Budgeting a CPM campaign without confusing rate, cap and spend
CPM, view threshold, payout cap per post, funded budget and remaining balance: the variables to set before you launch a campaign.
By KRED product team · Published 25 August 2026 · Updated 25 August 2026 · 8 min
CPM (earnings per 1,000 views) is only one variable in a campaign budget. To decide how much to fund, you also need to decide which views are eligible, how far each post can be paid, and how the budget is shared when several creators perform at the same time.
Set the formula, then add its limits
Gross earnings = eligible views × CPM ÷ 1,000.
At a €5 CPM, 20,000 eligible views come to €100 on paper. That is a simulation, not a forecast: a minimum threshold can prevent payment, a cap can reduce it, and the campaign’s remaining budget can limit the final increment.
Work in this order: rate per platform, any threshold, payout cap per post, cumulative cap per creator, then total budget. The rate expresses the calculation rule; the budget expresses your maximum commitment to the campaign’s earnings.
What the three safeguards are for
The minimum threshold
It avoids paying for posts below a defined level. A threshold set too high, however, can put the campaign out of reach for most of the profiles you are targeting. Rely on data from comparable campaigns where it exists; without any history, start with an explicit assumption and observe.
The payout cap per post
It limits your exposure to a post that takes off. To check that it is consistent, convert it into views: at a €5 CPM, a €250 cap is reached at 50,000 eligible views.
The cap per creator
It prevents a single person from using up the whole budget across several posts. This setting must stay compatible with the number of posts you allow: a creator cap lower than a single per-video cap sends a contradictory signal.
Build several scenarios, not a false forecast
| Simulated scenario | Posts | Average eligible views | Earnings at a €5 CPM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spread out | 20 | 10,000 | €1,000 |
| Concentrated | 5 | 40,000 | €1,000 |
| With a €150 cap per post | 5 | 40,000 | €750 |
The first two scenarios have the same total volume, but neither the same distribution nor the same operational risk. The third shows the effect of a payout cap per post. Add a low, a central and a high scenario to your own model, without presenting the central one as the expected result.
Separate the creator budget, the platform fee and taxes
The campaign budget funds the earnings calculated for creators. The KRED platform fee and any applicable VAT are separate lines. The funding summary shows the amounts before you confirm: use that total, not the media budget alone, to work out your actual cash requirement.
We do not publish a generic rate here: the applicable terms are those shown in your funding flow and your contractual documents at the time of funding. A figure written in an article ages quickly; the transaction summary is the reference for the operation.
Read the dashboard correctly
On KRED, views are counted every day for the 30 days following publication. New eligible views create incremental earnings: a counter that is read again never pays for the same views twice.
Observed views and the views actually paid for can differ because of a threshold, a cap or the remaining budget. To manage the campaign, look at views, credited earnings, caps reached and the remaining balance together.
Plan for what happens to unused budget
As long as the conditions allow it before the campaign ends, funded budget that has not been committed can be refunded through the intended flow. After the campaign closes, the remaining funded balance becomes a twelve-month credit that can be used for another KRED campaign. The platform fee for the service remains separate from the creator budget.
Do not deliberately launch an oversized budget on the assumption that it will be refunded straight away. Fund a scenario you are prepared to commit to the campaign, then track spending while there is still time to act.
The pre-funding review
- Is the CPM consistent with each platform and the content requested?
- Is the threshold still achievable for eligible profiles?
- Do the caps genuinely reflect the risk you accept?
- Does the budget allow enough participation to learn something?
- Have the platform fee, VAT and total to fund been checked?
- Is someone responsible for tracking the remaining balance and the end date?
Once the figures are set, check that the campaign brief asks for an effort proportionate to the level of pay and sets out observable approval criteria.