A Meta Ads lead cost $44 and a click $1.39 for the median US account across 15 businesses I run, March to September 2026. In Canada, the median account paid CA$54 a lead and CA$1.35 a click.
- Against Google: in 17 businesses running both, the median one paid 23% less per click on Meta.
- Per lead: the median business paid 8% less, but only 7 of 14 paid less on Meta.
- Budget: the median account spent $781 a month on Meta in the US and CA$1,268 in Canada.
- Canada: the median Canadian account converted 3.94% of clicks into leads, against 2.89% in the US.
Published by Bytown: what Meta Ads (the ads that run on Facebook and Instagram) cost 21 businesses in the US and Canada, March to September 2026, and how 17 of them compared with their own Google Ads.
Bytown runs the Meta Ads and Google Ads accounts in this report, and it's my company, so weigh my reading with that in mind. Bytown is not affiliated with Meta or Google.
How this was collected
The numbers were pulled from the connected Meta Ads and Google Ads accounts through Bytown on October 17, 2026. Client contracts cover anonymised benchmarking, and nothing here names a business, a city or an account.
Every account's rates come from its own summed counts: total spend divided by total clicks for cost per click (CPC), and total spend divided by total leads for cost per lead. The headline figures are medians across accounts, so 1 big spender can't describe everyone.
A lead here is a form, a call or a booking. Months where an account's conversions were mostly purchases, such as online sales or donations, are left out of cost per lead and conversion rate, so a shop's sales never pass for cheap leads.
That leaves 3 US accounts and 1 Canadian account out of cost per lead entirely; they still count toward cost per click.
US and Canadian dollars stay apart. Every US business here bills Meta in US dollars and every Canadian business in Canadian dollars, and no figure is converted.
What's actually important?
A figure only counts as a benchmark when at least 4 businesses sit behind it and none of them is more than half of the spend. Thinner rows still appear, as rounded early reads or single readings, and the methodology page has the full rule.
17 businesses run both Meta Ads and Google Ads. Against its own Google results, the median business paid 23% less per click (14 of 17 paid less) and 8% less per lead (7 of 14 paid less).
| Business (industry) | Currency | Months on both | CPC vs Google | Cost per lead vs Google |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Automotive | USD | 6 | +5% | +275% |
| Automotive | CAD | 7 | −20% | +10% |
| Dental | USD | 4 | −45% | +30% |
| Education | USD | 7 | same | +150% |
| Education | CAD | 4 | −15% | +5% |
| Insurance | CAD | 7 | −65% | −30% |
| Insurance | USD | 6 | −50% | +110% |
| Landscaping | USD | 4 | −70% | −70% |
| Landscaping | USD | 4 | −75% | −75% |
| Med spa | USD | 7 | −65% | −60% |
| Non-profit | USD | 6 | −25% | — |
| Non-profit | CAD | 7 | −55% | −20% |
| Online marketplace | CAD | 7 | +25% | — |
| Online marketplace | USD | 7 | +20% | — |
| Real estate | USD | 3 | −20% | −55% |
| Real estate | CAD | 7 | −30% | −75% |
| Veterinary | USD | 6 | −15% | +35% |
| Industry | USD accts | USD CPC | USD cost per lead | CAD accts | CAD CPC | CAD cost per lead | Conversion rate (US + Canada) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Automotive | 1 1 business | ≈$0.80 | ≈$40 | 1 1 business | ≈CA$0.90 | ≈CA$20 | 2.0–4.5% |
| B2B SaaS | 1 1 business | ≈$2.40 | ≈$435 | — | — | — | ≈0.5% |
| Dental | 1 1 business | ≈$1.70 | ≈$55 | — | — | — | ≈3.0% |
| Education | 2 early read | $1.40–2.50 | $25–105 | 1 1 business | ≈CA$2.50 | ≈CA$125 | 2.0–5.5% |
| Insurance | 1 1 business | ≈$2.60 | ≈$140 | 1 1 business | ≈CA$2.50 | ≈CA$55 | 2.0–4.5% |
| Landscaping | 2 early read | $1.20–1.30 | $25–40 | — | — | — | 3.5–4.5% |
| Med spa | 1 1 business | ≈$1.20 | ≈$20 | — | — | — | ≈6.0% |
| Non-profit | 2 early read | $0.70–1.10 | — | 1 1 business | ≈CA$0.80 | ≈CA$55 | ≈1.5% |
| Online marketplace | 2 1 business | ≈$1.10 | ≈$35 | 1 1 business | ≈CA$1.30 | — | ≈1.5% |
| Real estate | 2 early read | $1.10–1.60 | ≈$45 | 1 1 business | ≈CA$1.40 | ≈CA$35 | 2.5–4.0% |
| Veterinary | 1 1 business | ≈$1.60 | ≈$55 | — | — | — | ≈3.0% |
| All industries | 16 | $1.39 | $44 | 6 | CA$1.35 | CA$54 | 3.01% |
Rows with 4 or more businesses, none above half the spend, show the median. early read rows (2–3 businesses, or 1 business above half the spend) show the lowest-to-highest range, and 1 business rows show 1 reading; both are rounded and never quoted as a benchmark. Cost per lead counts leads, calls and bookings. How the tiers work.
