How to calculate impressions from a budget
Divide the budget by the CPM and multiply by 1,000. That gives the number of times the ad can be shown; it is the same formula as the CPM calculator, rearranged.[4][5]
- Impressions200,000
- People reached80,000
- Per day6,667
- Expected clicks2,000
Reach and frequency
Reach is the number of unique people who saw an ad at least once, and frequency is the average number of times each of them saw it; impressions = reach × frequency. Meta defines reach as the number of accounts that saw your ads at least once,[1] frequency as the average number of times each account saw the ad,[2] and notes that impressions can include several views by the same account.[3]
| CPM | 1.5× | 2× | 3× | 5× |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $5 | 266,666 | 200,000 | 133,333 | 80,000 |
| $10 | 133,333 | 100,000 | 66,666 | 40,000 |
| $20 | 66,666 | 50,000 | 33,333 | 20,000 |
The trade-off is direct: for a fixed budget, every extra exposure per person removes people from your reach. Brand campaigns that need repetition accept a lower reach; prospecting campaigns that need fresh people cap frequency. Platforms report the frequency they actually delivered, so plug last month’s figure in rather than guessing.
From impressions to clicks and results
Expected clicks are impressions × clickthrough rate, which is where the CTR calculator comes in; the cost of those clicks is the CPC the plan implies. To plan backwards from a sales target instead of forwards from a budget, use the ad spend calculator.
Planning mistakes
- Assuming reach = impressions. Unless frequency is 1, reach is always smaller than impressions.
- Using one CPM for the whole flight. Prices rise in competitive weeks (holidays, launches), so a budget planned on an off-season CPM under-delivers.
- Spreading a small budget thin. $300 over 30 days at a $6 CPM is about 1,670 impressions a day; split across five ad sets, each learns very slowly.
Not affiliated with Google or Meta. Platform names are trademarks of their owners and appear only to identify whose documentation we cite.
Frequently asked questions
How many impressions will I get for $1,000?
$1,000 ÷ CPM × 1,000. At a $10 CPM that is 100,000 impressions; at $25 it is 40,000.
How do I calculate reach from impressions?
Divide impressions by average frequency. 200,000 ÷ 2.5 = 80,000 people.
What is a good frequency?
There is no universal figure. Watch whether CTR and conversion rate fall as frequency rises; that is the point where repetition stops paying.
What is the difference between impressions and reach?
Impressions count every showing; reach counts unique people. Ten impressions to two people is a reach of 2 and a frequency of 5.