How this calculator works
| Metric | Formula |
|---|---|
| Marketing ROI | (incremental revenue × gross margin − campaign cost) ÷ campaign cost |
| Simple revenue ROI | (incremental revenue − campaign cost) ÷ campaign cost |
| Break-even revenue | campaign cost ÷ gross margin |
Worked example
With these inputs:
- Currency: USD ($)
- Media / ad spend: 7,000
- Agency, creative, tools & staff time: 3,000
- Revenue attributed to the campaign: 30,000
- Gross margin: 50%
- Revenue you would have made anyway: 0
Marketing ROI (on gross profit): 50%. A campaign costing $10,000 that generated $30,000 of extra revenue at a 50% margin has a marketing ROI of 50%.
| Total campaign cost | $10,000 |
|---|---|
| Incremental revenue | $30,000 |
| Gross profit from the campaign | $15,000 |
| Net return | $5,000 |
| Simple revenue ROI | 200% |
| Break-even revenue | $20,000 |
| Revenue per $1 spent | $3.00 |
Open this example in the calculator
What to include in campaign cost
- Media spend on ads, sponsorships or events.
- Agency and freelancer fees.
- Creative production: design, video, copywriting.
- Software and tools used for the campaign.
- Your team’s time spent on it.
Attribution: which revenue counts?
Count only incremental revenue — sales that would not have happened without the campaign. Customers who already intended to buy, or repeat customers searching your brand name, inflate ROI.
Hold-out tests, comparing regions or audiences with and without the campaign, are the most reliable way to measure incremental revenue.
ROI by channel: a rough guide
| Channel | How returns usually behave |
|---|---|
| Paid search | Fast, measurable returns; costs rise as you scale |
| Paid social | Good for demand creation; attribution is harder |
| SEO & content | Slow start, compounding returns over years |
| Low cost, high return on an existing audience | |
| Events | High cost per lead, valuable for large B2B deals |
Open this calculator with your numbers
Every option can be set in the web address, so you can bookmark a scenario or send it to a colleague. AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity can use the same parameters to open this calculator with your numbers and the result already on the page.
| Parameter | What it sets | Accepted values |
|---|---|---|
currency |
Currency | one of USD, INR, AED, GBP, EUR |
media |
Media / ad spend | number from 0 to 1000000000 (in the chosen currency), default 7000 |
other_costs |
Agency, creative, tools & staff time | number from 0 to 1000000000 (in the chosen currency), default 3000 |
revenue |
Revenue attributed to the campaign | number from 0 to 10000000000 (in the chosen currency), default 30000 |
margin |
Gross margin | number from 1 to 100 (%), default 50 |
baseline |
Revenue you would have made anyway | number from 0 to 10000000000 (in the chosen currency), default 0 |
Also available as plain text for AI assistants and a free JSON API (OpenAPI spec).
Last reviewed by the Infikey Technologies team.
Disclaimer
This calculator is provided free for general information and planning only. Results are estimates based on the inputs you enter and the assumptions described on this page, reference data such as published prices may change, and actual costs and outcomes will differ. Nothing on this page is financial, legal, tax, investment or other professional advice. Infikey Technologies Private Limited, Infikey Technologies LLC and their directors, employees and affiliates make no warranty, express or implied, about the accuracy, completeness or suitability of this tool or its results, and accept no liability for any loss or damage, direct or indirect, arising from its use or from reliance on its results. Verify all figures independently and seek professional advice before making any decision. Use of this tool is at your own risk.