Click-through rate (CTR): Definition

A ratio showing how often people who see your ad or free product listing end up clicking it. Click-through rate (CTR) can be used to gauge how well your keywords and ads, and free listings, are performing.

  • CTR is the number of clicks that your ad receives divided by the number of times your ad is shown: clicks ÷ impressions = CTR. For example, if you had 5 clicks and 100 impressions, then your CTR would be 5%.
  • Each of your ads, listings and keywords have their own CTRs that you can see listed in your account.
  • A high CTR is a good indication that users find your ads and listings helpful and relevant. CTR also contributes to your keyword's expected CTR, which is a component of Ad Rank. Note that a good CTR is relative to what you're advertising and on which networks.
  • You can use CTR to gauge which ads, listings and keywords are successful for you, and which need to be improved. The more your keywords, ads and listings relate to each other and to your business, the more likely a user is to click on your ad or listing after searching on your keyword phrase.

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