Check the audience.
Are you reaching the people who matter to your campaign, in the right location and at the right time?
Ask the seller“Who is included in these impressions, and how are they measured?”
Free billboard CPM calculator
Billboard CPM calculator.
Compare your quotes.
Turn a media quote into a number you can compare. See what you pay for every 1,000 impressions and put two proposals side by side.
- No sign-up
- Instant calculation
- Compare two quotes
Two numbers. One clear result.
Take the cost and impressions from your media proposal. Your result updates as you type. Currency selection labels amounts; it does not convert them.
Not sure which numbers to use?
Ask the media owner for total campaign impressions for the dates, screens and ad share in your quote. A daily traffic count or the number of ad plays is not the same thing.
Include production, installation and service fees if you want an all-in CPM. Apply the same approach to both quotes.
No quote yet? Estimate a digital campaign budgetWhat to do with your result
Lower CPM is one part
of a better buy.
Before choosing the cheaper number, make sure the quotes describe the audience and campaign you actually want.
Match the scope.
Use impressions for the full quoted period. Check the screens, dates, operating hours and share of voice.
Ask the seller“Does this audience figure cover my exact campaign schedule?”
Compare the full cost.
A media-only price and a package that includes artwork and installation need different treatment.
Ask the seller“Which fees are included, and what will I pay on top?”
A simple worked example
A bigger price can have
a lower CPM.
Quote A costs $5,000 for 750,000 impressions. Quote B costs $6,000 for 1 million impressions.
B has a 10% lower CPM, even though its total cost is $1,000 higher. Whether it is the right choice still depends on your budget and audience.
Quote A
$5,000 ÷ 750,000 × 1,000
$6.67 CPMQuote B
$6,000 ÷ 1,000,000 × 1,000
$6.00 CPMIllustrative figures, not market benchmarks. Percentages use unrounded CPMs.
FAQ
Your CPM questions, answered
6 questions
What is a good CPM for a billboard?
There is no single CPM that makes every billboard a good buy. Market, format, audience, season and measurement method all affect the comparison. Compare quotes for similar placements and campaign dates, then check that the audience fits your objective. This calculator does not assign a market-rate rating.
Which costs should I include?
For media-only CPM, enter the price of the advertising space. For an all-in CPM, also include production, installation, agency and platform fees, and any taxes you want to account for. Use the same cost basis when comparing two proposals.
My quote lists daily or weekly impressions. What do I enter?
Use impressions for the full period covered by the cost. For example, 25,000 impressions per day over 28 days gives 700,000 impressions if that daily figure applies throughout the campaign. Confirm that it covers the quoted screens, operating hours and your ad's share of the schedule.
Can I use traffic counts or ad plays as impressions?
Do not substitute them without checking the measurement method. Traffic counts describe movement past a location; plays count how often an ad runs. Neither alone tells you the audience impressions delivered by your campaign. Ask the media owner for its impression estimate and how it was calculated.
Does changing currency convert my quote?
No. Currency selection labels your input and output amounts. Convert any quotes in different currencies to one currency before comparing them here.
Can I compare billboard CPM with online advertising?
The formula is the same, but the impressions may be measured differently. Served impressions, viewable online impressions and modeled outdoor audience impressions are not interchangeable. Use CPM as an initial cost comparison and check reach, frequency, attention and measurement definitions separately.
Further reading: Google’s CPM definition and Geopath on reach and frequency.