CPA meaning: what is cost per action?
CPA means cost per action: what an advertiser pays when a user does one defined action, such as signing up, starting a trial or making a first purchase. The advertiser names the action and pays only once it is confirmed.
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The formula: CPA = total spend ÷ actions.
Example: an advertiser spends $600 and gets 20 confirmed sign-ups. That’s a CPA of $30.
Two things decide whether a CPA deal works. The action has to be something the advertiser can confirm, which usually means a server event rather than a thank-you page. And it has to be hard enough to be worth paying for, but easy enough that the publisher’s users finish it. Too easy brings users who never come back. Too hard brings no volume, and publishers move to other offers.
They’re close, and people often use them for the same thing. CPA is the broader word, and it usually means one action that ends the deal: a sign-up, a deposit, a purchase. CPE usually means several smaller steps inside an app, each with its own price, such as reaching a level. A CPE offer is a ladder. A CPA offer is one rung.
All the pricing models are side by side in the table on the CPE page.
Advertisers set a price for each event they want to pay for, and an event is charged only when it matches a tap on the campaign. Publishers see these offers as Paid once, on one action on their Offers page. Setting prices: Choose events and what each one pays.
Questions
What is a good CPA?
One that is lower than what the action is worth to you. That depends on your product, your margin and how many of those users stay, so a figure from someone else's business won't tell you much.
Is CPA the same as cost per acquisition?
Mostly. Cost per acquisition usually means the cost of winning a customer. Cost per action can mean any step you choose to pay for, including one that comes well before someone becomes a customer.