LinkedIn is a powerful platform for B2B advertising – but it comes with a price. Literally.

We’ve consistently seen higher cost-per-click (CPC) rates on LinkedIn compared to Meta, Google, or YouTube. For companies tha might benefit from account-based marketing (ABM) strategy to target a narrow, high-level audience, this difference is even more pronounced.

So what makes LinkedIn so expensive?

Let’s break it down.

1. High CPMs Drive Up CPCs

The cost of getting in front of your audience on LinkedIn depends on how many other advertisers are competing for the same eyeballs.

By LinkedIn standards audiences under 100K tend to drive up CPM quickly.

Why?

• Smaller audience = fewer impressions available, and limited supply increases auction pressure.
  
  
• Senior roles like Directors or VPs are in high demand, especially in B2B. Everyone wants to reach them. So the competition is fierce.
  
  
• Automated bidding ("Maximize Conversions") from competitors can escalate CPM even more, driving up your CPC, even if you're trying to play it safe with manual bidding.
  
  

2. Low CTR Multiplies the Pain

When CTR drops, CPC shoots up, even if CPM stays the same.

What causes low CTR?

• Saturated messaging. Senior audiences are bombarded with similar copy: "Revolutionize your workflow" or "Transform your business." These lines don’t cut through anymore.
  
  
• Ad fatigue. In small audiences, frequency climbs fast. If you don’t refresh creatives often, people start tuning them out. 
• Design without hypotheses. CTR doesn’t improve just by making something “prettier.” Without testing structured creative hypotheses (e.g., Hook A vs. Hook B, or Illustration vs. Real Photography), it’s hard to iterate effectively. Designers need real purpose and feedback loops, not just vibes.
  

3. Audience Saturation Is Real

The smaller the audience the faster it burns out.

You may have a great ad. But if your audience has already seen it four times this week – you might not win that click. And you’ll still pay for the impressions. You need to test the frequency and keep it on the optimal level.

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4. Limited Daily Active Use

LinkedIn users aren’t scrolling all day like they do on Meta or TikTok. Many check the platform just a few times a week. That means fewer impression opportunities overall, and when supply is limited, auction prices go up.

So even if your target audience is large on paper, active reach may be much smaller in practice.

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5. High Intent = High Value = High Bids

Advertisers aren’t just paying for clicks – they’re paying for access to decision-makers in a business mindset.

LinkedIn leads are consistently rated among the highest quality in B2B. That’s especially true for high-ticket services where a single conversion can be worth thousands.

Because of this, brands are willing to bid more aggressively, knowing that a click could mean a qualified lead, a demo booked, or even a closed deal.

6. Fewer Algorithmic Shortcuts

LinkedIn’s ad algorithm is less mature than Meta or Google’s. That means less efficient delivery, slower learning, and more manual optimization needed. If you’re not actively optimizing audiences, testing hooks or bid strategies, and analyzing frequency, the algorithm won’t compensate for you.

The result? Wasted spend and missed chances to stand out in front of decision-makers who scroll past thousands of generic offers every week.

What to do about it: invest in hands-on optimization, partner with marketers who understand LinkedIn’s quirks. If you’re spending on LinkedIn and not seeing results you’re happy with, it might be time for a second look.

As a growth agency with deep LinkedIn expertise, Pearmill can audit your current setup and help you make your spend work harder, and smarter. You don’t need to figure this out alone.

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TL;DR

Why Are LinkedIn CPCs So High – Especially for B2B and High-Intent Audiences?

• CPMs are high due to small audiences and intense competition in B2B.
  
  
• Low CTR makes it worse, often driven by tired messaging or creative fatigue.
  
  
• Audiences saturate fast, especially when users log in only a few times a week.
  
  
• Advertisers bid aggressively because the leads are high-value.
  
  
• LinkedIn’s algorithm isn’t doing the heavy lifting – you need to manually test and optimize.
  
  

In short: LinkedIn is expensive, but if you know what you’re doing, it can be worth every click.

Advertising on LinkedIn isn’t something you want to wing. With higher costs and a more focused audience, every impression counts, and a clear strategy can make all the difference.
When you know what works (and what to avoid), you’ll get in front of the right people faster, with messaging that actually gets them to take action.

Need help building that kind of strategy? Pearmill’s growth team knows LinkedIn inside and out. Reach out – we’d love to take a look at what you’re running, or help build your strategy from the ground up to make your LinkedIn ads work smarter and convert better.