Facebook Ads Cost Per Purchase Benchmarks for Retail

Introduction

Retail’s cost-per-purchase (CPP) across all countries ran well below the global all‑industry benchmark for most of the year, then flipped direction at the turn of the year. Through 2025, Retail averaged $35.82 versus the global $51.65, with CPP compressing sharply into the holiday window before a modest rebound in January 2026. The category also moved more energetically than the market: bigger swings, deeper Q4 troughs, and a sharper full-year deceleration.

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 Retail across all countries compared to the global benchmark.

The story in the data

Retail CPP started 2025 elevated at $41.58 and ended the year at $26.58, a 36% decline from January to December. The annual high was January ($41.58); the low arrived in December ($26.58), creating a $15 range — roughly double the spread seen in the global index. Average monthly movement in 2025 was $3.00 (absolute), notably more volatile than the global benchmark’s $1.59.

Month to month, the story unfolded in steps:

• Early-year cooling: $41.58 in January fell to $37.52 in February, then steadied near $39 in March–April.
• Midyear moderation: from May’s $36.94, CPP eased to June’s $33.96, then hovered in the mid‑$30s through August.
• A brief lift: October spiked to $39.01 from September’s $34.77 (+12%), the year’s sharpest single-month rise.
• Holiday compression: November dropped to $29.10 (−25% from October), and December dipped further to $26.58 (−9%). January 2026 rebounded to $31.94 (+20% vs. December), still 23% below January 2025.

Across 2025, the Retail median sat below the market every month, with the gap widening into year‑end.

Seasonal and monthly dynamics

The category followed a familiar rhythm: higher CPP in Q1, easing by midsummer, then a pronounced compression across Q4. H1 averaged $38.09; H2 averaged $33.55, a 12% step-down. The holiday period was decisive: Q4 averaged $31.56 for Retail versus $49.25 in the global benchmark, aligning with seasonal promotion cycles when acquisition costs often compress even as competition rises. After the low in December, Retail regained momentum in January 2026 (+20% month over month), though it remained below the prior January.

Country vs. Global

Relative to Facebook Ads benchmarks across all industries, Retail’s CPP sat consistently below market by 22–44% throughout 2025, averaging 31% under the global level ($35.82 vs. $51.65). The gap was narrowest in January (−22%) and widest in December (−44%). Trendwise, the global index was comparatively steady in 2025 (−10% from January to December), while Retail fell more decisively (−36%). Notably, January 2026 marked an inversion: the overall benchmark compressed to $25.15, putting Retail 27% above market ($31.94), even as Retail remained down year over year for the month (−23%).

Closing

Viewed through Facebook Ads cost-per-purchase benchmarks, Retail across all countries was more affordable and more volatile than the all‑industry global average in 2025, with pronounced Q4 compression and a January rebound. Understanding CPP trends within Retail helps contextualize country‑agnostic, industry ad performance against the global benchmark and complements broader CPC trends, CPM analysis, and CTR performance benchmarks.