How to calculate click-through rate (CTR)
Click-through rate is clicks divided by impressions, expressed as a percentage. Twelve hundred clicks from fifty thousand impressions is a 2.4% CTR. It measures one thing well: whether the ad is answering the query it was shown for.
That makes it the fastest diagnostic in a paid account. A low CTR almost never means the budget is wrong. It means the ad is turning up for searches it does not match, or it matches and is saying nothing worth clicking — and both are fixable in an afternoon.
The CTR formula
CTR = (clicks ÷ impressions) × 100. Simple enough that the interest is entirely in where you measure it. Account-level CTR is an average of averages and hides everything; the useful view is by search term, by ad and by device, because that is where the differences live.
It also matters what you compare against. The Google Search average sits around 3.17%, but a brand campaign might run at 15% and a broad discovery campaign at 1%, and both can be correct. Compare like with like.
A search campaign records 1,200 clicks from 50,000 impressions:
(1,200 ÷ 50,000) × 100 = 2.4% CTR. Against the 3.17% Search average that is about a quarter below par — worth a look at match types before touching bids.
What is a good CTR?
Around 3% is the Search average and a fair line in the sand. Display sits under 1% and should not be judged by the same standard, because an ad someone did not go looking for behaves nothing like one that answers a query.
- Search brand terms — 10% and above is normal; below that, check who else is bidding on your name.
- Search non-brand — 2% to 5% is a healthy working range.
- Shopping — under 1% is common and not a fault; the image and price do the qualifying.
- Display and video — well under 1%; measure these on assisted conversions instead.
Why CTR matters beyond the click
CTR is an input to Quality Score, which is an input to ad rank, which sets what you pay. Improving relevance so the ad earns more clicks lowers the price of every click after it. It is one of the few metrics where the improvement pays twice.
| Campaign type | Typical CTR | Judge it on |
|---|---|---|
| Brand search | 10–25% | Defending the name cheaply |
| Non-brand search | 2–5% | Relevance to the query |
| Display and video | Under 1% | Assisted conversions, not clicks |
How to improve click-through rate
Start with the search terms report rather than the ad. Most low CTR is a targeting problem wearing a copywriting costume: the ad is fine, it is simply being shown to people asking a different question. Negative keywords and tighter match types usually move the number further than a new headline.
Then make the ad specific. Repeat the query in the headline, put the thing that actually differentiates you in the description, and use every relevant extension — sitelinks and callouts add real estate, and real estate earns clicks. If CTR is healthy but conversions are not, the problem has moved to the landing page, and that is a different fix.