Ecommerce Ad Benchmarks 2026

Running ecommerce ads without benchmarks is playing poker blind. Global ecommerce will hit $6.3 trillion in 2025, yet most brands have no idea what a good CPC, CTR, or ROAS looks like in their niche. This report aggregates 55+ data points across 20+ ecommerce verticals. Every number is from a public industry report.

01Ecommerce market size

The global ecommerce market keeps growing. The pace has slowed since the pandemic boom, but the numbers are still massive. Global ecommerce sales will reach roughly $6.3 trillion in 2025. The US accounts for around $1.3 trillion of that total (Source: Statista Global Ecommerce Report 2025).

02CPC benchmarks by vertical

Different verticals face different click costs. Apparel and beauty get the cheapest clicks. Visual content naturally performs well there. Electronics and home improvement pay a lot more.

03CTR benchmarks by vertical

Click through rates tell you how compelling your creative is. Higher CTR means lower CPC and higher ROAS. The best CTRs in ecommerce come from apparel, beauty, and jewelry. Visual product categories naturally stop the scroll.

04Conversion rates by industry

Conversion rate measures how many ad clickers actually buy. The median ecommerce conversion rate is 2.8 percent. That varies wildly by category.

05ROAS by industry

Return on ad spend is the most important metric for ecommerce brands. A 4 to 1 ROAS means $4 in revenue for every $1 spent on ads. The median across Facebook advertisers is 4.5 to 1.

06Average order value data

Average order value is how much a customer spends per checkout. Higher AOV gives you more room for higher customer acquisition costs. That means you can afford more expensive ads.

07Mobile versus desktop performance

Most ecommerce traffic comes from mobile. Desktop still drives a disproportionate share of revenue. Desktop users buy pricier items and complete checkout more often.

08Cart abandonment statistics

Cart abandonment is the biggest leak in ecommerce. On average 70 percent of shoppers who add to cart never complete checkout (Source: Baymard Institute Cart Abandonment Study, 2024).

The top three reasons for abandonment are clear. Unexpected shipping costs kill 48 percent of carts. Being forced to create an account kills 24 percent. A complicated checkout kills 17 percent (Source: Baymard, 2024).

09Customer lifetime value

Lifetime value is what a customer is worth over the entire relationship. Returning customers spend 67 percent more per order than new customers. They also convert at 5x the rate (Source: Bain and Company Customer Retention Research, 2024).

10Traffic channel mix

Where does ecommerce traffic actually come from? Most stores get a surprisingly balanced mix across paid social, paid search, organic, and email.

Email drives only 9 percent of traffic but delivers the highest ROI at $36 for every $1 spent (Source: Litmus Email Marketing ROI Study, 2024).