Understand how your CPC compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
January 2025 - January 2026
Detailed observation of presented data
Retail advertisers in the United States ran consistently cheaper clicks than the global market through 2025, with a clear Q4 surge-and-reset pattern and sharper month-to-month swings than the worldwide benchmark. Median CPCs sat comfortably below global levels most of the year, spiked in November, then fell hard in December before stabilizing into January 2026. 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 Retail in the United States compared to the global benchmark.
Across January–December 2025, United States Retail CPCs averaged $0.98 versus $1.13 globally (about 13% lower). The period opened at $1.07 in January 2025 and ended at $0.89 in January 2026, a 17% decline over the 13-month window. The year’s high came in November at $1.25, followed by the low in December at $0.83; that 42-cent range outstretched the global 2025 range (26 cents).
Monthly rhythm was defined by modest moves early in the year, a mid-year soft spot, and a pronounced Q4 whipsaw. The largest month-to-month jump landed in November (+29% from October), and the steepest drop followed immediately in December (−33% from November). On average, CPCs moved about 9 cents per month, showing more volatility than the global benchmark’s 7-cent average shift.
Quarter by quarter, the pattern was measured but clear. Q1 2025 averaged $1.01, Q2 held near $1.00, Q3 marked the trough at $0.92, and Q4 rebounded to $1.02 despite the December low—lifted by November’s holiday surge.
The series tracked familiar Retail seasonality on Facebook Ads benchmarks. Costs were relatively firm in Q1, then softened into mid-year as summer performance-driven buying eased. Q3 represented the softest quarter, with July ($0.89) and August ($0.93) anchoring the trough. Q4 brought heightened competition: October edged up to $0.97, November spiked to $1.25, and December reset to $0.83. Early 2026 showed a mild recovery to $0.89, still below the prior January.
Relative to the global CPC trend, United States Retail stayed below market most of 2025 by 5–21% each month. The gap was tightest in January (about 5% lower) and November (about 5% lower), and widest in December (about 21% lower). The only month above the global line was January 2026, when United States Retail CPC ($0.89) ran about 5% higher than the global figure ($0.85) as worldwide costs dropped more sharply.
Trend shape was similar but choppier in the United States: both markets peaked in November, but the United States posted a larger November lift (+29% vs. global +17%) and a more pronounced December pullback (−33% vs. global −20%). Overall volatility also ran higher in the United States (average monthly move of $0.09 vs. $0.07 globally), even as the full-year average stayed firmly below the worldwide CPC level.
Taken together, these CPC trends outline a clear, data-backed benchmark for Retail in the United States: consistently below global costs, a mid-year trough, and a pronounced Q4 surge followed by a December reset. Understanding Facebook Ads CPC benchmarks for the Retail industry in the United States helps teams evaluate country-specific ad costs and compare industry ad performance 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 Retail 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.
This dataset updates frequently as new ad data flows in. It will only get bigger and better.
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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