Social ads ROAS in Belgium hits 7.20 dollars, yet Meta still dominates budgets

According to Metricool's Social Ads 2026 study, reported on 23 September by J'ai un pote dans la com and on 24 September by CB News, social ad campaigns run by Belgium-based companies show an average ROAS of 7.20 dollars for every dollar spent on Meta and TikTok. That figure is well above France (5.01), Germany (3.00) and the United States (2.42). Yet on 28 September, Comarketing News reported that 91% of advertisers in the study spend exclusively on Meta, even though a click averages 0.03 dollars on TikTok against 0.07 dollars on Meta. For a Belgian company, that gap is worth a closer look before the next budget decision.

1. A Belgian ROAS above the European average

Metricool's study analysed 628,969 ad campaigns run by 44,355 advertisers on Meta and TikTok, covering a combined spend of 471 million dollars, comparing the first six months of 2025 and 2026. Within that sample, Belgian companies post a ROAS of 7.20 dollars for every dollar invested, one of the highest figures in the study, well ahead of France, Germany or the United States.

2. TikTok: the blind spot for most advertisers

Despite this performance gap, Comarketing News notes that 91% of advertisers in the study run campaigns exclusively on Meta. TikTok remains notably cheaper to buy: a click averages 0.03 dollars there against 0.07 dollars on Meta, and a lead costs 2.69 dollars against 6 dollars. For a Belgian company that has never tested the platform, this is an easy comparison budget to set up.

3. A national figure to put into perspective by account size

Metricool notes that ROAS drops as budgets grow: accounts spending more than 10,000 dollars a month post an average return of 3.97 dollars, well below the overall average. The Belgian figure therefore blends very different realities depending on sector and spend level. An SME should not treat 7.20 dollars as a target, but compare its own result with companies of similar size.

4. What this means for budget decisions

A high ROAS says nothing about the quality of the leads generated, or how many actually convert into customers. Before shifting budget toward TikTok or concentrating further on Meta, a Belgian company should first check how its own leads are qualified and tracked through to the sale, rather than relying on a national average.

The AI lens, humans first

Meta and TikTok's ad algorithms, including Meta's Andromeda, already optimise delivery and bidding in real time to maximise the reported ROAS. AI can also quickly cross-reference cost per click and cost per lead across platforms to spot a gap like the one revealed by Metricool. But deciding whether that ROAS reflects leads genuinely qualified for the business, and choosing to commit a test budget to TikTok, remains a human judgement, grounded in knowledge of the sector and the customer. AI executes. Expertise decides, and keeps watch.