Understand how your CPC compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
December 2024 - December 2025
Detailed observation of presented data
Design advertisers in New Zealand saw a year defined by sharp reversals in Facebook Ads benchmarks: CPCs swung from brief surges to deep troughs, averaging below the global market but moving with far greater intensity. The headline pattern: a pronounced spike in April, a collapse through May–July, a short-lived rebound in September, and an unusually soft November despite global Q4 firmness.
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 Design industry in New Zealand compared to the global benchmark.
Across the observed months, New Zealand’s Design CPC averaged 1.05, versus 1.15 for the global baseline over the same timeline—about 9% lower overall. The series started at 1.39 in December 2024 and ended at 0.29 in November 2025, a 79% decline.
The extremes told the story: a peak at 2.30 in April (the yearly high) and a low of 0.26 in July. The range (2.04 points) was nearly an order of magnitude wider than the global market’s range over the same period (1.07–1.30).
Momentum was unusually forceful:
Volatility averaged 0.70 points per observed interval—roughly 12 times the global benchmark’s 0.06—underscoring a more turbulent pricing environment for Design in New Zealand.
The first half (January–June) was elevated on average (1.17), driven by the February–April run-up and capped by April’s spike. The second half trended lower (0.68 on average), despite a sharp September bounce, indicating a cooler cost environment as the year progressed.
While global CPC trends typically firm in Q4 amid broader auction pressure, New Zealand’s Design CPC diverged: November landed at just 0.29, running counter to the global pattern of late-year tightening.
Relative to the global benchmark, New Zealand toggled between clear over- and under-shoots:
In sum, CPC trends for the Design industry in New Zealand were lower on average but markedly more volatile than the global benchmark—punctuated by an April spike, a mid-year trough, a September rebound, and an atypically soft November.
Understanding Facebook Ads cost-per-click benchmarks for the Design industry in New Zealand—alongside country-specific ad costs and global CPC trends—helps contextualize industry ad performance and compare local dynamics to worldwide patterns.
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 Design industry, Facebook ad costs can be influenced by seasonal trends and market competition. For campaigns targeting New Zealand, 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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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.
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Late November–early December (Black Friday/Cyber Monday), Christmas season (Boxing Day sales), Mid‑year promotions (Matariki in June), Back-to-school (late January/early February)
CPM and CPC might rise around Waitangi Day and ANZAC Day as public events increase media consumption. Matariki is new public holiday with growing awareness—advertising may see elevated competition. Late November–December Black Friday/Cyber Monday could drive ad costs significantly. Regional anniversary holidays may cause local inventory shifts.
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.
Discover detailed cost benchmarks for different Facebook advertising metrics:
Average cost per click benchmarks across industries
Cost per thousand impressions across different markets
Benchmark click-through rates for Facebook ads
Cost per lead across different markets
Average cost per purchase benchmarks across industries
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