Understand how your CPC compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
January 2025 - January 2026
Detailed observation of presented data
Manufacturing advertisers in South Africa posted an exceptionally low Facebook Ads cost-per-click in July 2025: $0.04. Set against the global CPC benchmark, which hovered near $1.11 across the same period, South Africa’s single-month reading lands dramatically below market norms and arrives during a mid‑year stretch when global CPCs generally eased before a sharp Q4 surge. 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 Manufacturing in South Africa compared to the global benchmark.
Across the global benchmark, CPC trends started 2025 at $1.12 in January and edged higher through spring, peaking at $1.15 in May. Costs softened into late summer—$1.10 in June, $1.10 in July, and $1.09 in September—before rising into a clear seasonal spike: $1.32 in November, then resetting to $1.05 in December and descending further to $0.85 in January 2026. Over the 13-month window, the global average CPC was $1.11 (2025-only average: $1.13). The high came in November 2025 ($1.32) and the low in January 2026 ($0.85), a peak-to-trough range of $0.47—roughly 42% of the average.
Month-to-month volatility for the global benchmark averaged about $0.07, or roughly 6% of the mean, with the most pronounced moves clustered in Q4 and the turn into Q1. October to November rose by 17%, while November to December fell by 20%, followed by another 20% decline into January 2026. From January 2025 to January 2026, the global series retreated about 25%.
Against that backdrop, South Africa’s Manufacturing CPC in July 2025 printed at $0.04. Relative to the same month’s global median ($1.10), the market sat around 96% lower. Relative to the full-period global average ($1.11), it was also about 96% below. It’s a singular, sharply discounted point within a global context that was otherwise mid‑year and comparatively steady.
Globally, CPCs showed a familiar rhythm: stable-to-soft through mid‑year, a pronounced run‑up into November, then a reset in December and softer levels in early Q1. July, where South Africa’s Manufacturing CPC is observed, coincided with one of the calmer global months (~$1.10). The subsequent pattern—Q4 inflation followed by a new-year cooling—aligns with broader Facebook Ads benchmarks and is consistent with dynamics often seen in CPM analysis and CTR performance trends across industries.
Viewed through Facebook Ads benchmarks, the July 2025 CPC for Manufacturing in South Africa is an extreme outlier versus the global market, occurring during a typically steady mid‑year interval before the global Q4 spike. Understanding CPC trends for Manufacturing in South Africa—alongside the global benchmark—helps quantify country-specific ad costs and places local industry ad performance in context with 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 Manufacturing 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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