Free calculator

Work out how to split your ad budget across channels

Enter your total budget and rough goals, and this calculator suggests how to divide it between channels such as paid search, paid social, and display, using typical UK cost benchmarks for cost per thousand impressions (CPM) and cost per click (CPC). It gives you a starting split to plan from, not a guarantee of what you'll get back, and it can only be as good as the figures you put into it.

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How-To Guide

How to use the Ad Budget Calculator to plan your UK ad spend

The Ad Budget Calculator takes a total budget and a few details about your business, then suggests how to split that spend across channels such as paid search, paid social and display. This guide is for business owners and marketers who have a rough figure in mind but aren't sure how to divide it, and it walks through each step so you leave with a plan. The split it returns is built on general benchmarks rather than your own results, so it's worth treating as a starting point to test rather than a fixed answer.

Level: Beginner
Best for: Business owners and marketers setting a UK ad budget for the first time
Screenshot of the Ad Budget Calculator showing budget input and suggested channel split
  1. Enter your budget and business details

    You start by entering your total budget along with a few basics about your business, such as your sector and who you're trying to reach.

  2. Review the suggested channel split

    The calculator returns a breakdown across channels such as paid search, paid social and display, showing roughly how much of your budget each one might take.

  3. Adjust the figures and plan next steps

    You can adjust the inputs to see how the split shifts, then use the result as a working budget to take into your own planning or a conversation with an agency.

Ad Budget Calculator

Tell us about your business and goals to get a recommended monthly ad spend range, a channel-by-channel split, and indicative CPM/CPC benchmarks. This is a starting point for planning, not a guarantee of results.

Primary growth goal
Preferred channels (select at least one)

Your recommended budget

Recommended channel split
ChannelAllocationMonthly budget
Indicative UK benchmarks
ChannelCPM rangeCPC range
Free Tools

Run the numbers, then check them against real UK rates

The Ad Budget Calculator takes your monthly spend and goals and suggests a starting split across channels. It's a starting point for a conversation with an agency or a media plan, not a substitute for one, and like any calculator it will return a confident-looking answer even from a mistaken input, so it's worth checking the figures you put in before you act on what comes out.

Free to use, no sign-up, works on any device