Is $10 a Day Good for Facebook Ads?

If you're a local service business thinking about running Facebook (Meta) ads, you’ve probably asked:

‍

“Is $10 a day enough?”

‍

Technically, yes.
Strategically, almost always no.

‍

After managing campaigns for home improvement companies, agencies, professional services, mortgage brokers, and other local businesses, I can confidently say:

‍

For 90% of businesses, $10/day will not generate consistent, high-quality leads.

‍

Let’s break down why.

‍

What $10 Per Day Actually Means

‍

$10/day equals about $300 per month.

‍

In theory, that sounds reasonable. In practice, it’s extremely limited — especially for lead generation.

‍

For local service businesses, here’s what we typically see:

• Average cost per lead (CPL): $20–$50
• Average CPM: $20–$50
• Average job value: $2,000+

‍

If your CPL is even $30 and you spend $10/day, that means:

• You might generate one lead every 3 days
• Roughly 8–10 leads per month
• And that’s assuming your campaign performs well

‍

That’s not much data. And without enough data, Meta can’t optimize effectively.

‍

Why $10/Day Usually Fails

‍

There are typically only two reasons businesses set a $10/day budget:

‍

1. You Can’t Afford More

‍

If budget is tight, I understand the hesitation.

‍

But here’s the reality:

‍

At $10/day, it takes significantly longer for campaigns to gather enough data to optimize. Most business owners don’t have the patience to wait 60–90 days for meaningful results — so they shut it off early and conclude:

‍

“Facebook ads don’t work.”

‍

When in reality, the budget never gave the system a fair chance.

‍

2. You Don’t Fully Believe in Ads

‍

Sometimes $10/day is a “test.”

‍

Not a real test — a psychological safety net.

‍

It’s set low enough that if it fails, you can say:

‍

“See? I knew ads wouldn’t work.”

‍

But serious marketing experiments require serious budgets.

‍

If your goal is real lead generation, $10/day isn’t structured for success from the start.

‍

The Math Most Businesses Ignore

‍

Let’s say you’re a local contractor doing $30,000/month in revenue.

‍

Your average job value is $2,500.

‍

You need roughly 12 jobs per month.

‍

If your close rate is 25%, you need 48 qualified leads per month.

‍

If your CPL is $30, you need:

‍

48 × $30 = $1,440/month in ad spend.

‍

That’s about $48 per day.

‍

Suddenly $10/day doesn’t look strategic — it looks disconnected from your growth goals. We break down costs to do an ad on Facebook further here as well.

‍

What Budget Actually Works?

‍

From real campaign experience across home improvement companies, agencies, and professional services:

• Minimum: $30/day
• Ideal starting point: $50/day

‍

This tends to be the sweet spot where:

• You generate consistent leads
• Meta gathers enough data to optimize
• Results stabilize faster
• You’re not overspending prematurely

‍

Below $30/day, consistency becomes very difficult.

‍

What About “Limited Learning”?

‍

Many advertisers obsess over Meta’s “Limited Learning” label, which appears when campaigns don’t get around 50 conversions per week.

‍

In practice, this label rarely makes or breaks a campaign for local service businesses.

‍

What actually matters is simple:

‍

Is your customer acquisition cost (CAC) lower than the profit you generate?

‍

If your average client generates recurring monthly revenue, you can afford a much higher CAC than businesses selling one-time products.

‍

That’s why monthly recurring services are powerful. You can spend more to acquire a client and still be highly profitable.

‍

Budget should be tied to economics — not platform labels.

‍

When $10/Day Does Make Sense

‍

If your business is small and you’re not ready for true lead generation campaigns, $10/day can still be useful.

‍

But not for conversion campaigns.

‍

Instead:

‍

Take that $300/month and boost your best-performing organic posts.

‍

Use it to:

• Increase brand awareness locally
• Target profile visitors
• Stay top-of-mind in your market

‍

For smaller businesses, general awareness may actually matter more than immediate lead volume.

‍

That’s a smarter use of $10/day than attempting to force a lead generation system that doesn’t have enough fuel.

‍

The Real Question Isn’t “Is $10/Day Enough?”

‍

The real question is:

‍

What are you trying to achieve?

‍

If your goal is:

• $20k/month in revenue
• $30k–$50k/month growth
• Consistent lead flow

‍

Then $10/day is not aligned with those outcomes.

‍

Advertising works when budgets match business goals.

‍

Final Answer: Is $10 a Day Good for Facebook Ads?

‍

For 90% of local service businesses:

‍

No.

‍

It’s not enough to generate consistent, high-quality leads.

‍

It’s either too small to allow proper optimization or disconnected from your revenue targets.

‍

If you’re serious about lead generation, start at $30/day minimum — ideally $50/day — and align your ad spend with your profit margins and growth objectives.

‍

If you’re not ready for that level of investment, use $10/day strategically for awareness — not conversions. If you are and simply don't want to manage it yourself, take a look at how we can help your business run Facebooks Ads for Lead Generation.