What is CTR (Click-Through Rate)?
Click-Through Rate (CTR) is the percentage of impressions that result in a click. It is calculated by dividing the number of clicks by the number of impressions and multiplying by 100.
How It Works
CTR is one of the most fundamental metrics in digital advertising. A CTR of 2% means that for every 100 times your ad was shown, 2 people clicked on it. The formula is straightforward: (Clicks / Impressions) x 100.
CTR benchmarks vary dramatically by platform and ad format. Google Search ads typically see 3-6% CTR because users are actively searching for something. Meta feed ads average 0.9-1.5% CTR. LinkedIn sponsored content averages 0.4-0.6%. TikTok in-feed ads can range from 1-3% depending on creative quality. Comparing CTR across platforms without context is meaningless.
CTR also varies by position in search results (higher positions get more clicks), device type (mobile vs desktop), industry, and time of year. A "good" CTR is one that improves over time relative to your own baselines, not one that hits an arbitrary benchmark.
Why It Matters for Advertisers
CTR is a leading indicator of ad relevance. If your CTR drops, it usually means your creative, targeting, or messaging is not resonating with your audience. Low CTR can also increase your costs — both Meta and Google use relevance scores that factor in CTR, and low-relevance ads pay more per impression.
CTR is also the first metric to change when creative fatigue sets in. As your audience sees the same ad repeatedly, CTR declines — signaling it is time to refresh your creative. Monitoring CTR trends over time is one of the most effective ways to catch fatigue early.
How Ad Superpowers Helps
Ad Superpowers tracks CTR across all your platforms and makes it easy to spot trends. Ask "Show me CTR trends for my top 5 Meta campaigns over the last 30 days" or "Which Google Ads have below-average CTR?" Our creative fatigue detection skills specifically monitor CTR decline as an early warning signal.
For Google Search Console data, we also show organic CTR by keyword and position — helping you identify opportunities where you rank well but get fewer clicks than expected.
Related Terms
Creative Fatigue
Creative fatigue is the decline in ad performance that occurs when your target audience has seen the same ad too many times, leading to lower engagement and higher costs.
Frequency Capping
Frequency capping is an ad delivery setting that limits the maximum number of times a single user can see your ad within a defined time period, preventing overexposure and creative fatigue.
Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)
Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) is a marketing metric that measures the revenue earned for every unit of currency spent on advertising. A ROAS of 4x means you earn four dollars for every dollar spent.
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