Understand how your CPC compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
November 2024 - November 2025
Detailed observation of presented data
The headline: Facebook Ads CPC trends for the Legal industry in the United States ran well above global benchmarks all year, with a steady climb from winter into a pronounced Q2 surge and a secondary late-summer lift. Costs were consistently elevated versus the market, and the category showed notably higher month‑to‑month movement than the global median. 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 Legal in the United States compared to the global benchmark.
Across November 2024 to October 2025, United States Legal CPCs averaged 3.04, starting at 2.77 in November and ending higher at 3.01 in October (+8.8% over the period). The low came in December at 2.20, followed by a gradual rebuild through Q1 (2.41 in January, 2.97 in February, 2.94 in March). The strongest stretch arrived in Q2, peaking at 3.71 in May—the annual high—before easing to 3.46 in June. After a mid-year dip to 2.93 in July, CPCs rebounded to 3.55 in August, then cooled to 3.19 in September and 3.01 in October.
Volatility averaged 0.37 points month over month, meaning typical monthly swings were about 12% of the annual average—materially more active than the global pattern. The sharpest jumps occurred from July to August (+0.62) and November to December (−0.56), while the calmest month was February to March (−0.03).
For context, the global Facebook Ads benchmarks for CPC averaged 1.14 over the same months, ranging from a high of 1.46 (November) to a low of 1.04 (September), with small average monthly changes of 0.05 points.
Seasonally, U.S. Legal CPCs softened into December, then rebuilt across Q1. Q2 was the strongest period by a clear margin (averaging 3.50 from April to June), culminating in the May high. A second, smaller wave arrived late summer, with August nearly matching Q2 levels before settling into early Q4. The year’s rhythm reads as a December trough, a spring lift, a summer pop, and a measured autumn cooldown—distinct from the flatter global profile.
Relative to the market, the Legal industry in the United States stayed persistently above average. CPCs were 1.7x to 3.3x global levels month to month, with the narrowest gap in December (+72%) and the widest in May and August (both around +225%). On a full-period basis, United States Legal averaged 3.04 versus the global 1.14—about 166% higher. Trendwise, the global benchmark slipped across the year (−28% from November to October), while U.S. Legal finished higher (+9%), and exhibited greater volatility (0.37 average monthly change vs. 0.05 globally), signaling more pronounced swings in country‑specific ad costs for this category.
Understanding Facebook Ads benchmarks for CPC in the Legal industry in the United States highlights a high-cost, high-variance category with pronounced Q2 strength and a late‑summer lift. These CPC trends provide a clear view of industry ad performance in the U.S. and how it compares to global 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 Legal industry, Facebook ad costs can be influenced by seasonal trends and market competition. For campaigns targeting United States, advertisers often face higher costs due to high competition and purchasing power. 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 (Thanksgiving & Black Friday weekend), December (Christmas), Back-to-school (July–September), Summer travel season (Memorial Day onwards)
CPM and CPC might rise around major holidays like Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day, especially in travel and entertainment. Black Friday/Thanksgiving weekend triggers massive spikes in retail ad competition. December ad demand typically peaks—retail campaigns require significantly higher budgets. Back-to-school promotions drive increased competition. Juneteenth may see regional engagement rise.
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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