The CTR Formula
CTR = clicks / impressions × 100
An impression is one time the ad or result was shown. In Google Ads and Search Console an impression is counted when the result appears for the person searching. In email the closest equivalent is opens, but privacy features make open counts unreliable, so many teams use clicks per delivered email instead.
Worked Example
Illustrative numbers: a LinkedIn campaign gets 25,000 impressions and 450 clicks, a 1.8% CTR. The team wants 1,000 visitors to a new benchmark report. At the same CTR they need about 55,600 impressions, which is the number to plan budget against. To turn impressions into a budget, take the expected CPM into the CPM calculator.
Reading CTR Next to the Landing Page
A click is only useful if the landing page keeps the promise the ad made. If an ad mentions "fintech compliance reporting" and the page opens with a generic headline, CTR looks healthy while the page loses most of the people who clicked. Check the page with the conversion rate calculator, and see our guide to a good landing page experience for what Google looks at on that page.
For organic search, a low CTR at a decent position usually means the title and description do not match the query. The same logic applies to ads: match the copy to the buyer intent behind the keyword, then match the landing page to the copy.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you calculate CTR?
Divide clicks by impressions and multiply by 100. 450 clicks from 25,000 impressions is a 1.8% click-through rate.
What is a good CTR?
It depends heavily on the channel and placement. Search ads on brand terms usually get much higher CTRs than display banners, and an organic result near the top of page one gets far more clicks than one on page two. Compare a campaign or page against its own history and against similar placements, not against a generic average.
Is a high CTR always good?
No. A broad, curiosity-driven ad can earn clicks from people who will never buy, which raises cost without adding pipeline. Judge CTR together with the conversion rate of the landing page the clicks go to.
How do I improve CTR in Google Search Console?
Find pages with many impressions and few clicks, look at the queries they appear for, and rewrite the title and meta description to answer those queries directly. Then compare the same length of period a few weeks later.
What is the difference between CTR and conversion rate?
CTR measures how many people who saw an ad or result clicked it. Conversion rate measures how many visitors who arrived took the action you wanted. One describes the ad or snippet, the other the page.