Microsoft Ads Benchmarks for UK Financial Services 2026
CPC, CPL, CTR and CVR ranges for Microsoft Advertising across UK regulated financial services niches. Typically 20-28% below Google Search CPC with older, higher-income audiences.
What is Microsoft Ads Benchmarks for UK Financial Services 2026?
Microsoft Ads benchmarks for UK financial services are anonymised CPC, CPL and conversion ranges for Microsoft Advertising (Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, Edge, MSN) across regulated advice niches.
Benchmark table
| Niche | Platform | Metric | Low | High | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| annuities | cpl | £29 | £57 | directional | |
| annuities | bing | cpl | £29 | £57 | directional |
| annuities | cpl | £82 | £153 | directional | |
| annuities | meta | cpl | £4.7 | £9.7 | directional |
| equity release | cpl | £53 | £101 | directional | |
| equity release | bing | cpl | £53 | £101 | directional |
| equity release | cpl | £147 | £273 | directional | |
| equity release | meta | cpl | £8.8 | £18.2 | directional |
| pension consolidation | cpl | £34 | £65 | directional | |
| pension consolidation | bing | cpl | £34 | £65 | directional |
| pension consolidation | cpl | £94 | £175 | directional | |
| pension consolidation | meta | cpl | £5.3 | £11.1 | directional |
| pension transfer | cpl | £46 | £88 | directional | |
| pension transfer | bing | cpl | £46 | £88 | directional |
| pension transfer | cpl | £127 | £237 | directional | |
| pension transfer | meta | cpl | £7.2 | £15 | directional |
| remortgage | bing | cpl | £19.6 | £38 | directional |
| remortgage | cpl | £19.6 | £38 | directional | |
| remortgage | cpl | £69 | £127 | directional | |
| remortgage | meta | cpl | £4 | £8 | directional |
| retirement planning | cpc | £3.22 | £10.58 | grouped | |
| retirement planning | ctr | 2.55% | 7.65% | grouped | |
| retirement planning | cvr | 5.7% | 17.1% | grouped | |
| retirement planning | mql-rate | 45.6% | 71.3% | grouped | |
| retirement planning | cross-channel | cac-payback-months | 4 | 13 | observed |
| retirement planning | cross-channel | mql-to-client-rate | 5% | 14% | observed |
| retirement planning | cross-channel | speed-to-lead-minutes | 4 | 70 | observed |
| retirement planning | open-rate | 26.6% | 45.6% | grouped | |
| retirement planning | youtube | view-rate | 17.1% | 32.3% | grouped |
| retirement planning | meta | cpc | £0.63 | £2.13 | grouped |
| retirement planning | meta | cpm | £4.83 | £14.49 | grouped |
| retirement planning | meta | ctr | 0.8% | 2.5% | grouped |
| retirement planning | meta | cvr | 2.85% | 11.4% | grouped |
| retirement planning | meta | mql-rate | 17.1% | 39.9% | grouped |
| retirement planning | bing | cpc | £2.19 | £7.82 | grouped |
| retirement planning | bing | ctr | 2.04% | 6.12% | grouped |
| retirement planning | bing | cvr | 4.75% | 14.25% | grouped |
| retirement planning | bing | mql-rate | 42.8% | 68.4% | grouped |
| retirement planning | cpc | £6.67 | £16.33 | grouped | |
| retirement planning | cpm | £20.7 | £55.2 | grouped | |
| retirement planning | ctr | 0.4% | 1.2% | grouped | |
| retirement planning | cvr | 3.8% | 9.5% | grouped | |
| retirement planning | mql-rate | 36.1% | 64.6% | grouped | |
| wealth management | cpc | £5.04 | £16.56 | grouped | |
| wealth management | ctr | 2.5% | 6% | grouped | |
| wealth management | cvr | 4.2% | 12.6% | grouped | |
| wealth management | cross-channel | speed-to-lead-minutes | 6 | 120 | observed |
| wealth management | mql-rate | 33.6% | 52.5% | grouped | |
| wealth management | cross-channel | cac-payback-months | 6 | 22 | observed |
| wealth management | cross-channel | mql-to-client-rate | 3% | 10% | observed |
| wealth management | open-rate | 19.6% | 33.6% | grouped | |
| wealth management | youtube | view-rate | 12.6% | 23.8% | grouped |
| wealth management | meta | cpc | £0.99 | £3.33 | grouped |
| wealth management | meta | cpm | £7.56 | £22.68 | grouped |
| wealth management | meta | ctr | 0.8% | 2.5% | grouped |
| wealth management | meta | cvr | 2.1% | 8.4% | grouped |
| wealth management | meta | mql-rate | 12.6% | 29.4% | grouped |
| wealth management | bing | cpc | £3.42 | £12.24 | grouped |
| wealth management | bing | ctr | 2% | 5% | grouped |
| wealth management | bing | cvr | 3.5% | 10.5% | grouped |
| wealth management | bing | mql-rate | 31.5% | 50.4% | grouped |
| wealth management | cpc | £10.44 | £25.56 | grouped | |
| wealth management | cpm | £32.4 | £86.4 | grouped | |
| wealth management | ctr | 0.4% | 1.2% | grouped | |
| wealth management | cvr | 2.8% | 7% | grouped | |
| wealth management | mql-rate | 26.6% | 47.6% | grouped |
Industry commentary
Microsoft Ads is the quiet winner in UK regulated advice paid-search. CPCs run 20-28% below Google for equivalent high-intent keywords (£1.9-£6.8 vs £2.8-£9.2), and the audience skews 45+ and higher-income. Volume is capped at ~8% of UK search, so it is always a complement to Google rather than a standalone starter channel.
Methodology
Ranges are drawn from UK Microsoft Advertising agency aggregates and live Platinum Prospects-managed accounts over the trailing 12 months. CPCs and CPLs are shown at the 20th and 80th percentile; sample sizes reflect distinct UK ad accounts per niche.
Frequently asked questions
Is Microsoft Ads cheaper than Google Ads in UK financial services?+
Yes. On the same high-intent keywords Microsoft Ads typically runs 20-28% below Google on CPC and 15-22% below on CPL, because the auction is less competitive and not because traffic quality is lower. The constraint is volume - Microsoft holds ~8% of UK search.
Which niches perform best on Microsoft Ads?+
Pension consolidation, IHT planning, equity release, annuities, retirement planning and remortgage. These niches have older buyer demographics that over-index on Edge, Outlook and Bing defaults.
Should I run Microsoft Ads instead of Google Ads?+
No. Run both. Google remains the volume leader and audience-signal leader. Microsoft adds 10-20% of incremental paid-search volume at a materially lower blended CPL, especially on older-audience niches.