Facebook Ads Cost Per Lead Benchmarks for Real Estate

Introduction

Globally, Real Estate lead costs ran well below the broader market this year, but with far sharper swings. Cost Per Lead for Real Estate across all countries opened elevated in November, fell into a deep trough by March–April, spiked in May, and then eased back to near lows by October. By contrast, the global all‑industry benchmark climbed steadily from spring into late summer. 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 Real Estate across all countries compared to the global benchmark.

The story in the data

Real Estate CPL started at $34.79 in November and ended at $20.19 in October, a 42% decline across the period. The segment averaged $27, ranging from a low of $17.53 in March to a high of $41.41 in May. The rhythm was choppy: after a December dip ($25.61), January rebounded to $32.15, February eased to $29.52, and March plunged to the year’s low. April ticked up to $18.88, then May surged 119% month over month to the peak. From there, the market retraced: June corrected to $26.57, July lifted to $31.47, and late summer/early fall slid steadily to $21.59 in September and $20.19 in October.

Volatility stood out. Average month‑to‑month movement in Real Estate CPL was about $7.75, more than double the global benchmark’s $3.22. The sharpest swing was April to May (+$22.54), followed by a swift pullback in June (−$14.84). Despite the May spike, the overall arc trended downward.

Seasonal and monthly dynamics

The first quarter was soft, culminating in the March low—consistent with broader seasonal pressure on lead generation costs early in the year. April remained subdued before an atypically large May spike. The summer never recaptured that peak; July showed a partial lift, but August through October settled into a lower-cost band, with October closing just above springtime lows. Across the wider market, costs generally accelerated into late Q3 and early Q4; Real Estate did not mirror that lift, keeping country‑agnostic ad costs comparatively muted in the back half of the year.

Country vs. Global

Against the all‑industry global benchmark, Real Estate was structurally lower. The segment averaged $27 versus the market’s $40.94, about 34% below. Real Estate trailed in 11 of 12 months; the sole exception was May, when it briefly ran 2% above the global CPL. The gap was narrowest in January (about 10% below) and widest in September and October (roughly 55% below). Directionally, the global benchmark rose about 9% from November to October, while Real Estate declined 42% over the same window—more volatile and counter‑trend to the market’s steady lift.

Closing

In short, Facebook Ads benchmarks for Cost Per Lead show Real Estate across all countries delivering meaningfully lower CPLs than the global all‑industry baseline, with pronounced mid‑year volatility and a late‑year ease. Understanding CPL trends and industry ad performance at a global level helps frame country‑specific ad costs and compare Real Estate results to broader market patterns.