CPM and impressions calculator
Check whether a value makes sense for the audience it reached. Work out the CPM from value and impressions, or estimate impressions from a value and a CPM.
CPM = value ÷ impressions × 1,000Impressions = value ÷ CPM × 1,000 Your figures
Example figures are filled in. Replace them with yours.
Commercial-equivalent value of the airtime, or the spend for paid media.
Gross impressions for the same airings.
A market benchmark for the same medium and daypart.
How it is calculated
The same formulas as the methodology page, applied to the figures you enter.
Read the full guide CPM = Estimated value ÷ Estimated impressions × 1,000 Estimated impressions = Estimated value ÷ CPM × 1,000 Estimated value = CPM × Estimated impressions ÷ 1,000 For donated broadcast, both inputs are estimates, so the CPM is too. For paid digital media the platform reports spend and impressions, and the CPM is measured.
Use the implied CPM as a sanity check. A figure far outside the normal range for the market and daypart usually means a rate went on the wrong daypart or an audience figure on the wrong demographic.
What does CPM stand for?
Cost per thousand. The M is the Roman numeral for 1,000. Donated airtime has no cost, so for a PSA the CPM is the estimated value of a thousand impressions.
When should I work out impressions from a CPM?
When there's no direct audience estimate but there is a well-supported value and a market CPM benchmark. The result stacks one estimate on another, so label it a CPM-derived estimate.
Can I compare a donated CPM with a paid digital CPM?
Yes, that's what CPM is for: it puts broadcast and digital delivery on one scale. Keep the labels, though. The paid CPM is measured and the donated one is estimated.
Other calculators
Want value and impressions from verified airings?
We estimate both for each airing and check the implied CPM before anything goes in your report.