An advertising model in which an advertiser generally pays when someone clicks the advertisement.
A performance-based method commonly used in search and social advertising.
Short and sweet:
An advertising model in which an advertiser generally pays when someone clicks the advertisement.
A performance-based method commonly used in search and social advertising.
See also: PPC, Cost Per Click, Paid Search
Pay-per-click describes the underlying pricing model itself, where an advertiser is charged only when someone actually clicks an ad rather than simply seeing it, as opposed to models priced by impressions or a flat placement fee. This model shifts risk toward the platform running the ads, since an advertiser doesn’t pay for exposure that fails to generate any engagement at all. It’s used across search, social, and display advertising alike, which is why the pricing model itself is worth understanding separately from any one specific ad platform or account.
Under a pay-per-click model, an advertiser like a mattress company only owes Google money when someone actually clicks the ad, not simply for having it displayed thousands of times.
Amazon’s sponsored product listings run entirely on this same billing structure, meaning a seller pays nothing if a shopper scrolls right past their ad without tapping on it.
This approach makes budgets highly predictable for small businesses, since a local bakery can cap its spending at a set daily amount and never exceed it.
