CPA and CAC calculator
Compare ad cost per new paying customer with the full cost of acquisition. Check both against the same LTV and payback budget.
Example numbers. Inputs stay in this tab and carry between these calculators.
Your inputs
Full acquisition cost per customer
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- Ad-only CPA
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- Average ad CPC
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- Total acquisition spend
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- Allowed acquisition cost
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- Contribution LTV / CAC
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This transfers paying customers ÷ clicks. Both must come from the same click cohort.
CPA and CAC answer different questions
Ad-only CPA divides ad spend by new paying customers. Full CAC also includes creative, agency, and other sales and marketing costs. Match all costs and customers to the same campaign and period.
Here, an acquisition means a new paying customer. Counting trials or leads would measure a different CPA and cannot be compared directly with payer LTV.
Attributed customers can arrive after the click. Let the cohort mature before comparing its conversion rate or acquisition cost. The shared LTV budget uses your inputs, not an industry average.
Example: ad-only CPA versus full CAC
A campaign spends $1,000 on ads, $100 on creative work, and $100 on other acquisition costs. It brings 50 new paying customers.
Ad-only CPA is $1,000 ÷ 50 = $20. Full CAC is $1,200 ÷ 50 = $24. With 5,000 clicks, average CPC is $0.20.
If you count free trials or leads instead of paying customers, the result is a different CPA. Compare payer acquisition costs with payer contribution LTV.
Put the result to work
Read the LTV and acquisition costs guide for definitions and examples. Explore DataDad mobile attribution to connect this work to your reports.