What Snapchat ads cost: bidding, budgets and billing

This guide is built from Snapchat Business Help: Bidding Strategies Overview, Set an Ad Set Budget, About Billing Thresholds, About Receipts and Invoices and Tax ID FAQ. Setting up the account, objectives and targeting is in our Snapchat ads for small businesses guide, and creative in our Snapchat ad specs guide.

How pricing works

Snapchat ads are bought in an auction. You decide how much to spend (the budget), what you want (the goal) and how Snap should bid (the strategy). What you actually pay per result depends on auction dynamics, which Snap describes as supply and demand at the time of delivery, plus your audience size, bid and how people respond to your creative. Snap doesn't guarantee full delivery: on its Auto-Bid page it says it "cannot guarantee that your campaign will deliver in full due to variables such as the creative interaction rate, current auction dynamics, target audience size, etc."

So there is no honest single answer to "how much does a Snapchat ad cost". The help pages we used don't publish average prices or a minimum budget; you control cost through budget and bidding.

Goal-based bidding

Each ad set optimises for a goal, and the goals available depend on the objective. Snap's goal-based bidding by objective page lists, for example:

• Awareness and engagement: impressions, 2-second or 15-second video views, clicks, shares and story opens.
• Traffic: clicks, landing page views and, for websites, Pixel page views; for apps, app opens and purchases.
• Leads: lead form submissions, or Pixel sign ups for website leads.
• App promotion: installs, or installs plus in-app events such as sign up, add to cart and purchase.

The goal is what Snap tries to get more of for your money, so pick the one closest to the result you value. Conversion goals need the Snap Pixel or Conversions API; see our Snapchat Pixel guide.

The three bidding strategies

• Auto-Bid: Snap sets the bid to get the most goal actions for your budget and audience, adjusting it "on approximately a daily basis". Snap recommends it if your main aim is spending the full budget and you don't have strict cost per action targets.
• Max Bid: you set the highest amount Snap may bid in each auction while it seeks the most efficient cost per action. Snap calls it "the most restrictive bid strategy" and recommends it only for strict caps on cost per action. If the bid is too low, you may not spend your budget.
• Target Cost: Snap works to keep your average cost per action around your target; the cost stays fairly constant while spend moves with auction conditions. Snap suggests starting slightly above the average cost per action you got on Auto-Bid over the last month, or at your profitable cost per action if you know it.

Not every goal supports every strategy. Max Bid is available for clicks, app installs and events, shares, Pixel events, story opens, impressions and lead form submissions; Target Cost for video views, clicks, landing page views, lead gen, Pixel page view, sign up, add to cart and purchase, and app installs and events. If a target cost bid is too low, Snap says you may not get enough conversions or spend your budget, and suggests raising it or improving targeting and creative.

Suggested bids

When you choose Max Bid, Ads Manager can show a suggested bid range, based on average platform performance, auction dynamics and your audience, and specific to your goal. Snap notes there's still no guarantee of full delivery, and encourages "bidding on the higher end of the suggested range" to give the ad set a better chance to spend its daily budget.

The learning phase

A new campaign or ad set goes through a learning phase that Snap says "typically lasts anywhere from 1 to 7 days", depending on audience, bid, budget and conversion history. It is "largely based on an ad set's ability to spend", and lasts longer when the ad set bids on a lower-funnel goal or can't spend its budget in full.

Daily and lifetime budgets

Budgets are set per ad set, and an ad set budget doesn't override the campaign budget.

• Daily budget: the average amount you're willing to spend on the ad set per day. It works on calendar days. Snap's example: with a $50 daily budget and an ad running from 1 PM today to 1 PM tomorrow, you have up to $50 until midnight and another $50 until 1 PM tomorrow.
• Lifetime budget: the amount you're willing to spend over the campaign's lifetime. Dayparting, running ads only at chosen times, needs a lifetime budget.

Billing thresholds

Snap says a billing threshold "determines how frequently you'll be charged and how much you're able to spend". When your accrued costs reach the threshold, Snap charges that amount. Thresholds start small and rise with successful payments until they reach a level that fits your spending history. How often you're charged during the day depends on how you spend. Payment methods, transactions and invoices are all under Billing & Payments in Ads Manager.

Payment methods

Snap's payment options by country page lists four methods: line of credit, credit card, PayPal and prepay. Which ones you can use depends on your country; in the United States, all four are listed, and Snap notes prepay is still rolling out to new markets.

• Add a card under Billing & Payments, New Payment Method. You need a billing address first, and you can add a second card as a backup.
• Prepaid cards, and cards already used in another organisation, aren't permitted.
• If you remove a card, ad accounts using it stop delivering until you link another payment method.

Invoices and receipts

• Line of credit: invoices are issued before payment and sent by the 5th of each month to the email address of the ad account's billing center.
• Credit card or PayPal: tax receipts (tax invoices) are issued monthly after payment, and you also get daily statements of your spend.

Receipts show your organisation address, and Snap warns that "Once set, an Organization address cannot be changed." Check it before your first payment.

Taxes and tax IDs

Ads Manager asks for your business tax ID so taxes such as VAT and GST are handled correctly where you are. You add it in your Billing Center, under Business Details. The type of ID (VAT, EIN, ABN, GST ID and so on) depends on where the business is registered, and it must be entered exactly as on your tax documents. Snap explains that a valid tax ID identifies you as a business customer, which often means VAT isn't added to your ad costs and you account for it locally instead; without a required tax ID, "Snap will charge the standard local taxes" on your advertising costs. With prepay, taxes may be charged when you add credit, and you see them before confirming.

How we budget Snapchat campaigns

This is our own practice, not Snap's guidance:

• We launch on Auto-Bid with a daily budget, and move to Target Cost only once a month of Auto-Bid data shows a real cost per action.
• We don't edit an ad set during its first week of learning unless something is broken.
• We add the tax ID and check the organisation address before the first payment.
• We add a backup card, so a failed charge doesn't stop delivery.

If you want help planning a Snapchat or other paid social budget, see our services.

Frequently asked questions

How much do Snapchat ads cost?

There is no fixed price. Snapchat ads are bought in an auction, and the cost per result depends on your goal, bidding strategy, budget, audience and creative. You set a daily or lifetime budget per ad set.

Which Snapchat bidding strategy should I use?

Snap recommends Auto-Bid if you want to spend your full budget without a strict cost target, Target Cost to keep an average cost per action, and Max Bid only if you have a strict cap.

When does Snapchat charge me?

Each time your accrued costs reach your billing threshold. Thresholds start small and rise as you make successful payments.

Can I pay for Snapchat ads with PayPal?

In many countries, yes. Snap lists line of credit, credit card, PayPal and prepay, with availability by country. Prepaid cards aren't permitted.

Do I have to give Snapchat a tax ID?

If your country requires one for business customers and you don't provide it, Snap charges standard local taxes on your ad costs.

For costs on other platforms, see our guides to Reddit ads cost, Pinterest ads cost, YouTube ads cost and TikTok ads bidding.