CTR, CPC and CPM Calculator

The metrics of an ad campaign from impressions, clicks, cost and conversions. Everything the figures you have allow gets worked out.

Currency and number format for

CTR

—

CTR—

Cost per click—

Cost per thousand impressions—

Conversion rate—

Cost per conversion—

Conversion on impressions—

How this was worked out

The formula

CTR = clicks ÷ impressions × 100 · CPC = cost ÷ clicks · CPM = cost ÷ impressions × 1,000

What it means

An impression is one showing of the ad; a click, one visit. CTR measures how appealing the ad is and CPC what each visit costs. CPM is for comparing awareness campaigns, where the aim is not the click but being seen.

How to work it out by hand

Divide the clicks by the impressions for the CTR
Divide the cost by the clicks for the CPC
Divide the cost by the impressions and multiply by a thousand for the CPM
Divide the conversions by the clicks for the conversion rate

What is worth knowing

A CTR below 1 % on search usually means the ad does not match what people are looking for; on display, 0.5 % is already normal. And there is a common trap: a lower CPC is not always better. Cheap clicks tend to come from worse-qualified traffic, and what matters in the end is cost per conversion, not per click.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good CTR?

On search, above 2 % is fine and 5 % is very good. On display, 0.5 % is already normal.

How is CPM calculated?

Divide the cost by the impressions and multiply by a thousand. It is the cost of reaching a thousand people.

Is a lower CPC better?

Not always. Cheap clicks tend to be worse qualified. Look at cost per conversion, which is what counts.