Cost Per Click (CPC)

Cost Per Click means the advertiser doesn't pay simply because an ad appeared on screen — they pay only when someone clicks on it. If you place an ad in a newspaper, you pay a flat fee regardless of how many people actually look at it, but CPC is more like a shop window: passersby who just glance at it cost nothing, and you only get charged once someone walks in.

This model is also used in AI chat services like ChatGPT because it lowers the risk for advertisers. Instead of paying for mere exposure, they only spend money on people who show real interest, which makes it easier to measure efficiency. That's why CPC is often mentioned as an advertising approach that's approachable not just for big companies but also for small businesses and startups with limited budgets.

However, it rarely stops at the click itself. It's usually paired with performance optimization that tracks what happens after the click — whether the person actually made a purchase or signed up. CPC is just the first gate for spending ad budget; the yardstick for measuring what happens afterward is a separate matter.

Articles describe it in phrasing like "cost-per-click (CPC) and performance-optimized bidding make up most campaigns." The key point, often misunderstood, is that advertisers aren't charged simply because an ad is displayed — they're billed only when a user actually clicks on it.