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    ROI Calculator

    Find out whether your marketing investment actually made money once product costs and every other expense are counted.

    • 100% free
    • No sign-up
    • Runs in your browser
    $

    Ad spend plus agency, software and creative costs.

    $
    %

    ROI

    80.0%

    Net profit

    $2,400

    Revenue ROI (ROAS-style)

    300.0%

    Ignores product costs, so it overstates real ROI

    How do I calculate ROI on my marketing spend?

    ROI, or return on investment, measures the net profit an investment generated as a percentage of what it cost. For an e-commerce store running ads, it is the most complete answer to "Did this campaign pay off?" because it accounts for product costs and every expense tied to the campaign, not just media spend.

    An ROI of 0% means you got your money back and nothing more. A positive ROI means profit; a negative ROI means the campaign lost money.

    When to use the roi calculator

    Best for

    • Monthly or quarterly campaign reviews
    • Judging the full cost of an agency or program
    • Comparing marketing investments

    Not the right pick for

    • Day-to-day bidding — use ROAS
    • Gross-level ad profitability only — use the POAS calculator

    How it works

    1. 1

      Enter total investment

      Add ad spend, fees, creative and tools.

    2. 2

      Enter revenue

      Use revenue attributed to the investment.

    3. 3

      Enter gross margin

      Use your average margin on products sold.

    4. 4

      Read your results

      See net profit and ROI in percent.

    How to calculate ROI

    Gross profit = Revenue × Gross margin %

    Net profit = Gross profit − Total investment

    ROI % = (Net profit ÷ Total investment) × 100

    Total investment should include everything you spent to generate the revenue: ad spend plus agency or freelancer fees, creative production, tools and software used for the campaign, and any other direct costs.

    Worked example

    A quarter's Google Ads program for a home goods store:

    InputValue
    Ad spend$8,000
    Agency fee and tools$2,000
    Total investment$10,000
    Revenue from the campaign$35,000
    Gross margin40%
    ResultCalculationValue
    Gross profit$35,000 × 40%$14,000
    Net profit$14,000 − $10,000$4,000
    ROI$4,000 ÷ $10,00040%

    Every dollar invested came back plus 40 cents of profit. Note that the ROAS on ad spend alone was 4.4 ($35,000 ÷ $8,000), which looks impressive, but the ROI shows the real profit once product costs and fees are included.

    ROI vs ROAS vs POAS

    These three metrics are often used interchangeably, but they answer different questions:

    MetricFormulaWhat it ignoresBreak-even
    ROASRevenue ÷ Ad spendProduct costs and non-ad costs1 ÷ margin
    POASGross profit ÷ Ad spendNon-ad costs1.0
    ROINet profit ÷ Total investmentNothing within the campaign scope0%
    • Use ROAS for day-to-day bidding, since it is what Google Ads reports and optimizes toward. The ROAS calculator covers it.
    • Use POAS to check whether ad spend is profitable at the gross level. Try the POAS calculator.
    • Use ROI to judge the whole investment, including fees and tools, for monthly or quarterly reviews.

    A campaign can have a healthy ROAS and still a negative ROI if margins are thin or overhead is heavy.

    What is a good ROI?

    Any positive ROI means the investment made money, but how much you need depends on:

    • Your alternatives. If the same money could earn more elsewhere, such as in inventory or another channel, a low ROI may not be worth it.
    • Time frame. ROI over a single month ignores repeat purchases. For stores with strong repeat buying, a near-zero ROI on first orders may be fine if those customers return.
    • Attribution. Ad platforms may credit conversions differently from your analytics. ROI is only as accurate as the revenue you attribute to the investment.
    • Risk. New campaigns and tests often start with lower ROI while they gather data.

    Rather than aiming for a universal number, set a minimum acceptable ROI for each type of spend and review it regularly.

    How to improve marketing ROI

    1. Increase gross margin through pricing, supplier terms and shifting spend toward higher-margin products.
    2. Cut wasted ad spend. Review search terms, exclude non-converting products and cut placements that do not sell.
    3. Raise conversion rate and AOV, which increase revenue from the same traffic.
    4. Review fixed costs. Tools and fees that are not contributing reduce ROI directly.
    5. Use margin-aware bidding. Splitting Shopping and Performance Max campaigns by margin tier lets you set targets that protect profit, not just revenue.

    Free tool vs having us run your Google Ads

    Free tool (do it yourself)Mercantads does it for you
    Know your numbersCalculate them hereTargets set from your real margins and data
    CampaignsLearn and build them yourselfShopping, Performance Max and Search built for you
    OptimizationWhenever you find timeWeekly search terms, bids, budgets and feed updates
    ResultsDepends on your time and experienceA Google Partner team focused on your profit
    Talk to us
    FAQ

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Subtract total investment from the gross profit the ads generated, divide by total investment and multiply by 100. $4,000 of net profit on a $10,000 investment is a 40% ROI.

    ROAS compares revenue to ad spend only. ROI compares net profit to total investment, so it accounts for product costs and non-ad expenses.

    Yes. If gross margin is low or other costs are high, revenue can exceed ad spend while net profit is still negative.

    If you want a true picture of profitability, include the cost of the time spent managing the campaign, either your own or your team's.

    More free tools

    All tools →
    ROAS calculatorReturn on ad spend and profit after ads.Break-even ROAS calculatorThe minimum ROAS that keeps you profitable.Google Ads budget calculatorThe budget you need to hit a sales goal.POAS calculatorProfit on ad spend, the metric behind real profit.Target CPA calculatorBreak-even and target cost per order.CPC calculatorYour cost per click and the most you can afford.

    ROI Calculator

    Find out whether your marketing investment actually made money once product costs and every other expense are counted.

    Use the roi calculatorGet expert help