Google Display Network averages $0.90 CPC and $4.20 CPM. TikTok Ads is bought on CPM only, averaging $10.80. Analysis for Singapore in 2026.
Singapore is APAC's premium English-speaking advertising hub, with CPMs running roughly 20% above US baselines. It punches dramatically above its population (~5.9M) because the city-state functions as a regional headquarters for multinationals targeting Southeast Asia. Google, Meta, and TikTok dominate, with Shopee Ads and Lazada Sponsored Solutions providing meaningful retail-media opportunities. Singaporean consumers are digitally sophisticated, multilingual (English plus Mandarin, Malay, or Tamil for different segments), and price-comparison-driven across categories. PDPA (Personal Data Protection Act) governs privacy and was tightened in 2021 with mandatory data breach notification. Mobile-first commerce is universal; QR-code payment adoption is among the world's highest.
Display advertising across Google's network of partner sites
Short-form video advertising on TikTok
The auction, the creative, the budget floor — the three things you actually need to know before picking a platform.
GDN buys impressions across 2M+ publisher sites via a real-time auction. You can bid CPC or CPM depending on the campaign goal. CPCs are 4–7x lower than search, but conversion rates are also lower — it's a top-of-funnel channel, not a decision-point channel.
Responsive Display Ads: 15 images (1200×628 landscape, 1200×1200 square, 1200×1500 portrait), 5 logos, 5 short headlines (30ch), 5 long headlines (90ch), 5 descriptions (90ch). Google auto-assembles.
$30–75/day gets a display campaign to statistical signal, though retargeting audiences reach signal faster and are the recommended entry point for smaller budgets.
TikTok Ads runs on CPM ($8–12 typical, higher for premium placements like TopView). CPC is available but the platform's optimization heavily favors CPM-bid campaigns. Auction density is lower than Meta but growing quickly; creative quality dominates.
9:16 vertical video (1080×1920), 9-60s (best performance 15-30s), native-feeling — polished ads underperform UGC-style creative here by 2-3x. Sound-on is standard. Captions optional but boost completion.
$500/day ($15K/month) is the practical floor for the Traffic and Conversion objectives to exit learning phase in a reasonable window. Smaller budgets work for Awareness and Video View goals.