CTV Cost Per Lead Benchmarks for Law Firms

CPL benchmarks: $250 (small DMA), $350 (mid), $450 (major), $600 (top). CPL alone lies. $400 CPL with 25% close rate beats $600 with 18%.

Cost per lead (CPL) is the metric that connects CTV spending to actual business results. But what’s a “good” CPL? Here are benchmarks and the factors that move the number.

CPL Benchmarks by Market Size

Market size significantly affects CPL:

Market SizeCPL RangeMedian CPL
Small DMA (100+)$150-400$250
Mid DMA (50-100)$200-500$350
Major DMA (25-50)$300-700$450
Top DMA (1-25)$400-1000+$600

Larger markets mean higher CPMs, fiercer competition, and 2-3x higher CPLs. If you’re in a top-25 DMA, budget accordingly, or find targeting precision that lets you beat these averages.

What Affects Your CPL

Creative Quality

The single biggest variable. Strong creative can halve your CPL; weak creative can double it.

Option A

Option B

CREATIVE IMPACT
2-3x performance difference between creative variations Source: IAB/Innovid

Targeting Precision

Option A

Option B

See Why Demographic Targeting Wastes Budget for targeting strategy.

Landing Page Conversion

CTV drives traffic. Your landing page converts it.

Conversion RateImpact on CPL
3%Baseline
4%25% lower CPL
5%40% lower CPL
6%50% lower CPL

A 2 percentage point conversion improvement cuts your CPL by 40%. That’s not optimization. That’s a different business model.

Landing page essentials:

  • Message match with TV creative
  • Phone number visible immediately
  • Simple form (name, phone, injury type)
  • Mobile-optimized (most traffic is mobile)
  • Fast load time (under 3 seconds)

Search Protection

CTV generates searches. 75% of consumers search after seeing TV ads. If competitors capture those searches, your CPL suffers.

Without branded search protection:

  • 30-40% of searches go to competitors
  • You pay for awareness they capture
  • CPL appears higher than it should

With branded search protection:

  • 90%+ of branded searches captured
  • Full credit for CTV-generated leads
  • True CPL visible

See CTV and Search Coordination for integration strategy.

Attribution Setup

If attribution is incomplete, your measured CPL is wrong.

Incomplete attribution:

  • Only tracking form fills (missing calls)
  • Short attribution window (missing delayed conversions)
  • Last-click only (missing CTV influence)

Complete attribution:

  • Form + call + chat tracking
  • 14-21 day attribution windows
  • Multi-touch models crediting CTV appropriately

CTV accounted for 38% of impressions but 63% of conversions with proper attribution.

Market Competition

More competitors = higher CPMs = higher CPL.

Competitive markets:

  • Multiple PI firms advertising aggressively
  • Bidding up CTV inventory
  • Harder to stand out
  • Higher CPL

Less competitive markets:

  • Fewer advertisers
  • Lower CPMs
  • Easier differentiation
  • Lower CPL

CPL Reality Check

How to interpret your CPL:

CPLInterpretation
Under $200Excellent: verify tracking is complete
$200-350Good: optimize for continued improvement
$350-500Average: look for creative/targeting improvements
$500-750Below average: diagnose issues
Over $750Problem: pause and fix fundamentals

These ranges assume proper attribution. Low measured CPL with incomplete tracking is misleading.

CPL vs. Cost Per Case

CPL matters less than cost per case. A channel with higher CPL but better lead quality might deliver lower cost per case.

Example:

ChannelCPLLead-to-CaseCost Per Case
CTV$40025%$1,600
Paid search$60018%$3,333

CTV’s lower CPL AND higher conversion rate compound into much better cost per case.

For cost per case analysis, see Calculating CTV ROI.

Improving Your CPL

1

Short-Term Fixes (1-2 weeks)

Improve landing page load speed, add click-to-call, fix tracking gaps, simplify forms

2

Medium-Term (1-2 months)

Refine targeting, test creative variations, add search protection, improve call handling

3

Long-Term (3+ months)

Build first-party lookalikes, refresh creative before fatigue, optimize by daypart/device

CPL IMPROVEMENT TIMELINE
+24% ROAS improvement after 90 days Source: MNTN Research

CPL improvement takes time. Consistent investment compounds.

Setting CPL Goals

Work backward from acceptable cost per case:

  1. Determine acceptable cost per case: (10-15% of average case value is typical)
  2. Estimate lead-to-case conversion: (15-25% for qualified PI leads)
  3. Calculate target CPL: Target CPL = Target CPC × Conversion Rate

Example:

  • Average case value: $25,000
  • Acceptable cost per case: $2,500 (10%)
  • Lead-to-case conversion: 20%
  • Target CPL: $2,500 × 20% = $500

Benchmarking Your Performance

Track CPL trends over time:

  • Compare month-over-month
  • Compare to campaign benchmarks
  • Compare across creative versions
  • Compare across audience segments

Improving trends matter more than absolute numbers.

For complete cost analysis, see How Much Does CTV Cost.

References