COST PER ACQUISITION CALCULATOR
CPA

WHAT'S YOUR COST PER ACQUISITION?

Your cost per acquisition (CPA) is total spend divided by customers acquired. Add revenue per customer to see if that cost is cheap.

Everything spent on the campaign or period — media, not headcount.

Paying customers from that same spend, not clicks or leads.

Adds a CPA-to-value check to the result below.

What is a Cost Per Acquisition Calculator?

A cost per acquisition calculator tells you how much you spend, on average, to win one paying customer from a campaign. Divide total ad spend by customers acquired and you get a single number you can compare across channels, campaigns, or time periods.

How to calculate CPA ?

  1. Add up total spend on the campaign or period.
  2. Count paying customers acquired not clicks or leads.
  3. Divide spend by customers acquired.

Frequently asked questions

CPA equals total ad spend divided by the number of customers acquired in the same period.

A good CPA is any CPA below your break-even point — average order value × gross margin. There’s no universal number.

CPA measures cost per defined conversion. CAC is the fully-loaded cost of a paying customer.

Related calculators

CPA Calculator Formula

CPA = Total advertising spend ÷ Customers acquired

Example:

  • Advertising spend: $5,000
  • Customers acquired: 250
  • CPA: $5,000 ÷ 250 = $20 per customer

If average revenue per customer is entered:

Revenue-to-CPA ratio = Average revenue per customer ÷ CPA

Example: $100 revenue ÷ $20 CPA = 5:1

User guide

  1. Enter the total amount spent on the campaign.
  2. Enter the number of paying customers acquired from that campaign.
  3. Optionally, enter the average revenue generated by each customer.
  4. Click Calculate CPA.
  5. Review your cost per acquisition and, when provided, the revenue-to-CPA ratio.
  6. Click Try different numbers to perform another calculation.

Use campaign data from the same reporting period for accurate results. Count paying customers—not impressions, clicks, or leads. A lower CPA is generally better, but it should always be compared with customer revenue, lifetime value, and profit margin.