Cost-per-click (CPC), also known as pay per click (PPC), is how much you pay per click on an advertising platform. Most platforms, such as Google Ads and Meta Ads Manager, offer a model where you, as the advertiser, only pay for the clicks your ads generate.
Since your ads (hopefully) generate more than one click, CPC is often shown as an average.
Calculate CPC by dividing the ad spend by the number of clicks your ad has received.
Let’s look at an example:
- Your local flower shop has run an ad that generated 100 clicks with an ad spend of $50.
- 50 / 100 = $0,5
- The CPC for the campaign is $0,5
This does not mean that you pay $0,5 for every click, some clicks might have cost more and some less, but the average is $0,5.