CPA vs CAC: CPA is the per-channel acquisition cost (channel spend ÷ acquisitions from that channel, direct media spend only). [CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost)] is the blended, fully loaded number (all sales + marketing spend ÷ all new customers, includes salaries, tools, content, events). CPA is what the paid-acquisition team optimizes on a campaign dashboard; CAC is what the CEO and board read on a unit-economics slide.
Cost per acquisition (CPA) is the channel-level cost to acquire one converted user, calculated as channel spend divided by acquisitions. It is measured per channel or campaign and used to evaluate efficiency at a more granular level than blended CAC. It is the operational metric a paid-acquisition te...