑$30s to low‑$40s CPLs (Q1 average ~$42.8). Q2 moderated (average ~$38.0) with tighter readings in the high‑$30s. July delivered a standout spike, followed by a steady cooling through August and September and a decisive drop into October — the lowest CPL of the year.

In contrast, the global series followed a classic climb from a March trough ($33.35) to a September peak ($48.29), reflecting broader Facebook Ads benchmarks where competition and spend typically build through midyear. While CPC trends and CPM analysis often spotlight budget pressure, this CPL view highlights how engagement and conversion costs for Marketing & Advertising oscillated more dramatically than the market.

Country vs. Global

Relative positioning flipped over the year. Marketing & Advertising CPLs were above market in half of the months: +51% in November, +26% in February, +29% in July, and modestly above in December–January–March. Parity months were tight (e.g., December +3%; April −2%). From April through June, the category hovered just below the benchmark (−2% to −9%). The gap widened sharply in late Q3 and early Q4: −14% in August, −24% in September, and −40% in October. Average CPL landed 2% higher than global across the full period, but the path was far more volatile, with a range of $35.42 versus the market’s $14.95.

Closing

In sum, Facebook Ads benchmarks for cost per lead show Marketing & Advertising across all countries averaging slightly above the global median but with much larger month-to-month swings — from a November spike to a July surge and a pronounced late-year decline. Understanding cost per lead dynamics for Marketing & Advertising across all countries helps teams evaluate industry ad performance, interpret CTR performance alongside CPL, and compare country-specific ad costs to global patterns.