What is click-through rate (CTR)?
How is CTR calculated?
Divide the number of clicks an ad got by the number of times it was shown. Multiply by 100 to get a percentage.
CTR can be worked out for an ad, an ad set, a campaign or a whole account. Each answers a different question. Say which one you mean.
What does CTR tell you?
It is a quick signal of whether an ad catches attention. If two ads reach similar people and one gets more clicks, that ad is doing something right, at least at the top of the funnel.
We do not give a "good CTR" figure. One number cannot fit every channel, format and audience. Compare an ad with your own earlier ads on the same placement instead.
What does CTR miss?
A click is a visit, not a sale. An ad can get a lot of clicks and few purchases. A curious headline can do that. So can an offer that the landing page does not deliver.
CTR also says nothing about cost or margin. A high CTR can still cost too much per sale. That is why we read it next to CPA (cost per acquisition: ad spend divided by the conversions the platform counts) and ROAS, and then check margin. If CTR slides over time, one possible reason is that the same people have seen the ad too often. See creative fatigue.
For ZFD: CTR is a diagnostic, never the goal. We ask how it connects to cost per purchase and what is left after costs. The wider channel logic is in paid media strategy for ecommerce.
Worked example
Easily confused with
Click-through rate vs Conversion rate
The share of visits that end in a purchase or another set action. CTR stops at the click.
Click-through rate vs Cost per click (CPC)
What each click costs. CTR is how often clicks happen. A cheap click and a frequent click are different things.
Click-through rate vs Engagement rate
Interactions such as likes, comments and shares, relative to how many people saw the content. A person can engage without clicking, and click without engaging.
FAQ
Is a high CTR always good?
No. A high CTR with weak sales can mean the ad attracts clicks the offer or page cannot convert. Look at cost per purchase and margin before you celebrate.
Is CTR the same as conversion rate?
No. CTR is clicks over impressions. Conversion rate is purchases, or another set action, over visits.
Why did our CTR drop?
There are several possible causes: a tired creative, a different audience, a new placement. Change one thing at a time to find out which.
Let’s find what’s actually working.
Next step. See what your clicks are worth on explicit assumptions. Use the Is your ROAS real? calculator.