Understand how your CPM compares. Dive into benchmark data by industry, region, and campaign type
February 2025 - February 2026
Detailed observation of presented data
South Africa’s Facebook Ads CPMs spent 2025 operating on a very different cost curve than the global benchmark: consistently lower, more variable, and with a late-year surge that arrived after a deep October trough. While the global market climbed steadily into a November peak, South Africa’s costs swung from sub-$1 lows to a December high above $6, sketching a choppier arc across the year. 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 South Africa compared to the global benchmark.
For all industries in South Africa, CPMs averaged roughly $2.82 in 2025, starting at $1.04 in January and ending at $6.48 in December. The monthly low landed in October at just $0.35, and the high arrived in December at $6.48, a nearly 18x climb from the October trough. Momentum built early (January to March rose from $1.04 to $5.07, +388%), moderated through Q2 (April–June ranged $3.74–$4.46), then broke sharply lower mid-year: by August CPMs were down to $0.91, roughly 80% below June levels. From there, the market rebounded into late Q4, lifting from $2.36 in November to the year’s peak in December.
Volatility in South Africa averaged 1.64 CPM points of absolute month-to-month change, indicating sharper swings than a smooth seasonal drift. The range across the year was wide—$0.35 to $6.48—underscoring how quickly country-specific ad costs reset around mid-year and again into the holidays.
Globally, CPMs told a steadier story. The 2025 global average came in at about $20.15, with a January low of $17.73, a November high of $25.22, and a year-end at $22.04—up roughly 24% from January. Average monthly movement was milder, at about 1.21 points.
Seasonally, South Africa’s CPMs formed a two-act pattern: a Q1 run-up into a Q2 plateau, followed by a pronounced Q3–October soft patch and a late Q4 surge. Quarterly averages highlight the rhythm: Q1 averaged $2.86, Q2 was the strongest at $4.10, Q3 slipped to $1.26, and Q4 recovered to $3.06, with December delivering the year’s high.
The global curve followed a more familiar arc, strengthening into Q4 as competition rose: Q1 averaged $18.29, Q2 $19.34, Q3 $19.97, and Q4 the highest at $22.98, peaking in November before easing in December.
South Africa’s CPMs ran far below global Facebook Ads benchmarks throughout 2025—averaging about 14% of global levels (roughly 86% lower). The gap narrowed and widened materially by month: at its closest in December, South Africa was 71% below global CPMs ($6.48 vs. $22.04), while the widest gap came in October at 98% below ($0.35 vs. $21.69). Relative momentum also diverged: the global market climbed steadily into November, whereas South Africa dipped to a deep October low before a sharp year-end rebound.
In short, South Africa combined structurally lower CPMs with higher month-to-month variability, tracing a mid-year slump and a late peak that contrasted with the global November crest.
Understanding Facebook Ads CPM benchmarks for all industries in South Africa helps marketers evaluate country-specific ad costs, interpret CPM analysis in context, and compare industry ad performance to global patterns.
Insights & analysis of Facebook advertising costs
Cost Per Mille (CPM) is the cost advertisers pay for 1,000 impressions of their Facebook ad. Different industries see varying ad costs due to market competition, user demographics, and conversion value. 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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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 (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.
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:
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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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