Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) Calculator
Updated August 1, 2026
Customer acquisition cost (CAC) is what it costs you, on average, to win one new customer. Enter your total marketing or ad spend and the number of new customers to get your CAC instantly — add an average customer value and you'll also see your LTV:CAC ratio.
Calculate your CAC
Your CAC
$50
On average it costs you $50 to acquire one new customer.
How CAC is calculated
CAC = total marketing or ad spend ÷ number of new customers acquired in the same period. Spend $2,000 on ads and win 40 new customers, and your CAC is 2,000 ÷ 40 = $50 per customer.
For a pure ad view, use just your ad spend; for a fuller view, include the marketing costs tied to acquisition. Keep the numerator and the customer count over the same time window so the number is honest.
CAC on its own isn't enough — compare it to value
A $50 CAC is excellent if each customer is worth $300 and terrible if they're worth $30. That's why CAC is read against customer value: the LTV:CAC ratio (average customer value ÷ CAC) tells you whether acquisition is sustainable.
A common benchmark is an LTV:CAC of 3:1 or better — you earn at least three times what it costs to acquire. Add your average customer value above and the calculator shows this ratio automatically.
How to lower your CAC on Meta
Fix measurement first — if conversions are under-reported (iOS, cookie loss), Meta optimises toward the wrong people and your true CAC is worse than it looks. Server-side tracking feeds the algorithm cleaner signal.
Cut the losers and scale the winners — most accounts have a few ad sets acquiring customers far more cheaply than the rest. Shifting budget toward them pulls blended CAC down without a new offer.
This is exactly what Geniusko automates on Meta: it watches cost per result per ad, pauses the expensive drains and scales the efficient winners daily — the ongoing tuning that keeps CAC down as you scale.
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Acquiring customers too expensively?
Geniusko is an AI marketer that watches cost per result per ad on Meta, pauses the expensive drains and scales the efficient winners automatically. Run a free account audit to see where your CAC is bloated.
Run the free auditFrequently asked questions
What does CAC mean?
CAC stands for customer acquisition cost — the average cost to acquire one new customer, calculated as marketing or ad spend divided by the number of new customers won.
How do I calculate customer acquisition cost?
Divide your total marketing or ad spend for a period by the number of new customers acquired in the same period. $2,000 spend for 40 new customers is a $50 CAC. The calculator above does it instantly.
What is a good LTV:CAC ratio?
A widely used benchmark is 3:1 or higher — a customer is worth at least three times what it costs to acquire them. Below 1:1 you're losing money on acquisition; around 1–3:1 is workable but tight.
Should CAC include all marketing costs?
It depends on the view you want. For pure ad efficiency, use ad spend only. For a fuller picture, include the marketing costs tied to acquisition. Just keep the costs and the customer count over the same time window.