The 2026 PPC Benchmark Pack
Cross-industry CPC, CTR, conversion rate, CPA and ROAS for 2026 — plus an 8-point self-audit checklist and a clear decision tree for when it's time to request a proper wasted spend analysis.
1. 2026 benchmarks by industry
Cross-industry averages first, then the eight verticals we see most in PPC Chief audits. Use these to pressure-test your account's numbers before you spend another £1 on scaling.
| Industry | CPC | CTR | CVR | CPA | ROAS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry average | $5.26 | 6.66% | 7.52% | $70.11 | — |
| Shopping, Collectibles & Gifts | $3.49 | 8.92% | 3.83% | $47.94 | 4.5x |
| Business Services | $5.58 | 5.65% | 5.14% | $103.54 | 4.0x |
| Attorneys & Legal Services | $8.58 | 5.97% | 5.09% | $131.63 | 8.0x |
| Home & Home Improvement | $7.85 | 6.37% | 7.33% | $90.92 | 5.0x |
| Physicians & Surgeons | $5.00 | 6.73% | 11.62% | $56.83 | 5.0x |
| Finance & Insurance | $3.46 | 8.33% | 2.55% | $83.93 | 5.0x |
| Education & Instruction | $6.23 | 5.74% | 11.38% | $90.02 | 4.5x |
| Travel & Hospitality | $2.12 | 8.73% | 5.75% | $73.70 | 6.5x |
Sources: WordStream 2026 Google Ads Benchmarks, Store Growers 2026, aggregated PPC Chief client data. CPA values in USD for cross-source comparability.
2. Self-audit checklist
Eight questions to run against your own account. If you answer “no” or “I don't know” to three or more, skip ahead to the decision tree.
- 1
Is your average CPC within 30% of your industry average?
CPC far above benchmark usually means weak Quality Score, broad match gone wrong, or competing with yourself on generic keywords.
Cross-industry avg: $5.26. Flag if your CPC is >30% above your vertical's benchmark.
- 2
Is your Search CTR above 5%?
CTR below 5% on Search signals ad copy / keyword mismatch. Quality Score drops, CPC climbs, budget burns faster.
Cross-industry avg: 6.66%. Flag anything <5% on Search-only campaigns.
- 3
Is your conversion rate at or above your industry average?
Low CVR against benchmark is rarely an ads problem — it's landing-page or offer. Diagnose before spending more on traffic.
Cross-industry avg: 7.52%. See the table below for your vertical.
- 4
Is your CPA within 20% of your industry benchmark?
Smart bidding optimises to whatever CPA target you set — if the target was wrong, you've been paying above market for months.
Cross-industry avg: $70.11. Flag if your blended CPA is >20% higher than your vertical.
- 5
Is your ROAS above break-even after product + overhead costs?
ROAS reported in Ads is often gross, not net. A 4x ROAS can still be a loss once COGS, shipping, and returns are included.
Most healthy accounts run 3x+ ROAS on Google Ads Search (ecommerce) or 5x+ (B2B lead gen).
- 6
Did you review the Search Terms report in the last 14 days?
Broad and phrase match leak into unrelated queries fast. Weekly reviews catch waste before it compounds.
Review cadence: weekly on active accounts, bi-weekly minimum on mature accounts.
- 7
Do you have a negative keyword list with 100+ entries?
Accounts with <100 negatives are typically paying for irrelevant queries — jobs, free, DIY, competitor names you don't want.
Mature accounts: 200-500+ negatives across shared lists and campaign-level.
- 8
Are primary conversions firing correctly and not duplicated?
If conversions are double-counted or missing, smart bidding optimises against bad data. The whole account goes sideways.
Test: open GA4 or your CRM, compare total conversions to Google Ads for last 7 days. They should match within ~5%.
3. When to request a wasted spend analysis
Not every account needs an outside audit. These are the three signals we see most often in accounts that materially benefit from one.
Your CPA is >30% above your industry benchmark for 30+ days
What it usually means
This is rarely a bidding-strategy tweak. It's usually multiple compounding issues: keyword leakage, weak match types, mis-configured conversions, or a landing page that's underperforming relative to the traffic it's getting.
What to do
Request a Wasted Spend Analysis. The compounding nature means DIY fixes often miss the root cause and the account stays inefficient.
Your conversion rate is below your industry benchmark and your spend is >£3k/month
What it usually means
Low CVR at low spend is fine — keep iterating. Low CVR at £3k+/month means you're paying for clicks at scale against a broken funnel. Every week of delay is lost money.
What to do
Request an audit. At this spend level the ROI on fixing the funnel is 5-10x the cost of the audit itself.
You can identify >20% of spend going to queries or ad groups that clearly shouldn't be running
What it usually means
This is the classic 'I know there's waste but don't have time to clean it up' signal. Waste rate over 20% is the threshold where most clients see meaningful uplift from a structured audit.
What to do
Request an audit or book a 20-minute call to triage. Fixing >20% waste typically pays for 3-6 months of management fees.
Want us to pressure-test your account against these benchmarks?
The Wasted Spend Analysis runs your account through the same framework above and surfaces where budget is leaking. No obligation, no deck — a direct answer on whether your numbers are healthy.
Request free auditPPC Benchmarks FAQ
What is a good CPC for Google Ads in 2026?
The cross-industry average CPC for Google Ads Search in 2026 sits around $4-$5, but it varies enormously by vertical. Legal and finance see CPCs of $6-$10+, e-commerce typically runs $1-$3, and B2B can range from $3-$8. A good CPC is one within 30% of your own vertical's benchmark — if you're significantly above it, Quality Score, match types, or auction pressure are usually the cause.
What's considered a good click-through rate (CTR) for Google Ads?
The cross-industry Search CTR averages around 6-7% in 2026. On Search campaigns, anything below 5% signals weak ad copy, poor keyword-to-ad relevance, or broad match leaking into unrelated queries. Branded search campaigns regularly see 15-25% CTR; non-brand search should target 5-10% depending on competition.
What's a good conversion rate for Google Ads?
The cross-industry Google Ads conversion rate averages 7-8% in 2026, but the right benchmark is always your industry. E-commerce commonly sits at 2-5%, B2B lead gen at 5-15%, legal and home services at 7-12%. If your CVR is below your industry benchmark, the problem is almost always landing page or offer — not the ads themselves.
How do I compare my PPC performance to industry benchmarks?
Pull 30 days of data from Google Ads for CPC, CTR, CVR, CPA, and ROAS, then compare each metric to the benchmark for your specific vertical (use the table on this page). Flag any metric that's more than 20-30% worse than benchmark — that's where the biggest wins are. Always compare brand and non-brand campaigns separately: mixing them masks problems in the non-brand layer.
What's a good ROAS for Google Ads?
Most healthy e-commerce accounts run 3-5x ROAS on Google Ads Search, with Shopping and PMax often higher. B2B lead-gen accounts should target 5-10x blended ROAS once offline conversions are imported. Remember: Google's reported ROAS is gross revenue — a 4x ROAS on a product with 25% margin is actually break-even. Always calculate net ROAS after COGS, shipping, and returns.