What did CNBC report about Meta and Google ad growth?
Meta's ad revenue grew 26% last quarter while Google's search business grew 12%, CNBC reported on November 1. Meta brought in $63.1 billion in ads, up from $50.1 billion a year earlier. Google's Search and other unit made $63.4 billion. CNBC says the 14-point gap is the widest in Meta's favor since 2021.
The two companies now take in almost the same ad money each quarter, and Meta is growing more than twice as fast. Nate Elliott, an analyst at Emarketer, told CNBC the shift is "potentially catastrophic for Google's ad business."
Most of the coverage is about which tech giant wins. If you run Facebook or Instagram ads for a local business, the number that matters to you sits further down Meta's earnings report: what Meta charges for each ad.
How much more are advertisers paying Meta for each ad?
Meta's average price per ad rose 14% worldwide and 23% in the US and Canada, year over year. Worldwide impressions rose 10%, according to Meta's Q3 2026 results. In the US and Canada, impressions grew only 8%, so advertisers there paid a lot more for each ad Meta showed.
The regional numbers come from Meta's earnings presentation, as reported by Relevant Audience and PPC Land. They line up with Meta's own filing, too. US and Canada revenue grew about 33%, which is what 8% more impressions at 23% higher prices works out to.
| Region | Ad impressions | Average price per ad |
|---|---|---|
| Worldwide | +10% | +14% |
| US and Canada | +8% | +23% |
| Europe | +8% | +10% |
| Asia-Pacific | +14% | +1% |
| Rest of world | +8% | +24% |
"Price per ad" is Meta's blended number across every advertiser and placement. Your own CPM can move differently depending on your audience, offer and creative. But the average American advertiser is paying more for the same amount of attention than a year ago.
Why are Meta ad prices going up?
Meta says its ads convert better, so advertisers bid more for them. On the earnings call, CFO Susan Li said the price increase was "driven by ad performance gains and improvements in macro conditions" compared with a year ago. More advertisers bidding on ads that work pushes the price up.
Li gave a few numbers for the AI behind that. Advertisers who took the recommendations from Meta's AI business assistant "drove almost 5% more conversions at the same cost per conversion" and raised their ad spend 9% compared with similar advertisers who didn't. Nearly 10 million advertisers used at least one of Meta's generative AI creative tools during the quarter.
CNBC's piece lands in the same place. Meta uses AI to make ads in the feed perform better, while Google's AI answers give people fewer reasons to click a search ad. Better results draw more advertisers, and the auction gets more expensive for everyone in it.
What does a 23% price jump mean for a business running Facebook ads?
If your cost per lead went up this fall and nothing changed in your account, the market probably did it. You can't control what Meta charges. You can control how many of the leads you pay for turn into booked appointments and sales.
Some quick math. Say you spend $3,000 a month and close 10% of your leads. If leads get 20% more expensive, you need to close 12% of them to bring in the same money per dollar spent. Most businesses won't find that extra 2% in the ad account. It comes from answering faster, following up longer and getting people to show up.
I've run ads since 2013, and every time costs rise I see the same split. Owners who call leads back in five minutes barely notice. Owners who call back the next afternoon decide Facebook stopped working. I wrote more on that in why leads go cold.
What should you do before the holiday ad season?
Meta expects fourth-quarter revenue of $73 to $76 billion, so the holiday auction will be even more crowded. Before you raise budgets, tighten what happens after the click.
- Check your real return. Put your current spend, lead cost and close rate into the ROAS calculator so you know your break-even cost per lead before prices climb more.
- Time your response. Pull ten recent leads and check how long each one waited for a first call or text. Anything over five minutes is losing deals you already paid for.
- Book them sooner. In our own calendar data, people who showed up were mostly booked within 24 hours, and most no-shows were booked two to five days out. Offer the earliest open slot first.
- Test Meta's AI suggestions on one campaign. The 5% conversion lift is Meta's own estimate, so run it against your current setup before you trust it.
- Cover nights and weekends. Lead forms don't close at 5 p.m., and holiday shoppers fill them out after dinner.
Make every lead you pay for count. KenjiAI's Voice AI agents call new leads within seconds, qualify them and book them on your calendar, day or night, with the CRM, text follow-up and reminders in the same place. We've served 500+ businesses and run ads since 2013. If your cost per lead keeps climbing, book a call and we'll show you where leads leak after the click.
FAQ
Why did my Facebook ad costs go up in 2026?
Meta reported that its average price per ad rose 23% year over year in the US and Canada in the third quarter of 2026, while impressions there grew only 8%. Meta says its AI made ads convert better, so more advertisers are bidding for the same attention. Your own costs also depend on your audience, offer and creative.
Is Meta growing faster than Google in ads?
Yes, for now. In the third quarter of 2026 Meta's ad revenue grew 26% to $63.1 billion while Google's search unit grew 12% to $63.4 billion. CNBC reported that the gap is the widest in Meta's favor since 2021.
Do Meta's AI ad recommendations work?
Meta says advertisers who adopted its AI business assistant's recommendations got almost 5% more conversions at the same cost per conversion than similar advertisers who didn't. That is Meta's own estimate. Test it on one campaign against your current setup before rolling it out everywhere.
How do I keep cost per sale down when ad prices rise?
Work on what happens after the click. Call or text new leads within five minutes, follow up for several days and book appointments as soon as possible. Raising your close rate from 10% to 12% covers a 20% rise in lead cost.
Originally published at kenjiai.com. Published by the Media Traffics | KenjiAI team.
Top comments (0)