Understand how your CPC compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
November 2024 - November 2025
Detailed observation of presented data
Education advertisers in South Africa ran on meaningfully lower Facebook Ads CPCs than the global benchmark across the period, with a pronounced Q4-to-Q1 drop and a notably choppy mid‑year. Costs eased from late 2024 into early 2025, steadied through mid‑year, then swung sharply with an August spike and a September trough. Relative to the world average, South Africa stayed well below market levels but moved with greater month‑to‑month intensity.
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 Education in South Africa compared to the global benchmark.
From November 2024 to September 2025, Education CPC in South Africa averaged about $0.34, starting at $0.57 in November and ending at $0.08 in September (−86% end‑to‑end). The high was $0.66 in August 2025; the low was $0.08 in September 2025, a swing of roughly $0.58 across the period. Only two months topped $0.42 (November and August), while five months landed below $0.30.
Monthly movements tell the arc. After a pre‑holiday level of $0.57 in November, CPC slid to $0.41 in December and $0.26 in January. A brief lift emerged in February ($0.37), then a soft March–April ($0.28 → $0.21). Costs recovered into May–June ($0.36 → $0.32) before a July dip ($0.16), a sharp August surge ($0.66, the period’s peak), and an abrupt September reset to the year’s low ($0.08). Volatility averaged a $0.20 absolute change per month—more than triple the global pace—highlighting a more elastic pricing environment.
Globally, CPCs were higher and steadier. The world median averaged about $1.14 over the same window, with a gentler glide from $1.47 in November 2024 to $0.95 in September 2025 (−35%), and an average monthly move of roughly $0.06.
Seasonality shows up in both series. Elevated late‑Q4 costs eased into Q1: South Africa’s Q4 2024 average (~$0.49) stepped down to ~$0.30 in Q1 2025, while the global benchmark moved from ~$1.38 to ~$1.14. Mid‑year, global CPCs cooled gradually through Q2–Q3, whereas South Africa’s pattern was flatter in average terms but far more uneven in monthly rhythm—July softness, August surge, September trough. Despite that August spike, quarterly South African averages in 2025 clustered tightly around ~$0.30, suggesting a stable center masked by outsized monthly swings.
In short, Facebook Ads CPC trends for Education in South Africa ran far below the global benchmark, with steady quarter‑to‑quarter averages but pronounced month‑to‑month swings—especially the August lift and September low. Understanding Facebook Ads cost‑per‑click benchmarks for the Education industry in South Africa helps marketers contextualize country‑specific ad costs and compare industry ad performance to global CPC analysis and broader Facebook Ads benchmarks.
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 Education industry, Facebook ad costs can be moderate, with higher costs for professional and specialized courses. 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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