Free Tool
Marketing ROI Calculator
Work out your marketing ROI and ROAS in seconds — enter spend and revenue, or estimate revenue from your funnel. Add a margin to see true profit ROI.
- Instant ROI & ROAS
- Runs in your browser
- Funnel estimate mode
Instant estimate from your inputs. Attribution and true margin can shift real ROI.
No spam — we only use this to send your result and follow up about your project.
Marketing ROI Calculator: ROI, ROAS and Payback
How to Use the Marketing ROI Calculator
- Enter your campaign spend. Everything, not just media cost.
- Enter the revenue it generated. Attributed to that campaign.
- Add your gross margin. This is what separates a real answer from a flattering one.
- Read the ROI and ROAS. Then check payback yourself: the calculator does not work out timing.
Why Use This Marketing ROI Calculator?
Most marketing ROI figures are calculated on revenue, which makes almost every campaign look profitable.
A campaign that spent £5,000 and generated £20,000 in revenue looks like a 300% return. At a 30% gross margin it actually returned £6,000 in profit — a 20% return. Same campaign, completely different decision.
The Parix.ai marketing ROI calculator asks for margin because that is the number that decides whether to spend more.
The same campaign, two answers
The figures from the paragraph beside this. Your own go in the calculator above.
The Marketing ROI Formula
Marketing ROI = (revenue × gross margin − marketing spend) ÷ marketing spend × 100
The trap is in the second variable. Skip margin and you are measuring revenue return, not profit return — which is why so many campaigns are declared successful and the business still does not make money.
What to Include in Spend
Media and ad spend, all channels. Agency fees and retainers. Creative and content production. Marketing software and tools. And a share of salaries for the people running it.
Salaries are the most commonly omitted line, and they often exceed media spend. Leaving them out is the fastest way to a number nobody should act on.
Everything that counts as spend
- Media and ad spend, all channels
- Agency fees and retainers
- Creative and content production
- Marketing software and tools
- A share of the salaries running it
The last line is the one most often left out, and it often exceeds media spend.
ROAS vs ROI: They Are Not the Same
This confusion costs real money, because the two numbers can point in opposite directions.
| ROAS | ROI | |
|---|---|---|
| Measures | Revenue per £1 of ad spend | Profit relative to total marketing cost |
| Includes margin | No | Yes |
| Includes salaries and tools | No | Yes |
| Good for | Comparing ad campaigns | Deciding whether marketing pays |
ROAS of 4:1 sounds excellent. At a 20% gross margin it is a loss. Every £1 spent returns £4 in revenue, which is 80p in gross profit — less than the pound you spent.
Use ROAS to compare campaigns against each other. Use ROI to decide whether the channel is worth running at all.
What Is a Good Marketing ROI?
A commonly cited benchmark is 5:1 — £5 of revenue for every £1 spent. 2:1 only breaks even at a 50% gross margin, and 10:1 is rare.
But benchmarks are less useful than they look, because a 5:1 return in a 70% margin software business and a 5:1 return in a 15% margin retailer are entirely different outcomes.
The more useful question is whether this campaign beats your next best use of the same money.
The common benchmarks
The same 5:1 means different things at 70% margin and at 15%, which is why the benchmark matters less than your next best use of the money.
The Number ROI Does Not Show You
Payback period. How long before the campaign has repaid what it cost?
A campaign with a strong ROI over three years can still sink a business if the cash goes out in month one and comes back in month thirty. ROI measures whether it works. Payback measures whether you can afford to wait.
Two questions, two answers
- ROIWhether the campaign works at all.
- PaybackWhether you can afford to wait for it.
- Strong ROI, thirty-month paybackStill sinks a business that needs the cash sooner.
Who Uses It
Marketing leads defending a budget. Founders deciding which channel to fund. Agencies reporting on a retainer honestly. Pair it with the CAC Calculator and the LTV Calculator so the acquisition maths lines up end to end.
Calculate Your ROI Now
Enter spend, revenue and margin above. Include the salaries — the number only helps if it is the honest one.
Calculate my ROI