# Industry Benchmarks 2026

<!-- Updated: 2026-02-10 -->
<!-- Sources: Claude Research (WordStream/LocaliQ 16K campaigns, Triple Whale 2025), Gemini Research -->

## Google Ads — Search Benchmarks

### All Industries Average (WordStream/LocaliQ 2025, 16K campaigns)
| Metric | Average | YoY Change |
|--------|---------|------------|
| CTR | 6.66% | +3.74% |
| CPC | $5.26 | Up for 87% of industries (fifth consecutive year of increases) |
| CVR | 7.52% | Up for 65% of industries |
| CPL | ~$70 | +5% |

### By Industry (Search)
| Industry | CPC | CTR | CVR | CPL |
|----------|-----|-----|-----|-----|
| Arts & Entertainment | $1.60 | 13.10% | — | — |
| Travel | $2.12 | — | — | — |
| Restaurants | $2.05 | — | — | — |
| E-commerce | $1.15 | 4.13% | 2.81% | — |
| B2B SaaS | $4.50-$8.00 | 4.28% | 1.65% | $100-$200 |
| Education | $6.23 | — | — | — |
| Local Services | $7.85-$15.00 | 5.50%-6.37% | 7.33%-15.0% | $90.92 |
| Dental | $7.85 | 5.44% | — | — |
| Healthcare | $40+ | 4.90% | 3.10% | — |
| Legal | $8.58-$9.21 | 5.20%-5.97% | 4.60%-5.09% | — |
| Finance | $3.46-$3.77 | 4.65%-8.33% | 2.55%-3.50% | — |
| Real Estate | $1.55-$2.53 | 8.43% | 3.28% | — |

### E-commerce Specific (Triple Whale 2025)
| Metric | Median | YoY Change |
|--------|--------|------------|
| CPA | $23.74 | +12.35% |
| CPM | $12.79 | +10.01% |
| ROAS | 3.68 | -10.03% |

Note: CTR improved across all 14 tracked industries while CVR declined in 13 of 14.

## Meta Ads Benchmarks

### By Objective (WordStream 2025, 1K campaigns)
| Objective | CTR | CPC | CVR | CPL |
|-----------|-----|-----|-----|-----|
| Traffic (all) | 1.71% | $0.70 | — | — |
| Leads (all) | 2.59% | $1.92 | 7.72% | $27.66 |

### ROAS Benchmarks
| Segment | ROAS |
|---------|------|
| All industries median | 2.19:1 |
| Retargeting | 3.61:1 |
| Advantage+ Sales | 4.52:1 |

### CPM by Industry
| Industry | CPM |
|----------|-----|
| Arts & Entertainment | $5.82 (lowest) |
| Most industries | $6-$8 |
| E-commerce | $12.50 |
| Local Services | $18.00 |
| Healthcare | $28.00 |
| B2B SaaS | $35.00 |
| Healthcare (highest) | $36.82 |
| Legal | $45.00 |
| Finance | $50.00 |

### CPC Trend
- January 2026: $0.85 (24% below prior January)
- November 2025 peak: $1.32 (Q4 surge)

### Creative Fatigue Thresholds
| Signal | Warning | Fail |
|--------|---------|------|
| Frequency (prospecting) | >3 | >5 |
| Frequency (retargeting) | >8 | >12 |
| CTR decline over 14 days | — | >20% |
| Exposures before conversion drop (~45%) | 4 | — |
| TOF creative lifespan | 3-4 weeks | — |
| BOF creative lifespan | 6-7 weeks | — |

## LinkedIn Ads Benchmarks

| Metric | Benchmark |
|--------|-----------|
| Average CPC | $5-$7 globally; median $3.94 |
| Average CPM | $31-$38 |
| CTR (Sponsored Content) | 0.44%-0.65% |
| CTR (exceptional) | >1.0% |
| Average CPL | $60-$150+ |
| Lead Gen Form CVR | 13% (3.25× higher than landing pages) |
| Message Ads CTR | 3% (30% open rate) |
| Conversation Ads | 50% open rate, 10-12% CTR |
| B2B ROAS | 113% ($1.13 per $1) |
| TLA CPC | $2.29-$4.14 (vs $13.23 standard) |
| TLA CTR | 1.7× higher than standard |
| Min daily budget | $10/day |

