How to set your CPM, budget and caps

All financial amounts on Ripple are in Canadian Dollars (CAD). When you configure Step 3 (Budget) of your campaign, three numbers work together:

1. Creator Budget (CAD) — the total pool available to pay creators for verified views.
2. CPM (CAD per 1,000 views) — the rate paid per 1,000 eligible verified views (minimum $7 CAD).
3. Max Payout Per Creator (CAD) — the mandatory cap on how much any single creator can earn from the campaign.

Here is how to set each one strategically.

Why you should avoid defaulting to the $7 CAD minimum CPM

Ripple enforces a platform floor of $7 CAD per 1,000 verified views, and shows a suggested range in the campaign wizard based on your format and platforms. However, treating $7 CAD as a default for every campaign is a common mistake:

1. Quality creators compare effort to reward: Recording a game, learning its mechanics, editing a dedicated video and respecting mandatory brief rules takes real production time. A competitive CPM signals that your studio values the creator’s craft.
2. Long-form Video requires a higher CPM than Short-form: A 15-minute YouTube gameplay video or dedicated Twitch stream involves significantly more preparation than a 45-second vertical clip, and delivers much higher viewer intent per view.
3. Niche audiences have higher conversion per view: A creator whose channel is 100% dedicated to tactical roguelikes may generate 15,000 highly targeted views instead of 200,000 casual views. Offering a strong CPM makes your campaign financially worthwhile for those high-converting specialists.
4. Faster, stronger applications: Campaigns with competitive CPMs attract more applications in the first 48 hours, giving you a better pool of creators to select from.

Tip

Use the Suggested range displayed in Step 3 (Budget) as your baseline, and adjust upward when your brief requires long-form production, specific gameplay milestones, or a tight turnaround window.

How to calibrate Max Payout Per Creator (CAD)

Max Payout Per Creator (CAD) is required on every campaign. It serves two purposes:

• Protecting multi-creator distribution: Without a sensible per-creator cap, a single viral video from the first creator to publish could consume 100% of your campaign budget, leaving nothing for the other accepted creators.
• Keeping incentives attractive: If you set the cap too low (for example, $50 CAD on a Long-form Video campaign), experienced creators will pass because their upside does not cover their production time.

Practical rule of thumb

Set your Max Payout Per Creator between 20% and 35% of your total Creator Budget when working with a cohort of 4 to 8 creators:

Creator Budget (CAD)	Typical Cohort Size	Example Max Payout Per Creator (CAD)	Why it works
$1,500 CAD	3–5 creators	$400 – $500 CAD	Meaningful upside for niche creators while ensuring at least 3 creators can hit full performance.
$3,000 CAD	5–8 creators	$600 – $900 CAD	Attracts established mid-tier creators without letting one breakout video exhaust the entire pool.
$6,000 CAD	8–12 creators	$1,000 – $1,500 CAD	Strong ceiling for larger channels while spreading reach across a diverse creator roster.

Understanding the total checkout amount

In Step 3 (Budget), Ripple displays your live budget breakdown:

• Campaign Budget (CAD): the total budget you allocate (default minimum $2,500 CAD).
• Platform fee (20%): Ripple deducts a 20% standard platform fee from the total budget (your studio may have specific pricing settings). Initial Stripe payment processing fees are included in the Ripple fee and are not added to your budget.
• Creator pool: the remaining 80% of the total budget, available to pay creators for verified views.

If the campaign ends and total verified creator payouts are lower than the Creator Budget you funded, the unused Creator Budget is returned according to Ripple’s settlement process (see CPM, estimates and final payouts).

Next, learn how to choose between niche and generalist creators.