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Google Ads vs Newsletter sponsorship
Side by side on the figures that matter for a small budget, from the same sourced benchmarks used across this site. At $500, Google Ads buys clicks more cheaply ($5.43 each) — but cheaper clicks are not better clicks, so read the caveats.
| Google Ads | Newsletter sponsorship | |
|---|---|---|
| Priced | per click | per placement |
| Typical price | $5.42 | $300 |
| Range | $2.00–$15 | $100–$2,000 |
| Click-through rate | — (billed per click) | 1.50% |
| Least worth spending | $300 | $100 |
| Clicks for $200 | 36 | 0 |
| Clicks for $500 | 92 | 15 |
| Source | WordStream / LocaliQ search advertising benchmarks (2026) | Paved newsletter advertising marketplace (2026) |
How it works
Google Ads: Below roughly $300 the campaign never leaves its learning phase, so the number you measure is not the number you would get at scale.
Newsletter sponsorship: Sold per send, so you cannot buy a small test — the smallest purchase is one whole placement.