Understand how your CPC compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
December 2024 - December 2025
Detailed observation of presented data
The Design industry in South Africa posted consistently low Facebook Ads CPCs versus the global benchmark, but with sharper intra-year swings. Across the observed months, costs hovered near a quarter of a dollar—well below the market—while surging in February and again in May before easing into a steadier mid-year band and lifting into November. The standout moments: a May peak almost double April’s trough, and a late-year CPC that finished far above where it started, despite remaining much cheaper than worldwide levels.
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 Design in South Africa compared to the global benchmark.
Volatility through July averaged an absolute month-to-month move of about $0.08, roughly double the global swing over the same intervals (~$0.04), showing a more animated local CPC pattern despite lower overall levels.
The pattern reads as a choppy first half with two clear inflection points. Early Q1 was subdued, with a February pop that quickly cooled into an April trough. Q2 brought a whipsaw—April’s low immediately followed by May’s peak—before reverting toward a steadier $0.27–$0.28 band in early Q3. Late in the year, CPCs edged higher into November. Globally, CPCs were comparatively steady through mid-year, with a notable elevation into November, a period that often carries higher competition and pricing.
Relative to the global Facebook Ads benchmarks, South Africa’s Design CPCs were structurally lower throughout—averaging $0.27 versus the global $1.16 across matched months, or roughly 77% below worldwide costs. The gap narrowed most in May, when South Africa reached $0.39 against the global $1.14 (about 66% below). It was widest in December 2024 at $0.21 versus $1.28 (about 84% below).
Trendwise, the global series was stable (+2% from December 2024 to November 2025), while South Africa rose more noticeably (+39%) and exhibited greater month-to-month variability. The global range across these months was about $0.24 (from $1.07 to $1.31), only ~20% of its mean—far less elastic than South Africa’s 73% relative range.
Overall, Facebook Ads CPC trends for the Design industry in South Africa show materially lower country-specific ad costs than the global average, with more pronounced month-to-month movement and distinct spikes in February and May. Understanding Facebook Ads cost-per-click benchmarks for the Design sector in South Africa helps advertisers interpret industry ad performance and compare local CPC trends to the global pattern.
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 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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