Guide
Creative volume calculator: 13 to 20 new ads for every winning ad
Updated
Only about 5 to 8% of ads become winners, so you need 13 to 20 new ads for every winning ad you want. The table below turns that into a number per month.
In short
- You need to make about 13 to 20 new ads for every winning ad you want to find.
- Your monthly number is the winning ads you want times 13 to 20, divided by the months you can wait.
- Two winning ads in three months means making 9 to 14 new ads a month.
- The 13 to 20 comes from Motion's analysis of 550,000+ Meta ads, where 5 to 8% became winners.
- In Cutroom a 40-second ad costs 114 credits, about $1.82, so Basic at $39.99 a month covers about 21 ads.
- New ads for each winning ad
- 13 to 20
- Share of ads that become winners, per Motion
- 5 to 8%
- Credits for one 40-second ad in Cutroom, about $1.82
- 114
How many ads do you need a month?
Multiply the winning ads you want by 13 to 20, then divide by the months you can wait. The table has the answer for common goals.
- Use 13 if you want the smallest number of ads that can work, and 20 if you want to be on the safe side.
- A winning ad is one that keeps bringing in sales at a cost you are happy with, so you can keep spending on it.
- The numbers are rounded up, because you cannot make part of an ad.
New ads you need, by goal
Winning ads you want times 13 to 20, divided by the months you can wait. Rounded up.
| Your goal | New ads in total | New ads a month |
|---|---|---|
| 1 winning ad in 1 month | 13 to 20 | 13 to 20 |
| 1 winning ad in 3 months | 13 to 20 | 5 to 7 |
| 2 winning ads in 3 months | 26 to 40 | 9 to 14 |
| 3 winning ads in 3 months | 39 to 60 | 13 to 20 |
| 3 winning ads in 6 months | 39 to 60 | 7 to 10 |
Your goal: 1 winning ad in 1 month
- New ads in total
- 13 to 20
- New ads a month
- 13 to 20
Your goal: 1 winning ad in 3 months
- New ads in total
- 13 to 20
- New ads a month
- 5 to 7
Your goal: 2 winning ads in 3 months
- New ads in total
- 26 to 40
- New ads a month
- 9 to 14
Your goal: 3 winning ads in 3 months
- New ads in total
- 39 to 60
- New ads a month
- 13 to 20
Your goal: 3 winning ads in 6 months
- New ads in total
- 39 to 60
- New ads a month
- 7 to 10
Why 13 to 20 ads for one winner?
Most ads do not win, even when experienced people make them.
- Motion looked at more than 550,000 Meta ads and found that about 5 to 8% of them became winners.
- At 8%, about one ad in 13 wins. At 5%, one ad in 20 wins.
About 1 ad in 15 becomes a winner
One in 15 is the middle of Motion's 5 to 8%, from its analysis of 550,000+ Meta ads.
This is the whole editor
Highlight a phrase and a clip lands on those exact words. No timeline, no keyframes, no layers.
How long until you find a winner?
It depends on how many new ads you make each month. These are the months it takes to make 13 to 20 ads.
- At 2 new ads a month, you reach 13 to 20 ads in 7 to 10 months.
- At 6 new ads a month, you reach 13 to 20 ads in 3 to 4 months.
- At 15 new ads a month, it takes 1 to 2 months, so you can expect a winner most months.
How many ads can your ad budget test?
Every new ad needs some ad spend before you know whether it works. So your ad budget also limits how many ads you can make.
- Divide your monthly budget for new ads by what one test costs. That is the number of ads you can test.
- For example, at a 1% click rate, telling 1% from 1.5% takes about 6,300 views per ad.
- At $10 per 1,000 views, those views cost about $63, so $600 a month tests about 9 ads.
- If your budget tests fewer ads than the goal table says, make fewer ads and give each one enough spend.
