What is the Average CPM Rate for Small Publishers?

Those who publish content online, known as publishers to CPM ad networks, are always looking for ways to increase CPM rate.  CPM rate is simply the amount of revenue that an ad generates per 1000 views.  However, it is often difficult to find a reliable means to estimate how much ads published on small-time blogs and websites should generate. 

There are many factors that influence an ad's CPM rate.  Here are a few of the most common:

•   Click Through Rate (CTR) – The number of visitors who click ads
•  Website visitors’ country of origin – Traffic from the U.S., Canada, UK and Australia tend to yield the highest CPM rates
• Website content – Some topics are considered more valuable to advertisers

An Internet search will produce thousands of articles and blog posts on how to increase CPM and on which CPM ad networks supposedly pay the best per ad view.  The fact is, the marketplace is so saturated by small-time publishers and bloggers on an infinite number of topics that it is virtually impossible to accurately estimate what the average CPM rate is for publishers. 

What is a Good CPM rate?

It is a little easier to explain what a good CPM rate is over what an average CPM rate should be.  Based on my personal experience, I have determined a level of acceptability on the following CPM ranges:

CPM in U.S. Dollars

Data captured 07/25/13

.00 - .09 – Not even worth the time investment

.10 - .19 – Pretty bad but high traffic volume can justify this rate

.20 - .49 – Getting better but heavy internet traffic is required to make any money to speak of

.50 - .99 – Not ideal but this is the sweet spot where many ad networks will provide the highest fill rate.  A high amount of traffic and decent ad fill rate can generate a decent amount of revenue.

1.00 – 1.99 Now we’re getting somewhere.  This is the range where many bloggers and small publishers would like to find themselves

2.00 – 9.99 This is a great rate that can result in substantial earnings with a moderate amount of traffic

10.00 – 49.99 This is an excellent rate that is possible under certain circumstances and primarily results from a moderate CTR on valuable ads from quality sources

50.00+ This outstanding rate results from a consistently high CTR and conversion rate on valuable ads

It is important for small-time publishers and bloggers to remember that ad rates are always fluctuating.  CPM rates can swing widely for seemingly little or no reason.  Also, an important factor in calculating total revenue is the actual fill rate of ads.  The fill rate is the number of ads that are displayed vs. the number of ads that are requested to be displayed.  A low fill rate will negatively impact the amount of revenue that is generated. 

What is the Best CPM Ad Network?

There are many quality ad networks that pay small publishers for displaying ads on blogs and websites.  I describe one of the best in the article The Best CPM ad Network for Bloggers.  I have experience with and have had success with Yahoo Ads, Pulse Point and Lijit on my fitness blog Destination Jacked: Muscle Headquarters. 

While it is fun to try to learn what the average CPM rate is and how to increase CPM rate, the best and quickest way to generate revenue is to compose quality content and get it published on your website or blog.  After all, the greater amount of traffic that your site gets, the more revenue you will produce, no matter what your CPM rate.

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