How Much Does CTV Advertising Cost for Law Firms?

$35-45 CPM. $15-25K/month small DMA, $100K+ top DMA. Production: $20-40K year one. CPL: $250-600 by market. Real numbers.

“What does CTV cost?” is the first question most firms ask. Four components: media, production, management, and minimums. Here’s what you’ll actually pay.

Media Costs (CPM)

CTV media is priced by CPM, or cost per thousand impressions.

Inventory TypeCPM Range
Premium SVOD (Hulu, Peacock, Max)$40-55
Mid-tier streaming$35-45
FAST channels (Tubi, Pluto, Freevee)$20-35
Local/regional streaming$25-40
Sports streaming$45-65
Blended average$35-45

Most law firm campaigns land at $35-45 CPM blended. Pay more for premium placement (Hulu during primetime), less for FAST channels (Tubi, Pluto). Industry range: $25-65.

Monthly Media Budgets by Market

What you need to spend on media (impressions) monthly:

Small Market (DMA 100+)

Population under 500K (Lincoln NE, Fargo ND, Amarillo TX)

LevelMonthly Budget
Entry$10-15K
Working$15-25K
Strong$25-40K

Recommendation: $15-25K/month

Mid-Size Market (DMA 50-100)

Population 500K-1.5M (Louisville, Oklahoma City, Memphis)

LevelMonthly Budget
Entry$20-30K
Working$30-50K
Strong$50-75K

Recommendation: $30-50K/month

Major Market (DMA 25-50)

Population 1.5M-3M (San Diego, Denver, St. Louis)

LevelMonthly Budget
Entry$35-50K
Working$50-80K
Strong$80-120K

Recommendation: $50-80K/month

Top Market (DMA 1-25)

Population 3M+ (Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Philadelphia)

LevelMonthly Budget
Entry$50-75K
Working$75-150K
Strong$150-300K+

Recommendation: $100K+/month

Creative Production Costs

You need broadcast-quality creative:

Creative ElementCost Range
30-second spot$15,000-35,000
15-second cutdown$2,000-5,000
Package (30s + 15s)$18,000-40,000
Creative refresh$8,000-15,000
Photography session$2,000-5,000

First-year creative investment: $20,000-40,000

This is a one-time cost, not monthly. But don’t underspend here. Strong creative can cut your CPL in half. A $30K investment in great creative often saves $100K+ in wasted media.

Management and Platform Costs

CTV campaigns require management:

Fee TypeTypical Range
Platform/technology5-10% of media
Management/optimization10-15% of media
Total service fees15-25% of media

Example: $50K monthly media = $7,500-12,500 in fees = $57,500-62,500 total monthly investment

Tracking and Technology

ToolMonthly Cost
Call tracking$200-500
Attribution platformOften included
CRM integrationVariable

These costs are relatively minor compared to media but essential for measurement.

Total First-Year Investment Examples

Small Market Entry

ComponentCost
Creative production$25,000
Monthly media ($20K × 12)$240,000
Management (15%)$36,000
Call tracking$3,600
Total Year 1~$305,000

Mid-Size Market Working Budget

ComponentCost
Creative production$30,000
Monthly media ($40K × 12)$480,000
Management (15%)$72,000
Call tracking$4,200
Creative refresh$10,000
Total Year 1~$596,000

Major Market Strong Budget

ComponentCost
Creative production$40,000
Monthly media ($100K × 12)$1,200,000
Management (15%)$180,000
Call tracking$6,000
Creative refresh (×2)$24,000
Total Year 1~$1,450,000

Cost Per Lead Benchmarks

What can you expect for CPL?

Market SizeCPL RangeMedian
Small DMA$150-400$250
Mid DMA$200-500$350
Major DMA$300-700$450
Top DMA$400-1000+$600

Your CPL depends on creative quality, targeting precision, and landing page conversion. Firms with strong creative and tight targeting routinely beat these benchmarks by 30-40%.

Cost Per Case Benchmarks

The metric that matters most:

Market SizeCPC RangeMedian
Small DMA$1,200-2,500$1,800
Mid DMA$1,500-3,500$2,400
Major DMA$2,000-5,000$3,200
Top DMA$3,000-8,000+$4,500

The math that matters: if your cost per case is 10-15% of average case value, you’re in healthy territory. At $3,200 cost per case and $30K average case value, you’re spending ~10%. Sustainable and scalable.

What Affects Your Costs

Option A

Option B

Minimum Viable Investment

There are floors below which CTV doesn’t make sense:

MarketMinimum Monthly
Small$12-15K
Mid$25-30K
Major$40-50K
Top$60-75K

Below these levels:

  • Frequency too low for recall
  • Data insufficient for optimization
  • Attribution statistically unreliable
  • Impact unmeasurable

If you can’t hit these minimums, invest elsewhere until you can commit meaningfully. Underfunded CTV wastes money. You get impressions without the frequency needed for recall.

ROI Context

CTV campaigns deliver 23% higher ROI than traditional TV. ROAS improves 24% after 90 days of consistent investment.

The costs are real. But so are the returns.

References