Last updated July 1, 2026 high pricing High intent searches Local businesses E-commerce

Google Ads PPC Benchmarks 2026

Search advertising on Google - pay per click on search results

Avg. CPC
$5.42
Cost per click
Top Industries
E-commerce · B2B
Strongest performance
How to read this page: These benchmarks are weighted averages from multiple data sources (see /benchmarks for the full data dictionary). Your actual Google Ads PPC costs will vary by industry, audience size, geography, ad quality score, and seasonality. Use the table below to find figures specific to your industry, and the calculators near the bottom to plan against your own targets.

Google Ads PPC Benchmarks by Industry

Per-industry estimates derived by scaling Google Ads PPC's baseline costs by each industry's multiplier relative to the cross-industry average. Click any industry to see the full side-by-side comparison.

Industry Est. CPC Industry CPA Top 3?
E-commerce $1.71 $48.00 Top 3 Details
B2B $7.74 $93.69 Top 3 Details
Education $6.34 $77.48 Top 3 Details
Finance $4.47 $74.44 Top 3 Details
Healthcare $8.13 $67.36 Top 3 Details
Retail $2.99 $44.26 — Details
Tech/SaaS $7.74 $93.69 Top 3 Details
Real Estate $4.24 $102.51 Top 3 Details

Estimates derived from baseline platform cost × (industry metric ÷ cross-industry average). For exact figures from your account, run a search query report or campaign benchmark export.

Compare Google Ads PPC with Other Platforms

Side-by-side cost and use-case breakdowns against the most common alternatives.

Google Ads PPC vs Bing Ads PPC

CPC: $5.42 vs $2.71

Search advertising on Bing - often lower cost than Google

Full comparison

Google Ads PPC vs Google Display Network

CPC: $5.42 vs $0.75

Display advertising across Google's network of partner sites

Full comparison

Google Ads PPC vs Programmatic Display

CPC: $5.42 vs $0.55

Automated display ad buying across multiple exchanges

Full comparison

Google Ads PPC vs Meta Ads

CPC: $5.42 vs $1.10

Facebook and Instagram advertising - highly targetable social ads

Full comparison

Google Ads PPC vs LinkedIn Ads

CPC: $5.42 vs $6.50

B2B professional network advertising - premium pricing

Full comparison

Google Ads PPC vs OTT (Over-The-Top)

Connected TV and streaming platforms (Hulu, Roku, etc.)

Full comparison
View all platform comparisons

Calculators for Google Ads PPC

Free, no-signup tools to model your Google Ads PPC campaigns.

ROAS Calculator

Return on Ad Spend across any platform.

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CPM Calculator

Cost per 1,000 impressions.

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CPA Calculator

Cost per acquisition / conversion.

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CTR Calculator

Click-through rate from impressions & clicks.

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Conversion Rate Calculator

Conversion rate from visitors & conversions.

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Break-Even ROAS

Minimum ROAS to break even by margin.

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Frequently Asked Questions

As of July 1, 2026, the average cost-per-click on Google Ads PPC is $5.42. Actual CPC varies by industry, audience targeting, ad quality, and bid strategy. Industries that typically perform well on Google Ads PPC include E-commerce, B2B, Education.

On a CPC basis, Google Ads PPC is the lower-cost option of the two, with a difference of roughly 17%. Cost shouldn't be the only factor though — audience fit, conversion intent, and creative format matter just as much. Use our side-by-side comparison to weigh the trade-offs.

Google Ads PPC consistently performs well for E-commerce, B2B, Education. These industries appear in the platform's top-three performer list in the latest benchmark data. Best-for use cases include high intent searches, local businesses, e-commerce.

Benchmark data on this page is refreshed quarterly. The current dataset was last updated on July 1, 2026. The next scheduled refresh is October 1, 2026.

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Full benchmarks data & comparison charts.

Industry breakdowns

Browse benchmark data sliced by industry.

Free calculators

ROAS, CPM, CPA, CTR, and more.