Click-through rate is clicks divided by impressions, multiplied by 100. Type both numbers into the calculator and it gives you the percentage, shows how many extra clicks a 1 point rise would bring, and compares two periods if you add a second set.
It works the same way for search results, emails and ads, because the sum never changes. What changes is what counts as an impression.
The CTR formula and a worked example
CTR = clicks / impressions x 100
Say a page had 240 clicks from 12,000 impressions last month. 240 / 12,000 = 0.02, and 0.02 x 100 = 2.00%.
Now the useful part. If the CTR rose by 1 point to 3.00% on the same 12,000 impressions, you'd get 12,000 x 0.03 = 360 clicks, which is 120 more. A 1 point rise on 2% is a 50% jump in clicks, without a single extra impression.
Compare that with the following month: 310 clicks from 12,400 impressions. 310 / 12,400 x 100 = 2.50%. That's a change of +0.50 points, or +25.0% in relative terms, with 70 more clicks and 400 more impressions. The calculator gives you all of those figures in one go.
Click-through rate calculator
How to use it
- Take clicks and impressions for the same thing over the same dates: one page, one email, one ad or one campaign.
- Type them in and press the button for the CTR and the 1 point projection.
- To compare, add the clicks and impressions from a second period of the same length. Put the earlier period in the first pair and the later one in the second, so a rise shows as a plus.
Keep the comparison fair. Same length of time, same page or campaign, and if you can, the same days of the week. A month with a run of public holidays in it will look different from one without, for reasons that have nothing to do with your title or subject line.
What CTR means in each channel
Search results. An impression is your page appearing in a results list someone loaded. A click is them choosing you. Your title and description do most of the work here, along with where you rank.
Want AI doing the heavy lifting in your marketing?
I build the systems that handle the boring 80 percent, so you get your week back. Done properly, with the human kept in.
Email. CTR is usually clicks divided by emails delivered. Some tools divide by opens instead and call it click-to-open rate, so check which one your platform shows before you compare figures.
Ads. An impression is your ad being shown. CTR tells you whether the ad earns attention, and it feeds straight into what each visitor costs you. If you buy ads on a cost per thousand basis, what CPM means explains how the two fit together, and what ROAS is takes you from clicks to return.
Related guides
- What is CPM
- What is ROAS
- How to improve your conversion rate, for what happens after the click
- Ways to boost your site's conversion rate
CTR questions answered
How do you calculate click-through rate?
Divide clicks by impressions and multiply by 100. 240 clicks from 12,000 impressions is a 2.00% click-through rate.
What is the difference between a point and a percent change in CTR?
A point change is the simple difference between two rates, so 2% to 3% is 1 point. A percent change compares the new rate with the old one, so 2% to 3% is a 50% rise.
Why are my impressions going up while my CTR goes down?
You're often showing up for more searches, including ones where you sit lower in the results. More impressions at lower positions can pull the overall rate down even when clicks rise.
Does a higher CTR always mean better results?
Not always. A higher CTR means more people chose to click. Whether those clicks turn into sales or sign-ups is a separate measure, which is your conversion rate.
Can I use this calculator for email CTR?
Yes. Use clicks and emails delivered for click-through rate, or clicks and opens if you want click-to-open rate. Use the same choice every time you compare.
Is my data stored anywhere?
No. The calculation runs in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or saved.
Reading CTR in Google Search Console
Search Console is where most site owners first meet CTR, and it's also where it's most often misread. Open the Performance report, tick Clicks, Impressions, Average CTR and Average position, then switch to the Pages or Queries tab.
Read impressions and clicks together. Impressions tell you Google is showing you; clicks tell you people want what you're showing. A page with lots of impressions and very few clicks is being seen and passed over. That's the page to work on first, because a better title and description can lift clicks without you needing to rank any higher.
Then look at position alongside it. A low CTR at position 40 isn't a title problem, it's a ranking problem, because almost nobody scrolls that far. A low CTR at position 3 is a title problem. Sort the Queries tab by impressions, find the terms where you rank on the first page but the CTR looks weak against your other pages, and rewrite the titles for those first. Then come back in a few weeks, run the old and new periods through the calculator above, and you'll see exactly what the change was worth in clicks.
