Understand how your CPC compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
January 2025 - January 2026
Detailed observation of presented data
Arts advertisers in South Africa saw a whipsaw year for Facebook Ads cost-per-click (CPC). The year opened expensive versus the world, then collapsed mid-year to some of the lowest CPCs in the dataset, briefly rebounded in October, and fell again into November even as the global market grew costlier. Volatility was the headline: swings were far sharper than the global benchmark, with standout troughs in July and November.
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 the Arts industry in South Africa compared to the global benchmark.
Across January–November 2025 (months available), South Africa’s Arts CPC averaged 0.93, below the global average of 1.14 for the same period. The year started high at 1.92 in January and ended at 0.08 in November — a 96% decline end-to-end.
Highs and lows framed the narrative. The peak was January at 1.92, followed by another elevated print in April (1.72). The lowest point was July at 0.02, with November also unusually low at 0.08. The range from top to bottom (1.90 points) was roughly double the full-period average, underscoring how extreme the fluctuations were.
Key movements punctuated the year:
The rhythm split into three clear chapters. Q1–early Q2 ran hot: January through April stayed elevated (averaging 1.70). May flipped the script with a step down to 0.34, setting up a subdued Q3 where CPCs hovered low (0.02–0.61). October brought a notable rebound to 1.22 — a brief return toward market norms — before November dropped back to 0.08. While global CPCs typically climb into Q4 as competition intensifies, November in South Africa’s Arts segment diverged with a sharp decline.
South Africa oscillated around the market but finished materially below it:
These Facebook Ads benchmarks highlight striking CPC trends for the Arts industry in South Africa: a high-cost open, a mid-year trough to near-zero country-specific ad costs, a brief October rebound, and a sharp November divergence from global patterns. Understanding cost-per-click benchmarks for Arts in South Africa helps contextualize industry ad performance against worldwide dynamics.
Insights & analysis of Facebook advertising costs
Cost Per Click (CPC) is the amount advertisers pay each time a user clicks on their Facebook ad. In the Arts industry, Facebook ad costs can be influenced by seasonal trends and market competition. For campaigns targeting South Africa, advertisers should consider local market factors and user behavior. 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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Late November (Black Friday/Cyber Monday), December (Christmas & Day of Goodwill), Mid-year retail (June Youth Day promotions)
CPM and CPC might rise during long weekends like Human Rights Day, Freedom Day, and Heritage Day as leisure and travel-related media consumption increases. Retail CPMs may spike in late November–December for holiday shopping. Youth Day and National Women's Day might drive regional campaigns. Weekend extensions across public holidays may benefit weekend campaigns.
CPC (Cost Per Click) is what you pay each time someone clicks on your ad, on any Facebook Ads placement. It's calculated by dividing your total spend by the number of clicks received. Facebook Ads lists Clicks, Link Clicks and Outbound Clicks separately. The former is the sum of all types of clicks (including, for example, clicks to your profile page, to a link or to a comment).
The truth is that varies, so play with our tool to get some benchmarks that are relevant to you. CPC values are highly dependent on the region, industry and campaign objective. The US is one of the most expensive markets.
Several factors affect CPC: your audience targeting, competition in your industry, ad relevance score, and creative performance. If your ad isn't getting engagement or relevance is low, CPC tends to spike.
CPC spikes usually happen because of increased competition in your target audience, seasonal trends (like holidays), poor ad relevance scores, or algorithm changes. Check if your audience targeting has become too narrow or if your creative is showing fatigue.
Yes, there's a noticeable difference between platforms. Mobile CPCs often run lower than desktop. How many times do check Instagram on your phone and how often do you open it in your computer? There's simply much more mobile inventory. Tip: segment your performance data by placement to understand where your clicks are coming from. Spoiler: it's likely all mobile.
For most businesses, optimizing for conversions will deliver much better ROI than focusing purely on CPC. A low CPC is meaningless if those clicks don't convert. However, if you're running awareness campaigns or some kind content promotion, CPC optimization might potentially make sense, although most experts have switched to conversion optimization by now.
Your specific audience targeting, creative quality, bidding strategy, and account history all influence your CPC. Industry averages provide a reference point, but your historical performance is a more reliable benchmark for setting expectations and measuring improvement.
Instagram CPCs are generally slightly higher due to stronger purchase intent and higher competition among advertisers. But it depends on the audience and creative.
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