Telegram Ads minimum budget: how much a test needs and how not to waste it

Published: 3 October 2026

The Telegram Ads minimum budget is two different amounts: the entry threshold for an account and the money for the test itself. The threshold depends on the route: the official account paid in Telegram's cryptocurrency needs no large deposit, the direct euro account is built for big budgets, and resellers set their own minimums. The test budget follows a formula: CPM bid × impressions ÷ 1,000, and a first conclusion usually needs a few tens of thousands of impressions.

Entry threshold: three routes and their minimums

Which minimum applies where
Route	Minimum	Also consider
Official account, paid in Telegram's cryptocurrency	No large deposit: top up the amount of the test	You need a wallet and to buy the cryptocurrency; no local invoices
Direct euro account	High deposit, aimed at agencies	A contract directly with the platform
Resellers and agencies	Each has its own: public terms at the time of writing ranged from a few hundred rubles to 500 euros	Reseller fee, invoices, local payment, local-language support

We do not pin down reseller figures: they change and differ between services. Open the reseller's terms page on launch day.

What makes up the price of an impression

Telegram Ads runs on CPM: you set a bid per 1,000 impressions, not below the platform's minimum, and compete for the audience of the chosen channels with other advertisers. A bid in a popular topic in a big language is higher than in a narrow niche; a bid on specific large channels is higher than on a whole topic. Hence the main point: the minimum budget depends not on the platform but on the audience you picked.

The test budget formula

Budget = CPM bid × planned impressions ÷ 1,000.

Example (bids are illustrative; use the ones from your account)
CPM bid	Impressions	Budget
€1.5	20,000	€30
€1.5	50,000	€75
€2.5	50,000	€125
€2.5	100,000	€250

How many impressions a conclusion needs. To compare 3–5 ads and 10–20 channels, each variant needs at least a few thousand impressions; in total that is 30,000–100,000. Fewer, and the difference between ads is noise.

The cost per subscriber is unknown in advance. It appears after the test: budget spent ÷ new subscribers. Any “average subscriber price in Telegram Ads” from an article is someone's result in someone's niche, not yours.

How to launch on a small budget without losing it

Pick the route by amount: for a test of tens of euros, the official crypto-paid account or a low-threshold reseller fits; a direct euro account is not needed for that.
Start with a bid near the minimum and raise it only if impressions do not deliver.
A narrow topic or 10–20 specific channels is cheaper and more precise than a broad topic.
One text, one idea. 160 characters do not fit two sentences about different things.
Watch the cost per subscriber, not clicks: a button click without a subscription is a paid impression wasted.
Switch off channels and texts where a subscriber costs more than the test average and move the budget to the best ones.

Why a small budget usually gets wasted

Not because of bids. A person comes from the ad to the channel and decides within seconds whether to subscribe. If the channel looks empty, the impressions are paid for and there is no subscription. Before the test check four things: the avatar and description exist and make sense; the channel has 10–15 posts and a post from the last two weeks (also a moderation requirement); the subscriber count does not look like a mistake; views on recent posts are comparable to the subscriber count.

The last two points are covered by a starter order for a dollar or two: members with refill and views on recent posts. It does not replace the ads; it makes sure the person who arrives from the ad does not leave.

Members with refill from $0.455 per 1,000

Views for the last 10, 25 or 50 posts

Channel audit: views-to-members ratio

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to advertise on Telegram?

Per impressions, at a CPM bid you set above the platform minimum; the final price is decided by the auction for the chosen audience. A test of 30,000–100,000 impressions at illustrative bids of €1.5–2.5 costs €45–250; your bids will differ.

How much can I earn per 1,000 views on Telegram?

There is no fixed rate. Public channels with at least 1,000 subscribers receive 50% of the revenue from ads shown in them; the amount depends on advertiser demand for the topic and on reach, not on the counter itself.

Can I run Telegram Ads for free?

Impressions are always paid. “No minimum budget” in reseller offers means no entry threshold or fee, not free impressions.

Telegram Ads: what it is and how to launch a campaign