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Cost per acquisition

What is CPA (cost per acquisition)?

CPA (cost per acquisition) is the ad spend it takes to win one conversion, such as a purchase or signup: ad spend divided by conversions.

Formula

CPA = ad spend ÷ conversions

Spend $3,000 on ads that bring in 75 orders and your CPA is $40. If each order leaves $38.50 of gross profit, the first order doesn't quite pay for itself.

Work out yours with the CPA calculator.

A real store example

Honeylove SuperPower Short page: over 100 Meta ads linked here.

Shapewear is a considered buy: shoppers want to know it sculpts, stays comfortable and fits before they pay. Every answer the page gives up front saves a visit that would have left, which is how a page lowers CPA without touching the ads.

Open the pageSee their ads

How to improve CPA on your store

  1. Raise the share of visitors who buy

    CPA = CPC ÷ conversion rate. Lift conversion from 2% to 3% and CPA falls by a third at the same click price.

  2. Answer objections on the page

    Sizing, shipping times, returns and reviews belong near the buy button, where the doubt happens.

  3. Set the ceiling from your margin

    Break-even CPA is order value × gross margin. Know it before you judge any campaign.

Ask Replo: "email me CPA by campaign every Monday".

Report my CPA

CPA questions

What is a good CPA?
A good CPA is below the gross profit an order leaves you. If customers reliably reorder, the ceiling rises to the gross profit they bring over their lifetime, but only if you can wait for those orders.
What's the difference between CPA and CAC?
CPA counts ad spend per conversion, and a conversion can be a repeat order or a signup. CAC counts all sales and marketing spend per new customer. CAC is the stricter number.
Does CPA include discounts?
Not usually. CPA counts ad spend. If you give big first-order discounts, count them in CAC or in your margin, or a campaign can look cheaper than it is.

Related terms

Browse the glossary

CAC

CAC (customer acquisition cost) is the total sales and marketing spend it takes to win one new customer.

CPC

CPC (cost per click) is the average amount paid each time someone clicks an ad: ad spend divided by clicks.

ROAS

ROAS (return on ad spend) is the revenue an ad campaign brings in for every dollar spent on it: revenue from ads divided by ad spend.

Conversion rate

Conversion rate is the share of visitors who complete a goal, usually a purchase: conversions divided by sessions.

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