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How much would it cost to put an ad on Snapchat?

How much would it cost to put an ad on Snapchat?

Snapchat is one of the most popular social media platforms, especially among younger audiences. With over 300 million daily active users, Snapchat provides a massive potential reach for brands looking to connect with consumers. One of the main ways brands can leverage Snapchat is through advertising.

But how much does it actually cost to run Snapchat ads? The pricing depends on several factors, including your campaign objective, target audience, placement, and more. Overall, Snapchat ads can range in cost from as little as $5 per day up to hundreds or thousands of dollars per day, depending on your specific goals and targeting.

In this article, we’ll break down the key factors that impact Snapchat advertising costs and provide estimated price ranges across different ad options on Snapchat.

Snapchat Ad Types and Pricing Factors

Snapchat offers a variety of ad formats and placements to choose from. The cost for Snapchat ads depends on:

  • Ad type – Snap ads, Commercials, Lenses
  • Ad format – Video, image, Story, Lens
  • Placement – Where the ad shows up within the app
  • Targeting – Audience, interests, behaviors, demographics
  • Length of ad campaign – Daily, weekly, or monthly budget
  • Time of year – Prices fluctuate based on demand

Generally, broader targeting and placements translate to lower costs, while highly targeted ads shown prominently in the app demand higher prices.

Snap Ads

Snap Ads appear within publisher content on Discover or at natural breaks between Snapchat user stories. Snap Ads are purchased through an auction, so the cost varies based on your targeting, time of year, and current demand. On average, Snap Ads tend to cost:

  • Image Snap Ad: $2 – $4 per CPM (cost per 1,000 impressions)
  • Video Snap Ad: $3 – $6+ per CPM

Commercials

Commercials are 5 to 60 second video ads shown before or during publisher content on Discover. The cost for Commercials starts at:

  • 5-second Commercial: $40,000+ per day
  • 60-second Commercial: $100,000 – $300,000 per day

Sponsored Lenses

Sponsored Lenses allow you to create branded AR experiences. You pay per engagement, which costs:

  • Sponsored Lens: $450,000+ for one day in the US

In addition to the upfront sponsorship fee, Snapchat also takes a percentage of revenue from each Sponsored Lens engagement.

Snapchat Audience Targeting Options

One of the biggest factors determining cost is your target audience. Snapchat provides detailed targeting capabilities to reach your ideal users:

Demographic Targeting

You can target age, gender, location, language, mobile device and operating system. Targeting broader demographics generally costs less than more precise demographic targeting.

Interest and Habit Targeting

Snapchat allows you to target based on interests like entertainment, food, sports, as well as habits and purchase behaviors. Interest-based targeting costs more than demographic targeting alone.

Pixel-Based Targeting

Use Snapchat’s pixel to build Custom Audiences from your website visitors or CRM data. Targeting existing customers and lookalikes costs more than targeting interests alone.

Sequential Messaging

You can target ads to people who have viewed your other Snapchat ads recently to continue the conversation. Sequential messaging requires a larger budget to maintain the ad frequency needed.

Typical Snapchat Advertising Campaign Budgets

While costs vary widely for Snapchat ads, most brands should expect to budget at least $100 to $500+ per day for an effective advertising campaign. Here are some typical daily budgets for Snapchat:

Campaign Objective Daily Budget
Brand awareness campaign with broad reach $100 – $250
Increase website conversions $250 – $500
Drive foot traffic to brick-and-mortar $500 – $1,000
Get installs for your mobile app $1,000+

Assuming an average CPM of $5, a $100 daily budget lets you reach around 20,000 impressions on Snapchat per day. Of course, budgets can range higher for businesses with more to spend.

Ways to Reduce Your Snapchat Advertising Costs

Here are a few tips to help minimize the cost of your Snapchat ads:

  • Target larger demographics like age and gender rather than specific interests
  • Avoid popular or expensive placements like Commercials
  • Set lower max bid amounts in the ad auction
  • Create separate campaigns for each goal rather than lumping everything under one broad campaign
  • Test ads on a small budget before increasing spend
  • Run ads during less competitive times of day or year
  • Analyze performance data and optimize for lower cost placements

With some strategic planning and testing, you can discover options to reach Snapchat users on just about any budget.

Conclusion

In summary, Snapchat ads can cost anywhere from $5 to hundreds of thousands per day depending on your objectives, targeting and placements. Most brand awareness and direct response campaigns cost between $100 to $500 per day to generate results. By factoring in these variables and looking for ways to optimize your spend, you can create an effective Snapchat ad strategy that fits your budget.