Understand how your CPC compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
November 2024 - November 2025
Detailed observation of presented data
Across all industries in the United Arab Emirates, Facebook Ads CPC trends told a two-part story: a steady climb through the first half of the period, followed by an abrupt late-summer reset. Compared to the global Facebook Ads benchmarks, the UAE consistently priced below market, briefly closing the gap in June before widening again with a sharp September low. Volatility was meaningfully higher than the global baseline, concentrated in two outsized moves mid-to-late Q3.
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 all industries in the United Arab Emirates compared to the global benchmark.
UAE CPC started at 0.67 in November 2024 and ended at 0.02 in September 2025 after a dramatic drop. The period averaged 0.70; excluding the September outlier, the average rises to 0.77. The high arrived in June at 0.99, with a secondary band of elevated costs in April (0.89) and May (0.96). The lowest point was September’s 0.02, far below the mid-year range.
Momentum built from January (0.65) through June, lifting CPC by 54% over that span: Feb (+19%), Mar (+13%), Apr (+3%), May (+7%), Jun (+4%). The run-up then reversed. July fell 41% from June (0.58), August nudged higher to 0.61 (+5%), and September plunged 98% month-over-month to 0.02.
Volatility averaged 0.15 per month in absolute terms, notably higher than the global trend. Stripping out the July slide and September drop, typical month-to-month movement was closer to 0.07—suggesting a relatively orderly uptrend through H1 punctured by two late-summer breaks.
Seasonally, the UAE diverged from common global patterns. While global CPCs generally eased from late Q4 into Q2, the UAE market strengthened through Q1 and peaked in Q2. Quarterly medians illustrate the rhythm:
In contrast, Q4 2024 in the UAE (0.67 in November and 0.73 in December) remained comparatively moderate, while the first half of 2025 showed firming costs before the Q3 reset.
Against the global benchmark, the United Arab Emirates priced below average throughout. The UAE averaged 0.70 vs. a global 1.14, a 38% discount on country-specific ad costs. The gap narrowed steadily from November (−55%) to a near-parity moment in June (−4%), before widening sharply in July (−45%), August (−42%), and especially September (−98%).
Trend-wise, the global benchmark moved lower in a controlled fashion (−35% from November to September), with average monthly absolute changes of 0.06. The UAE’s path was choppier: a pronounced six-month climb (+49% from November to June), followed by a two-stage retreat, and a higher average monthly move of 0.15 driven by late-summer swings.
Taken together, these Facebook Ads benchmarks underscore CPC trends for all industries in the United Arab Emirates: a first-half rise to a June high near global levels, followed by a volatile Q3 and a rare September low. Understanding cost-per-click benchmarks in the United Arab Emirates helps contextualize country-specific ad costs against global CPC patterns across all industries.
Insights & analysis of Facebook advertising costs
Cost Per Click (CPC) is the amount advertisers pay each time a user clicks on their Facebook ad. Different industries see varying ad costs due to market competition, user demographics, and conversion value. For campaigns targeting United Arab Emirates, 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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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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Ramadan + Eid (Mar–Apr), End of November–December (UAE National Day, Christmas, New Year), Dubai Shopping Festival (mid-Dec through Jan)
CPMs may rise sharply during Ramadan and Eid, especially in e‑commerce, gifting, F&B, and beauty sectors. UAE National Day campaigns could lead to high local bidding activity in travel, banking, and luxury retail. Dubai Shopping Festival drives elevated CPMs from mid-December to mid-January. Islamic holidays shift each year, affecting year-over-year comparisons.
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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