What you pay for each view of a video ad. On YouTube in-stream ads, Google counts a view when someone watches 30 seconds (or the whole ad if it is shorter) or interacts with the ad, whichever comes first.
Formula
CPV = video ad spend ÷ views. View rate = views ÷ impressions
Example
Meera tests a YouTube in-stream ad with ₹10,000. It gets 50,000 impressions and 10,000 views, so CPV = ₹10,000 ÷ 10,000 = ₹1 and view rate = 10,000 ÷ 50,000 = 20%.
How you'll hear it
“Our CPV is one rupee, but let's see whether those views did anything for the store.”
What it helps you decide
Whether video is earning its place in the budget, and which video edit holds attention. Read it alongside what viewers did next: clicks, searches for the brand, store visits.
Where people misread it
Comparing a ₹1 view with a ₹10 click and concluding video is ten times cheaper. They are different actions. Also, a view is defined differently for in-stream and in-feed ads, so CPVs across formats are not like for like.
The story
Meera's YouTube test cost ₹10,000 and her CPV was ₹1. Her Instagram clicks cost ₹10. A colleague says video is far cheaper and she should scale it.
| Spend | ₹10,000 |
| Impressions | 50,000 |
| Views | 10,000 |
| View rate | 20% |
| CPV | ₹1 |
| Clicks to website | 100 |
| Spend per website click | ₹100 |
|---|
What looks right: ₹1 per view is a tenth of ₹10 per click.
What it hides: only 100 of the 10,000 viewers clicked through. Measured per website visit, the video cost ₹100, ten times the Instagram click.
What to look at instead: decide the job first. If the video is meant to make Pune shoppers know the store, track reach, view rate and branded searches over the following weeks. If it is meant to sell, compare cost per visit and per order.
All figures for Meera's store are fictional and for illustration only.
Work out your CPV, view rate and cost per click
The example's numbers are filled in. Replace them with yours.
A view is not a visit. Judge the video against the job you gave it.
Don't confuse it with
Related terms
Want to use this at work? AI-led PPC Excellence is aFactor's 16-week program for paid ads.
Sources
- Cost-per-view (CPV): Definition, Google Ads Help
- TrueView view rate: Definition, Google Ads Help