One of the most common questions in digital advertising is: How much should I spend on display ads? While there is no one-size-fits-all answer, analyzing real campaign performance data can help businesses set realistic expectations and optimize their budgets for maximum impact.
At Naughty Marketing, we analyzed multiple display ad campaigns to identify key spending patterns, CTR benchmarks, and audience engagement trends. Below, we break down insights from recent campaigns to help you determine the right budget allocation for your display ads.
High-Budget Spend on Display Ads
Key Takeaways
✅ A larger budget allowed for extensive reach, generating millions of impressions.
✅ Competitive CPM ensured cost-efficient traffic acquisition.
✅ Strong CTR highlighted the effectiveness of the creative, targeting strategy and big exposure.
📌 Ideal For: Established brands looking to maximize visibility and optimize conversions through high-exposure campaigns.
Mid-Range Budget – Balancing Cost & Performance
Key Takeaways
✅ Balanced budget provided a strong mix of exposure and engagement.
✅ CTR was lower than the high-budget campaign, due to targeting or ad fatigue.
✅ Slightly higher CPM indicates targeting of the premium inventory with high demand.
📌 Ideal For: Brands testing new markets without overcommitting to high budgets.
Lower Budget, Niche Targeting
Key Takeaways
✅ Lower CTR indicated that additional ad variations or retargeting might be necessary.
✅ Higher CPM suggested increased bidding competition in this niche.
📌 Ideal For: Niche projects focusing on a specific target audience, but may require multiple touchpoints to improve engagement.
Comparing Campaign Budgets & Results
| Budget | Impressions | Clicks | CTR | CPM |
| ~€45,000 | ~6.6M | ~60,000 | ~0.9% | ~€7 |
| ~€30,000 | ~4.4M | ~10,000 | ~0.2% | ~€8 |
| ~€18,000 | ~2.4M | ~3,000 | ~0.1% | ~€8 |
Insights & Recommendations
📌 Larger budgets = better CTRs & lower CPMs. Bigger campaigns often achieve higher visibility, better cost efficiency, and stronger engagement rates.
📌 Mid-range budgets provide a flexible balance between cost and reach but may require frequent optimizations.
📌 Lower budgets work best than you already know your target audience, websites or just retarget your website visitors. Make sure you use previously tested creatives that bring high engagement.
How Much Should You Spend on Display Ads?
💡 Here’s a simple framework to decide:
1️⃣ Brand Awareness? High budget recommended for mass exposure.
2️⃣ Market Testing? Moderate budget for audience insights & performance tracking.
3️⃣ Targeted Conversions? Lower budget for niche targeting & retargeting.
Final Thoughts
🔹 High budgets improve efficiency, while smaller budgets work best for market testing.
🔹 To maximize ROI, combine budget scaling with continuous A/B testing & audience refinement.
🔹 There is no universal answer to the “right” ad spend, but data-driven decisions yield the best results.
🚀 Need expert guidance on optimizing your display ad spend? Naughty Marketing is here to help. Contact us today to discuss your campaign goals!