Free tool · Online ads
Cost Per Lead Calculator: Is Your Cost Per Lead Good?
The short answer
Cost per lead is ad spend divided by the leads it brought in: $2,000 for 25 leads is $80 a lead. Whether that is good depends on what a lead is worth to you, which is your profit per customer times the share of leads that buy. For reference, LocaliQ's 2026 averages are $66.69 a lead for Google Search ads and $27.39 for Meta lead campaigns, across all industries.
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How the calculator works
Enter what you spent and how many leads it brought in. The calculator gives your cost per lead and, if you choose where the ads ran and your industry, sets it against LocaliQ's 2026 average for the same platform and industry. The optional sections answer the question the average cannot: whether your leads make money.
| What | Formula |
|---|---|
| Cost per lead (CPL) | Ad spend ÷ leads |
| Cost per customer | Cost per lead ÷ close rate |
| Most you can pay per lead | Gross profit per customer × close rate |
| Cost per click (CPC) | Ad spend ÷ clicks |
| Click to lead rate | Leads ÷ clicks |
| Cost per 1,000 impressions (CPM) | Ad spend ÷ impressions × 1,000 |
| Click-through rate (CTR) | Clicks ÷ impressions |
A worked example: a clinic spent $2,000 on Google Search ads and got 25 enquiries, so each cost $80, about 20% above LocaliQ's all-industry average of $66.69. One enquiry in five books, so each new patient cost $400 in ads. A new patient leaves $600 of gross profit, so the clinic could pay up to $120 a lead and still break even. At $80, the campaign makes money, even though it is above the average.
Average cost per lead by industry, 2026
These are the averages the calculator compares you with, from LocaliQ's 2026 Search Advertising Benchmarks (last updated June 1, 2026) and the lead-campaign figures in its 2026 Facebook Ads Benchmarks (last updated September 23, 2026), both made with WordStream.
| Industry | Google Search ads | Meta lead ads |
|---|---|---|
| All industries | $66.69 | $27.39 |
| Animals & Pets | $31.50 | – |
| Apparel / Fashion & Jewelry | $97.51 | – |
| Arts & Entertainment | $26.84 | $14.59 |
| Attorneys & Legal Services | $131.63 | – |
| Automotive: For Sale | $44.26 | $35.52 |
| Automotive: Repair, Service & Parts | $29.96 | – |
| Beauty & Personal Care | $39.25 | $50.91 |
| Business Services | $93.69 | – |
| Career & Employment | $67.36 | $12.30 |
| Dentists & Dental Services | $72.97 | $61.56 |
| Education & Instruction | $77.48 | $26.31 |
| Finance & Insurance | $74.44 | – |
| Furniture | $106.70 | $39.25 |
| Health & Fitness | $67.36 | $27.11 |
| Home & Home Improvement | $90.92 | $42.95 |
| Industrial & Commercial | $75.19 | $35.87 |
| Personal Services | $54.60 | $38.09 |
| Physicians & Surgeons | $40.04 | $32.14 |
| Real Estate | $102.51 | $13.74 |
| Restaurants & Food | $30.57 | – |
| Shopping, Collectibles & Gifts | $49.40 | – |
| Sports & Recreation | $44.26 | $15.49 |
| Travel | $44.70 | – |
A dash means LocaliQ gives no Meta lead-campaign figure for that industry. Read the averages with three limits in mind. They come from LocaliQ's and WordStream's customers' campaigns, and LocaliQ does not say which dates or countries they cover. They are in US dollars. And a lead is whatever each advertiser counted as one, from a form fill to a phone call.
Why the average is not your target
Two businesses in the same industry can have the same cost per lead and opposite results. A $90 lead is expensive for a business that sells a $200 service and closes one lead in ten. It is cheap for one that sells $5,000 projects and closes one in four. That is why the calculator asks for your close rate and profit per customer: together they give the most you can pay per lead, which is the line that decides whether the ads make money. Our break-even ROAS calculator works the same limit out for online stores as well.
Cheap leads can also hide a problem. Meta's lead forms open inside Facebook or Instagram, so it takes little effort to become a lead, and some people who do never answer the phone. Track how many leads from each platform become customers before you move budget toward the cheaper one.
How to lower your cost per lead
Cost per lead is cost per click divided by the share of clicks that become leads, so there are two ways down:
- Raise the click to lead rate. A landing page that loads fast, matches the ad, asks for little and shows proof converts more of the same clicks. On Google Search, tight keyword matching keeps out searches that were never going to enquire. Our guide to Google Ads clicks with no conversions goes through the usual causes, and the one on Facebook ads that get clicks but no sales covers Meta.
- Lower the cost per click. Better-matched ads and keywords, and dropping placements or audiences that cost more than they bring in.
Then make each lead worth more: answer fast and follow up, because a higher close rate raises the most you can afford per lead. See how to automate lead follow-up. To plan a budget from a target number of leads, use the ad budget calculator.
Sources
All checked November 4, 2026.
- LocaliQ and WordStream, 2026 Search Advertising Benchmarks, last updated June 1, 2026.
- LocaliQ and WordStream, 2026 Facebook Ads Benchmarks, last updated September 23, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate cost per lead?
Divide the ad spend by the number of leads it produced over the same period. $2,000 of spend that brought in 25 enquiries is $2,000 ÷ 25 = $80 per lead. Count only leads you can trace to the ads, and use the same dates for spend and leads.
What is a good cost per lead?
One below the most you can afford, which is your gross profit per customer times your close rate. If a customer leaves $600 of profit and one lead in five buys, any cost per lead under $120 makes money. Industry averages are a reference: LocaliQ's 2026 figures range from $26.84 (arts and entertainment) to $131.63 (attorneys and legal services) on Google Search.
What is the average cost per lead on Google Ads?
LocaliQ's 2026 Search Advertising Benchmarks, last updated June 1, 2026, put the all-industry average at $66.69 per lead, based on its and WordStream's customers' campaigns. The page does not state the dates or countries covered.
What is the average cost per lead on Facebook and Instagram ads?
LocaliQ's 2026 Facebook Ads Benchmarks, last updated September 23, 2026, put the all-industry average for lead campaigns at $27.39, with a $1.80 average cost per click and an 8.54% conversion rate.
Why are Meta leads cheaper than Google leads?
Meta's lead forms reach people while they scroll and open inside Facebook or Instagram, without a visit to your website, so becoming a lead takes little effort. Google Search leads come from people already looking for the service. Cheaper leads that rarely buy can cost more per customer, so compare cost per customer once you know your close rate on each platform.
What are CPC, CPM and CTR?
Cost per click (CPC) is spend divided by clicks. Cost per mille (CPM) is the cost of 1,000 impressions: spend divided by impressions, times 1,000. Click-through rate (CTR) is clicks divided by impressions. Fill in clicks and impressions in the calculator to see all three alongside your cost per lead.