Industry groups that reach benchmark size on their own:
| Industry group | Currency | Accounts | CPC | Cost per lead | Median monthly spend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail, education and non-profit | USD | 6 | $1.28 | $25–105 | $945 |
What the numbers say
Cheaper clicks are the norm. 14 of the 17 businesses running both platforms paid less per click on Meta than on Google, and the median business paid 23% less.
Cheaper leads are not. Of the 14 businesses with leads on both, 7 paid less per lead on Meta and 7 paid more. The median business paid 8% less, which is about as close to even as a sample gets.
So, what's the catch?
Conversion rate. The median business's Meta clicks became leads 32% less often than its Google clicks did, and that gap swallows most of the discount.
That's the trade on Meta. A Google click comes from someone searching for what you sell; a Meta click comes from someone scrolling past your ad between a cousin's wedding photos and a recipe video. Cheaper attention converts less often, so on Meta the ad and the landing page have to do more of the selling.
The total disagrees with the median. Weighted by spend instead of by business, the businesses billing both platforms in US dollars paid 8% less per click on Meta but 67% more per lead.
1 automotive business with very cheap Google leads accounts for most of that gap. That's why the headline is the median business: the figure a typical owner can expect.
The same-business table above shows which businesses won on Meta and which didn't. No industry has more than 3 businesses here, so read each row as one business's result, not as your industry's verdict.
The US against Canada
6 of the 21 businesses are Canadian and bill Meta in Canadian dollars, enough for a benchmark of their own. The Microsoft Ads report had none.
- Cost per click: $1.39 for the median US account, CA$1.35 for the median Canadian one.
- Cost per lead: $44 in the US, CA$54 in Canada.
- Monthly spend: $781 in the US, CA$1,268 in Canada.
Each figure stays in its own currency. Converting them would bake one week's exchange rate into a benchmark, so read the line for the country you advertise in.
Here's where it gets interesting:
Rates carry no currency, so they compare cleanly. The median Canadian account converted 3.94% of its clicks into leads, against 2.89% for the median US account.
One caution: Canada's median and its total disagree. Added up as one pool, the Canadian accounts paid CA$33 a lead, because 1 account bought most of the Canadian leads at far less than the median account paid. 6 businesses make a first benchmark, not a settled one.
How I'd use this
I get asked whether Meta beats Google all the time. Quite frankly, I don't really care: results decide, and these 17 businesses show the answer changes from one business to the next.
Here's the deal.
Test Meta beside Google rather than instead of it, and judge it on cost per lead and lead quality. Cost per click is where Meta usually looks good, so it tells you the least.
Count leads that become customers, not form fills. I've seen Meta's instant forms capture leads for a few dollars with the right offer, but a share of those leads buy later, so the follow-up decides what they're worth.
If Meta's leads cost you more than Google's, change the message before the audience. On Meta the creative does the targeting now: my test runs a broad campaign against the same campaign with interest or lookalike targeting, and the broad side wins on the strength of the creative. The full argument is in why creative is the new targeting.
