Andrew Johnson
According to Meta’s Q2 2026 earnings presentation, the average price per ad in the United States and Canada increased by approximately 20% in Q2 2026 compared with Q2 2025.
In simple terms, advertisers are paying more than they were one year ago to reach people on Meta’s platforms.
If nothing else changes, that increase in advertising costs has a direct impact on your ad account’s performance.
For an e-commerce business, it can mean:
- A lower return on ad spend
- A higher customer acquisition cost
For a lead generation campaign, it can mean:
- A higher cost per lead
- Fewer leads generated from the same budget
For an awareness, video view or engagement campaign, it can mean:
- A higher cost per impression or video view
- A higher cost per engagement
- Less reach or engagement from the same budget
For example, imagine that a business spent $100 in Q2 2025 to generate five leads. Its cost per lead was $20.
If the average price of advertising increases by 20% and everything else remains exactly the same, that business may now need to spend approximately $120 to generate those same five leads. Its cost per lead would increase to approximately $24.
The same principle applies to e-commerce, awareness and engagement campaigns. If it costs more to generate the same traffic, impressions, video views, engagements or sales, each advertising dollar will produce less than it did before.
This does not mean Meta ads have stopped working
It simply means the cost of advertising has increased.
Businesses should not assume that the same ads, budgets and strategies that worked in 2025 will automatically produce the same results in 2026.
To offset higher advertising costs, other parts of the marketing system need to improve. This can include stronger ad creative, better messaging, a better offer, a higher website conversion rate, a stronger sales process or better customer retention.
The main takeaway is simple: even when nothing inside your business has changed, the advertising market may have changed around you.
That is why comparing your ad account’s performance in 2026 with its performance in 2025 without accounting for higher media costs can create an incomplete picture.
Need help improving your Meta ad performance?
If you need help analyzing your ad accounts or bringing your cost per lead or customer acquisition cost down, book a call and speak with me.
We can review your current performance and discuss how Dreww’s growth marketing and performance marketing team can help improve your results.
Source: Meta Q2 2026 Earnings Presentation, “Average Price Per Ad YoY Percentage Change.”