GOOGLE ADS BENCHMARKS 2026

Summary from the TLDR Marketing newsletter

Google Ads performance metrics showed unusual stability this year, with cost per lead declining for the first time in five years to an average of $66.69. Conversion rates improved across 87% of industries, suggesting advertisers are adapting to AI-driven features like Performance Max and AI Max. Meanwhile, CPC averaged $5.42, more than double the $2.32 recorded when the report launched in 2016.