Facebook Ads CTR Benchmarks in South Africa

Introduction

South Africa’s Facebook Ads click‑through‑rate (CTR) told a choppy story against the global benchmark: a subdued start, a sharp mid‑year lift, a dramatic September spike, and a hard reset in October. Across all industries, South Africa averaged 1.39% CTR over the period—trailing the global 1.80%—with markedly higher month‑to‑month swings than the worldwide pattern. The standout moments were a September surge to 3.99% and an October drop to 0.17%, bookending one of the most volatile runs in the dataset.

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.

The story in the data

• Starting at 1.16% in November 2024, South Africa ended at 0.17% in October 2025—an 86% decline across the window.
• The high was 3.99% in September; the low was 0.17% in October. The 12‑month median hovered far lower than the September peak, with the full‑period average at 1.39%.
• Early 2025 was soft: CTR dipped from 1.17% in December to 0.62% in January (−47% m/m) and held near that floor in February (0.61%). March rebounded to 1.33% (+117% m/m), steadying through April–May (~1.28–1.30%).
• Momentum accelerated in June (1.91%, +47% m/m), cooled in July (1.66%) and August (1.44%), then spiked in September to 3.99% (+176% m/m) before collapsing in October to 0.17% (−96% m/m).
• Volatility averaged 0.80 points per month in South Africa, far sharper than the global benchmark’s 0.05‑point average move.

Globally, CTR was steadier and trended upward: from 1.75% in November 2024 to 2.04% in October 2025 (+16%). The global high arrived in October; the low was in February (1.66%). The global average across the same months was 1.80%.

Seasonal and monthly dynamics

• Q4 2024 (Nov–Dec) in South Africa was consistent around 1.17%, before a Q1 trough averaged 0.85% (Jan–Mar), reflecting a low‑engagement stretch.
• Q2 (Apr–Jun) showed rebuilding momentum to 1.50% on average, culminating in June’s 1.91%.
• Q3 (Jul–Sep) was the strongest quarter at 2.36% on average, driven by September’s outsized 3.99% spike.
• October reset sharply to 0.17%, diverging from the global pattern that typically tightens and lifts into late Q3–Q4.

South Africa vs. Global

• On average, South Africa’s CTR was roughly 23% below the global benchmark (1.39% vs. 1.80%).
• South Africa trailed global levels in 10 of 12 months. The gap narrowed to 12% below in July and flipped above market twice: +5% in June (1.91% vs. 1.81%) and +109% in September (3.99% vs. 1.91%).
• The widest underperformance was October, when South Africa’s 0.17% lagged the 2.04% global median by 92%. Early‑year gaps were also pronounced (January–February were ~63% below global).
• Trend lines diverged: the global series rose steadily (+16%), while South Africa’s net change over the period was −86%—a more volatile, surge‑and‑slump arc.

Closing

Overall, Facebook Ads benchmarks for CTR in all industries in South Africa show a market that operated below global averages for most of the year but with dramatic surges, notably in September. This CTR performance profile—averaging 1.39% vs. the global 1.80%, with higher volatility—offers a clear, country‑specific read on engagement dynamics that marketers can compare to worldwide Facebook Ads benchmarks for all industries in South Africa.