ROAS calculator: questions and guides
Each guide here answers one question with a practical example, then takes you to the tool to try it yourself. Guides: 19.
Questions
- Return on ad spend: work out your break-even number before judging a campaignWhat return on ad spend (ROAS) means, why revenue is not profit, and how to work out the break-even ROAS for your own margin, with numbers.
- Snapchat Ads says my ROAS is 4x but my store orders do not back that up: which revenue figure should I enter?Ad platforms credit sales your store cannot always trace. Run ROAS twice, with the platform figure and with tracked store revenue, and read the gap.
- One report shows ROAS as 250% and my agency says 2.5: are they the same number?2.5x, 250% and 2.5:1 all mean each unit of ad spend brought 2.5 in sales. Learn the three formats and the figure people confuse with them: the ad share of revenue.
- The calculator asks for my margin before ads: how do I work it out from price, product cost, shipping and fees?Take everything you pay per order except ads off the price, then divide by the price. Price 200 with 130 in costs gives a 35% margin and a 2.86x break-even ROAS.
- Amazon Ads reports ACoS instead of ROAS: how do I convert between the two?ACoS is spend divided by sales and ROAS is the exact inverse. A 25% ACoS is a 4x ROAS, and the ads pay off while ACoS stays below your margin before ads.
- Covering the ad cost is not enough: what ROAS do I need to keep 10% of revenue as profit after ads?Break-even ROAS is the floor, not the goal. At a 40% margin with a 10% profit target, ads may take only 30% of revenue, which means a ROAS of 3.33x.
- I ran one campaign on TikTok and one on Snapchat with different budgets: how do I compare their returns fairly?ROAS is a ratio, so it can compare campaigns with different budgets, on two conditions: revenue counted the same way, and profit after ads read alongside ROAS.
- I paused my ads but sales kept coming in: why does the ROAS calculator show undefined instead of an infinite return?Dividing by zero spend has no answer, so the calculator shows Undefined, not an infinite return. Sales that continue without ads also hint at what your ads really add.
- How do I calculate a blended ROAS for the whole store across Meta, Google and TikTok?Divide total store revenue by combined spend on every ad platform. Blended ROAS cannot count one order twice, so it is often lower than the sum of platform claims.
- I sell electronics on a 10% margin: why does the calculator say I need a 10x ROAS just to break even?Break-even ROAS is 1 ÷ margin, so a 10% margin needs 10x. Worked example: an 8x ROAS looks great but loses 500 at that margin, and makes 2,500 at a 25% margin.
- I typed my net margin after ads into the margin field and now every campaign looks unprofitable: what did I do wrong?The margin field wants profit before ad cost. Entering net margin after ads subtracts spend twice, so a campaign making 1,500 shows a loss of 500.
- Should the revenue I enter for ROAS include VAT or exclude it?The VAT you collect is not yours, so revenue before tax gives the honest ROAS. Example: 11,500 including tax shows 5.75x; the same sales before tax give 5x.
- I expect 20,000 in sales from a Ramadan campaign at a 30% margin: what is the most I can spend on ads without losing money?Maximum spend without a loss = expected sales × margin before ads. At 20,000 in sales and a 30% margin that is 6,000, where profit is zero. Test lower budgets too.
- Is it safe to type my campaign spend, revenue and margin into an online ROAS calculator?The calculation runs in your browser and nothing is sent. The tool never asks you to connect an ad account or log in. You type only the totals you choose.
- Which Google Ads columns give me ROAS, and why might conversion value not equal my actual sales?Conversion value ÷ cost is ROAS. But conversion value is whatever your tracking sends: it may include tax and shipping. Example: 3.25x becomes 2.75x once corrected.
- Why does my real return on ads drop once I remove refused cash-on-delivery orders and returns?Ad platforms count an order when placed, not when paid. Removing 20% refused or returned orders takes ROAS from 5x to 4x and flips a 22% margin campaign to a loss.
- I gave an influencer her own discount code: how do I work out the return on her fee from the orders that used it?Total the discounted value of orders that used the code, treat her fee as spend, and use your margin at the code price. Example: 52 orders worth 7,800 for a 3,000 fee.
- Should I judge my campaigns by ROAS or by cost per acquisition?Two campaigns with a 50 cost per order: one makes 50, the other 1,100. CPA ignores basket size and ROAS captures it. Here is when to use each.
- My campaign got clicks but no attributed sales: what does a ROAS of zero tell me, and why is the ad share blank?With no attributed revenue ROAS is exactly zero, and ad share is undefined because it would divide by zero revenue. Check tracking and timing before you judge.