Example: ads a monthly budget can test at $63 each
Example numbers, not benchmarks: a 1% click rate and $10 per 1,000 views. Rounded down.
| Monthly budget for new ads | Ads you can test | Months to reach 13 to 20 ads |
|---|---|---|
| $300 | 4 | 4 to 5 |
| $600 | 9 | 2 to 3 |
| $1,000 | 15 | 1 to 2 |
| $1,500 | 23 | 1 |
Monthly budget for new ads: $300
- Ads you can test
- 4
- Months to reach 13 to 20 ads
- 4 to 5
Monthly budget for new ads: $600
- Ads you can test
- 9
- Months to reach 13 to 20 ads
- 2 to 3
Monthly budget for new ads: $1,000
- Ads you can test
- 15
- Months to reach 13 to 20 ads
- 1 to 2
Monthly budget for new ads: $1,500
- Ads you can test
- 23
- Months to reach 13 to 20 ads
- 1
What the ads cost to make in Cutroom
Cutroom edits a clip you film of yourself talking into a finished 9:16 ad. A 40-second ad costs 114 credits, about $1.82, and a 30-second ad costs 110.
- Editing one clip of up to 3 minutes costs 100 credits.
- Exporting costs 20 credits per minute of finished video, so 40 seconds costs 14 and 30 seconds costs 10.
- Lite is $19.99 a month for 1,250 credits, which covers 10 ads of 40 seconds.
- Basic is $39.99 for 2,500 credits, about 21 ads. Premium is $79.99 for 5,000 credits, about 43 ads.
- A top-up of 2,500 credits costs $39.99 if you run out in a busy month.
- Cutroom only makes vertical 9:16 videos. On Basic and up, an AI presenter made from a photo can say the script instead, for 395 credits at 40 seconds.
Credits per month, by number of ads
40-second ads at 114 credits each, every one made from a clip you filmed.
| New ads a month | Credits | Plan that covers it |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | 684 | Lite: $19.99 for 1,250 credits |
| 10 | 1,140 | Lite: $19.99 for 1,250 credits |
| 15 | 1,710 | Basic: $39.99 for 2,500 credits |
| 20 | 2,280 | Basic: $39.99 for 2,500 credits |
| 30 | 3,420 | Premium: $79.99 for 5,000 credits |
| 45 | 5,130 | Premium plus one $39.99 top-up of 2,500 credits |
New ads a month: 6
- Credits
- 684
- Plan that covers it
- Lite: $19.99 for 1,250 credits
New ads a month: 10
- Credits
- 1,140
- Plan that covers it
- Lite: $19.99 for 1,250 credits
New ads a month: 15
- Credits
- 1,710
- Plan that covers it
- Basic: $39.99 for 2,500 credits
New ads a month: 20
- Credits
- 2,280
- Plan that covers it
- Basic: $39.99 for 2,500 credits
New ads a month: 30
- Credits
- 3,420
- Plan that covers it
- Premium: $79.99 for 5,000 credits
New ads a month: 45
- Credits
- 5,130
- Plan that covers it
- Premium plus one $39.99 top-up of 2,500 credits
Questions people ask
- How many ad creatives do I need per month?
- About 13 to 20 new ads for each winning ad you want, spread over the months you can wait. Two winning ads in three months means 9 to 14 new ads a month.
- Why do I need 13 to 20 ads for one winner?
- Because only about 5 to 8% of ads become winners, according to Motion's analysis of 550,000+ Meta ads. At 8% that is one ad in 13, and at 5% one in 20.
- Does the number go down as I get better at ads?
- Probably not by much. In Motion's analysis of 550,000+ Meta ads, only 5 to 8% became winners, so plan on at least 13 ads for each winner.
- How much ad spend does one test ad need?
- It depends on your click rate and what 1,000 views cost you. At a 1% click rate, telling 1% from 1.5% takes about 6,300 views. At $10 per 1,000 views, that is about $63 per ad.
- How many ads can I make on each Cutroom plan?
- About 10 on Lite, 21 on Basic and 43 on Premium, if each ad is 40 seconds long. Each one costs 114 credits: 100 to edit your clip and 14 to export it.
- What if my ad budget cannot test that many ads?
- Then make fewer ads and give each one enough ad spend to judge it. It will take longer to find a winner, but you can trust the result.
Work out your number, then make each ad from one filmed clip for 114 credits. Your first video is free.