### CPL by Industry
| Industry | CPL |
|----------|-----|
| Education | $64 |
| Media | $65 |
| Retail | $80 |
| Manufacturing | $100 |
| Finance | $100 |
| Software & IT | $125 |
| Healthcare | $125 |

### Cost Factors
- Senior decision-makers (VP/Director/C-suite): $6.40+ CPC
- North America premium: 40-50% above global averages
- CPC YoY trend: +8% (2025)
- Q3 highest CPC ($15.72); Q4/Q1 typically lower

## TikTok Ads Benchmarks

| Metric | Range | Average |
|--------|-------|---------|
| CPM | $3.21-$10 | ~$4.26 |
| CPC | $0.20-$2.00 | ~$1.00 |
| CTR | 0.5%-1.5% | ~0.84% |
| CVR | 0.3%-1.0% | ~0.46% |
| Engagement Rate | 5-16% | Far exceeds FB 0.09%, IG 1.22% |

### Format Comparison
| Format | CTR | CPA |
|--------|-----|-----|
| Spark Ads | ~3% | ~$60 |
| Standard In-Feed | ~2% | ~$100 |

### Key Thresholds
- Minimum campaign budget: $50/day
- Minimum ad group budget: $20/day
- Learning phase exit: ~50 conversions in 7 days
- TikTok Shop CVR: >10% (vs 0.46-2.4% standard)
- CPM advantage: 40-60% cheaper than Meta

### Smart+ Performance
- Median ROAS: 1.41-1.67
- Adoption: 42% of US TikTok performance campaigns

## Microsoft Ads Benchmarks

| Metric | Value | vs Google |
|--------|-------|-----------|
| Average CPC | $1.20-$1.55 | 20-35% discount |
| Average CTR | 2.83-3.1% | Higher than Google ~2.0% |
| Copilot CTR | 73% higher | vs traditional search |
| Copilot CVR | 16% stronger | vs traditional search |
| Users click paid ads | 25% more often | vs Google users |
| Higher ROAS reported | 37% of advertisers | vs Google |

### Copilot Checkout (January 2026)
- Users discover, compare, and purchase within Copilot conversations
- 194% more likely to purchase when shopping intent is present
- Ads in Copilot must be clearly labeled

### User Demographics
- ~50% in top 25% household incomes
- 34% hold degrees
- 45-64 age group: 38% of searches
- US all-devices share: 8.78% (record)
- US desktop share: 16.75-17.58%
- With Yahoo/AOL partners: ~25% US desktop

## ROAS Benchmarks by Industry (Cross-Platform)

| Industry | Google | Meta | LinkedIn | TikTok |
|----------|--------|------|----------|--------|
| E-commerce | 3.68 | 2.19-4.52 (ASC) | N/A | 1.41-1.67 |
| B2B SaaS | N/A | N/A | 1.13 | N/A |
| Legal | 3.0 | — | — | — |
| Finance | 3.5 | — | — | — |
| Healthcare | 2.8 | — | — | — |
| Local Services | 5.0 | — | — | — |

## Landing Page Benchmarks

| Metric | Value |
|--------|-------|
| Mobile traffic share | 82.9% |
| 1s load → CVR vs 5s load | 3× higher |
| 1s delay | -7% conversions |
| Median CVR across industries | 6.6% |
| Top 10% CVR | 20%+ |
| QS landing page high → CPC impact | 50% discount |
| QS landing page low → CPC impact | 400% extra |

## Minimum Viable Ad Budgets

| Platform | Minimum Monthly | Rationale |
|----------|----------------|-----------|
| Google Ads | $1,000+ | Need 15+ conversions/month for Smart Bidding |
| Meta Ads | $600-$800 | Need 50 conv/week per ad set for learning |
| LinkedIn Ads | $3,000+ | High CPCs ($5-$35) require scale |
| TikTok Ads | $300+ | Low CPMs but need creative volume |
| Microsoft Ads | 20-30% of Google budget | Proportional to search volume |
