Google Ads glossary
CPC, or cost per click, is the amount you pay each time someone clicks your Google Ads ad.
Three ideas sound alike. Your max CPC is the most you are willing to pay for a click. Your actual CPC is what Google bills for that click, and it is usually lower than the max. Your average CPC is total spend divided by the number of clicks.
The price of a click is set in the auction, on every search. It depends on the competition for the keyword and on the quality of your ad, not only on your bid.
Google bills every click, whether it comes from a buyer or someone just browsing. So CPC says nothing about the value of a click. A keyword with a low CPC can cost you more than one with a high CPC if it never leads to a sale.
Ask yourself whether the click can buy. Should I Bid does not report CPC. It reads the Google results page and tells you whether the intent behind the keyword justifies paying for the click. Our wasted spend calculator puts a figure on what clicks with no buying intent cost you.
Say a campaign spent $300 on 200 clicks. The average CPC is $1.50 ($300 ÷ 200). If half of those clicks came from searches like “free” or “definition”, $150 paid for visits with no intent to buy. The average CPC would not have shown it.
Free tool: Budget calculator
The budget calculator estimates clicks, conversions and cost per conversion from your CPC. Free.
Official source: Google Ads Help: average CPC, Google Ads Help: maximum CPC