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2023 vs 2024 Google Ads Benchmarks

CPC, Cost Per Lead & Performance Changes by Industry

If you’re trying to understand how Google Ads performance changed over time, one of the most important comparisons is:

What changed from 2023 to 2024?

This page breaks down real performance data across industries, comparing 2023 and 2024 using data from accounts we’ve worked with and analyzed, highlighting how costs, conversion rates, and efficiency shifted.

2023 vs 2024 Google Ads Benchmarks

Here’s how performance has trended over time:

2024 v 2023 Industry Benchmarks

IndustryAccounts 2023Accounts 2024Spend 2023Spend 2024Spend YoY %Clicks 2023Clicks 2024Conversions 2023Conversions 2024CPC 2023CPC 2024CPC YoY %CVR 2023CVR 2024CVR YoY %CPA 2023CPA 2024CPA YoY %
Painting & Surface Coatings2428$528,490.50$672,906.3027.33%162,456.00266,804.006,756.6210,254.80$3.25$2.52-22.54%4.16%3.80%-8.63%$78.22$65.62-16.11%
Health & Wellness45$438,360.30$572,531.2030.61%316,520.00331,052.0030,030.1321,384.50$1.38$1.7324.92%9.49%6.50%-31.49%$14.60$26.7783.39%
Windows / Doors / Garage1414$408,688.90$546,744.7033.78%34,244.00111,334.004,404.027,630.80$11.93$4.91-58.86%12.86%6.90%-46.35%$92.80$71.65-22.79%
Home Services1216$439,676.30$520,689.2018.43%84,492.00142,943.0012,619.4227,707.00$5.20$3.64-30.05%14.94%19.40%29.89%$34.84$18.79-46.07%
Retail & Ecommerce810$285,483.10$414,198.2045.09%290,437.00449,188.0024,552.9827,133.20$0.98$0.92-6.40%8.45%6.00%-29.03%$11.63$15.2731.33%
Legal55$147,200.10$219,536.2049.14%42,689.0035,424.005,158.452,911.60$3.45$6.2079.80%12.08%8.20%-32.14%$28.54$75.40164.23%
Technology / SaaS34$121,731.30$96,923.66-20.38%47,651.0032,185.005,627.972,176.00$2.55$3.0117.82%11.81%6.80%-42.43%$21.63$44.54105.92%
Professional Services46$44,239.55$95,967.14116.93%38,080.00103,446.008,398.6324,163.80$1.16$0.93-19.95%22.06%23.40%6.10%$5.27$3.97-24.63%
Healthcare66$47,440.50$93,530.5297.15%17,155.0062,146.001,798.5117,739.20$2.77$1.51-45.40%10.48%28.50%171.85%$26.38$5.27-80.02%
Roofing33$53,102.27$66,903.5425.99%3,635.006,839.00401.00348.80$14.61$9.78-33.05%11.03%5.10%-53.77%$132.42$191.7944.83%
Automotive / Transport22$53,045.75$52,475.50-1.08%52,167.0023,694.00617.73527.50$1.02$2.21117.34%1.18%2.20%85.80%$85.87$99.4815.85%
Veterinary / Pet11$14,537.67$38,734.00166.44%14,669.0028,646.003,282.004,393.50$0.99$1.3536.22%22.37%15.30%-31.62%$4.43$8.8299.12%
Entertainment & Events33$26,052.33$30,286.8916.25%34,100.0022,871.004,522.37639.10$0.76$1.3272.78%13.26%2.80%-78.89%$5.76$47.39722.63%
Restaurant / Hospitality11$4,122.07$22,036.50434.60%14,037.0030,890.003,082.0020,470.20$0.29$0.71141.78%21.96%66.30%201.96%$1.34$1.08-19.25%
Education & Training33$46,933.80$21,408.24-54.39%20,640.008,740.001,310.80192.00$2.27$2.457.74%6.35%2.20%-65.36%$35.81$111.50211.41%
Manufacturing / Industrial33$90,087.06$20,701.11-77.02%101,489.0027,956.00866.00320.00$0.89$0.74-16.63%0.85%1.10%28.91%$104.03$64.69-37.81%
Vision / Eye Care13$11,182.51$14,156.2826.59%6,172.006,044.001,036.00604.00$1.81$2.3429.15%16.79%10.00%-40.43%$10.79$23.44117.16%
Government / Nonprofit34$7,124.23$13,683.3192.07%1,253.004,344.00229.28519.00$5.69$3.15-44.60%18.30%11.90%-34.97%$31.07$26.36-15.17%
Insurance / Financial23$10,409.30$11,772.9013.10%8,722.0013,411.001,308.922,764.50$1.19$0.88-26.26%15.01%20.60%37.27%$7.95$4.26-46.43%

Key Trends from 2023 to 2024

Costs Increased Across Most Industries

From 2023 to 2024:

  • CPC increased in many industries
  • competition became more aggressive
  • high-intent keywords became more expensive

This trend was strongest in:

  • Legal
  • Insurance / Financial
  • Home Services

Conversion Rates Became More Variable

Compared to 2023:

  • more variation in CVR across accounts
  • larger gap between well-structured and poorly structured campaigns
  • increased importance of landing page performance

Cost Per Lead Increased in Many Cases

As CPC rose:

  • CPA increased in several industries
  • inefficient accounts saw the biggest increases
  • optimized accounts maintained better stability

Spend Increased Without Guaranteed Efficiency Gains

Across the dataset:

  • many accounts increased spend
  • results did not always improve proportionally
  • structure and tracking became more important than budget

Industry-Level Highlights

Painting & Surface Coatings

  • remained stable
  • predictable cost increases
  • consistent performance

Home Services

  • increased competition
  • mixed CPA changes
  • strong demand maintained


Legal

  • continued high CPC growth
  • strong competition
  • high-value lead environment

Retail & Ecommerce

  • increased activity
  • strong conversion volume
  • performance heavily influenced by tracking

Health & Wellness

  • high demand
  • stable to improving performance
  • growing competition

What Changed from 2023 to 2024

2023:

  • lower CPC
  • more predictable performance
  • less competition

2024:

  • higher costs
  • more variability
  • greater need for optimization

What This Means for Your Business

If you experienced rising costs in 2024:

  • you’re not alone
  • this was a market-wide shift


Moving forward, success depends on:

  • strong campaign structure
  • accurate tracking
  • high-intent targeting


Avoid:

  • relying on past performance expectations
  • broad targeting
  • optimizing for clicks instead of conversions

Want Help Improving Your Painting Ads?

We specialize in Google Ads for service-based businesses, including painting companies.

We’ll show you:

  • how your account compares to industry benchmarks
  • what’s working
  • what’s likely costing you money
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