Understand how your CPM compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
January 2025 - January 2026
Detailed observation of presented data
Legal advertising ran expensive and energetic across all countries in 2025. CPMs climbed from a soft start in January to a clear October peak, eased into year‑end, then reset sharply in January 2026. Compared to the global benchmark, Legal stayed markedly above market for most of the year, with a dramatic swing below the baseline at the start of 2026. This combination of elevated pricing and pronounced month‑to‑month moves defined the category’s momentum.
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 the Legal industry across all countries compared to the global benchmark.
Legal CPMs opened 2025 at 33.86, rose steadily through spring, and peaked at 62.91 in October before easing to 50.47 in November and 51.47 in December. The year averaged 49.7, ranging from 33.9 (January) to 62.9 (October). Notable shifts included strong lifts in April (+9.75 points vs. March) and August (+10.16 vs. July), and the sharpest decline in November (−12.44 vs. October). Month‑over‑month volatility averaged 6.13 points—far more active than the global pattern.
Momentum then reversed abruptly: January 2026 fell to 14.26, a 72% drop from December and 77% below October’s high—the lowest point across the full period. From January to December 2025, Legal CPMs rose 52%, illustrating a persistent build through the year before the early‑Q1 reset.
Seasonality is visible in the rhythm: Q1 was the softest stretch (average 37.4), followed by higher CPMs through Q2 (53.8) and Q3 (52.5). Q4 delivered the priciest inventory (54.9) with October as the pinnacle. A light July dip interrupted the mid‑year climb, but momentum quickly returned in August and September. Performance typically softens through Q4 as competition rises, with engagement rebounding in early Q1; here, the Legal category paired that typical Q4 elevation with a more pronounced than usual January comedown.
Against the global benchmark (2025 average 20.15), Legal CPMs across all countries ran high throughout 2025, averaging 49.7—about 147% above market. The premium ranged from roughly +91% to +194% through the year: it was narrowest in January and November (about 1.9–2.0x the global CPM) and widest in May and October (about 2.9x). While the global line rose a modest 24% from January to December, Legal climbed 52% over the same stretch and was far more volatile: average monthly swings were 6.13 points versus 1.21 globally (about 5x more movement). The exception arrived in January 2026, when Legal CPMs dropped to 14.26, roughly 9% below the global 15.74—an uncommon below‑benchmark moment after a year of consistent above‑market pricing.
This CPM analysis of Facebook Ads benchmarks shows that the Legal industry across all countries carried a sustained above‑market premium in 2025, punctuated by an October high and an outsized January correction. Understanding Facebook Ads CPM benchmarks for the Legal industry across all countries helps teams compare country‑specific ad costs and industry ad performance to global patterns alongside related CPC trends and CTR performance.
Insights & analysis of Facebook advertising costs
Cost Per Mille (CPM) is the cost advertisers pay for 1,000 impressions of their Facebook ad. In the Legal industry, Facebook ad costs can be influenced by seasonal trends and market competition. Geographic targeting affects ad costs based on market competition and user engagement in different regions. 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.
CPMs are heavily influenced by competition, seasonality (e.g., Q4 costs more), audience size, and ad quality. Smaller audiences and lower relevance scores often lead to higher CPMs.
Different campaign objectives, bidding strategies, and even time of day can change your CPM. For example, conversion campaigns usually have higher CPMs than traffic ones. Also, broad targeting tends to drive lower CPMs.
In most industries, CPMs range from $5 to $18 depending on the region and objective. Retail and e-comm campaigns often sit at the higher end. Our live data above shows a breakdown by country and industry.
Both matter, but audience quality (intent + match with your offer) usually has more impact than pure size. However, extremely tight audiences often lead to expensive CPMs due to limited delivery opportunities.
Depends on your goal. For awareness, CPM is more relevant. For performance campaigns, CPC and CPA matter more. But all are connected—inefficient CPMs can inflate your entire funnel.
Discover detailed cost benchmarks for different Facebook advertising metrics:
Average cost per click benchmarks across industries
Cost per thousand impressions across different markets
Benchmark click-through rates for Facebook ads
Cost per lead across different markets
Average cost per purchase benchmarks across industries
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