For a starting budget, the median account spent $781 a month in the US and CA$1,268 in Canada. If you're only testing, start with enough to reach a first result, then scale what's working on evidence.
The calculator above turns a monthly budget into a lead range. Where your industry shows early read or 1 business, the range is 1 to 3 real accounts, not your industry's price. Connecting Meta starts with granting access in Meta Business Manager.
How the public Meta benchmarks compare
The most quoted public Meta figures come from WordStream and LocaliQ's Facebook Ads Benchmarks 2026. Their median leads campaign paid $27.39 per lead with an 8.54% conversion rate, across 1,892 US campaigns from April 2025 to June 2026 (report fetched October 26, 2026).
So which number is right?
Each one, for what it measures. Theirs are medians per campaign, every one using Meta's leads objective, which can collect the form without the viewer leaving Facebook or Instagram. Mine are medians per account across every campaign the account runs, counting forms, calls and bookings, with Canada on its own line.
Theirs describes a typical lead campaign; these describe a typical account. Keep them side by side, never averaged together.
Where this sample is thin
Truth is, 21 businesses in 11 industries is a small sample. No industry reaches 4 businesses on its own, so every industry row above is an early read or a single reading.
1 industry group does reach benchmark size: retail, education and non-profit, in US dollars, with 5 businesses at $1.28 a click and $945 a month. Its cost per lead stays an early read, because the 2 non-profits record donations, not leads.
Business-to-business is the other gap. Only 1 B2B software company runs Meta in this export, so its row is 1 business and nothing more.
New months get added as they close, with the sample restated each time. The open data for this page is in ad-platform-costs-2026-10.csv under CC BY 4.0.
Test Meta next to Google
Bytown runs Meta Ads beside Google, Microsoft, LinkedIn and ChatGPT Ads, and stages every change for your yes. Flat monthly price, no % of your ad spend.
See pricingPro covers 1 ad account on 1 platform. Running Meta and Google together is Max, which covers every platform and moves budget to the one that's winning.
FAQ
How much does a lead cost on Meta Ads?
$44 for the median US account across 15 businesses Bytown runs, March to September 2026, and CA$54 for the median Canadian account across 6. Against their own Google Ads, the median business paid 8% less per lead, and 7 of 14 paid less.
How much does a click cost on Meta Ads?
$1.39 for the median US account and CA$1.35 for the median Canadian account, March to September 2026. Against their own Google Ads, 14 of 17 businesses paid less per click on Meta, and the median business paid 23% less.
Are Meta Ads cheaper than Google Ads?
Per click, usually: 14 of 17 businesses paid less on Meta. Per lead, it's a coin toss: 7 of 14 paid less, because the median business's Meta clicks converted 32% less often. Run Meta beside Google and compare cost per lead before you move more money.
How much should a small business spend on Meta Ads?
The median account in this sample spent $781 a month on Meta in the US and CA$1,268 in Canada. To test Meta, start with enough to reach a first result, then scale what's working on evidence.
How do Meta Ads costs compare between Canada and the US?
The median Canadian account paid CA$54 a lead and CA$1.35 a click, against $44 and $1.39 for the median US account, and the currencies are never converted. Conversion rate compares cleanly: the median Canadian account converted 3.94% of clicks into leads, against 2.89% in the US.
Where do these numbers come from?
They were pulled from the connected Meta Ads and Google Ads accounts through Bytown on October 17, 2026, for 21 businesses in the US and Canada. Each account's rates come from its own summed counts, and a figure only counts as a benchmark with at least 4 businesses behind it and none above half of the spend.
Sources
- Bytown account data: 21 businesses running Meta Ads (15 billing in US dollars, 6 in Canadian dollars), 17 of them compared with their own Google Ads, March–September 2026, pulled through Bytown on October 17, 2026. Open data: ad-platform-costs-2026-10.csv.
- Method and publication tiers: Bytown Benchmarks methodology.
- Public comparison: WordStream and LocaliQ, Facebook Ads Benchmarks 2026, 1,892 US campaigns, April 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026, medians; fetched October 26, 2026.
- Instant forms and the broad-against-targeted creative test: my own observations from the accounts I run.
