See how your purchase costs compare. Explore ecommerce conversion cost benchmarks by industry, region, and campaign type
January 2025 - January 2026
Detailed observation of presented data
Australia’s cost per purchase ran consistently leaner than the global market, but with a much choppier rhythm. Across all industries in Australia, the year averaged 44.3 per purchase versus the 51.4 global median, a roughly 14% cost advantage. Yet that advantage came with sharp swings: a Q1 trough, a dramatic April spike, and another surge in November before a December cool-off. The year opened at 39.7 and closed near the same level at 38.9 (down 2%), but the path between those points was anything but flat.
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 Australia compared to the global benchmark.
Australia’s 2025 cost per purchase began at 39.7 in January, slid to the annual low in March (30.8), then more than doubled month over month into April’s high at 64.7 (+110% vs March). From there, costs eased into June (33.2), rebounded through late winter and early spring—58.1 in August and 49.8 in September—softened in October (36.8), spiked again in November (56.6, +54% vs October), and finished the year at 38.9 in December (−31% vs November).
Key markers:
Volatility was the headline: Australia’s average month-to-month move was 14.4 points, far sharper than the global benchmark’s 1.8 points, indicating roughly eight times more monthly fluctuation within the Australian market.
Seasonally, Q1 was the softest quarter (average 34.1), bottoming in March before an outsized April surge. Q2 averaged 48.6, elevated largely by April’s spike, while Q3 held the year’s highest quarterly average (50.2), buoyed by strong August and steady September values. Q4 was mixed: October dipped below the yearly mean, November jumped to the third-highest month of the year, and December cooled back to near the annual average.
Globally, the pattern was steadier and trended gradually down through the year—peaking early and easing from mid-year into Q4. In Australia, momentum came in bursts, with pronounced peaks in April and November.
Across the year, Australia’s all-industry cost per purchase was below the global benchmark in nine of twelve months and above it in three (April, August, November). The monthly gap narrowed to its closest point in September, when Australia sat 6% below global levels. It widened most in February and March, at 42% below the global median. When Australia did run above market, it did so meaningfully: April was 24% above the global median, August 10% above, and November 20% higher.
Directionally, the global benchmark drifted down from January to December (−15%), whereas Australia ended roughly flat (−2%) but with significantly more pronounced swings. In short: Australia delivered lower costs on average, with higher variance and periodic spikes that diverged from the smoother global trend.
Understanding Facebook Ads benchmarks for cost per purchase across all industries in Australia—set against the global baseline—highlights country-specific ad costs that were lower on average but markedly more volatile. While this report centers on cost per purchase, many teams contextualize performance alongside CPM analysis, CPC trends, and CTR performance to complete a view of industry ad performance. These Facebook Ads benchmarks for all industries in Australia provide a clear read on purchase efficiency and how it compares to 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 Australia, advertisers typically see good engagement rates despite moderate costs. 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.
Late December (Christmas and Boxing Day), Early December (Cyber Monday), January (Back-to-school), May (Mother's Day)
Ad costs could spike around major holidays, especially Easter, Anzac Day, and Christmas. Increased budgets and earlier scheduling may be necessary. Retailers should consider planning promotions around back-to-school and Mother's Day to maximize campaign effectiveness.
It depends on your product price and margins. Most brands aim for $10 to $50. For higher-ticket products, a higher CPA may be acceptable as long as you're maintaining a strong return on ad spend.
Higher-priced products typically have a higher CPA because people take longer to convert. That's not necessarily a problem if your margin can support it. You should measure CPA in context with AOV and LTV.
Your AOV may be increasing, which helps maintain ROAS even if CPA rises. You could also be facing higher CPMs, lower conversion rates, or creative fatigue.
Manual bidding can help if you're struggling to stay within target CPA. It's best used by experienced advertisers who can monitor performance and adjust regularly. It gives more control, but also requires more effort.
Increase budget gradually, rotate creative often, and avoid overlapping audiences. Scaling too quickly can lead to audience saturation and rising CPAs.
Discover detailed cost benchmarks for different Facebook advertising metrics:
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Cost per thousand impressions across different markets
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Cost per lead across different markets
Average cost per purchase benchmarks across industries
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