About the Marketing ROI Calculator
Marketing ROI is often quoted on revenue: revenue attributed to marketing minus marketing cost, divided by cost. That figure flatters results, because product costs are ignored. This marketing ROI calculator shows it alongside ROI on gross profit, which multiplies revenue by your gross margin before subtracting marketing cost and dividing by it.
If ROI on revenue looks positive but ROI on gross profit is negative, the tool warns you: marketing is generating sales but not covering its cost once the product is paid for. That is a common blind spot in campaign reports. Use the profit-based figure for budget decisions and the revenue-based one only when comparing with reports that use it. Data stays in your browser.
How to use it
- Enter revenue attributed to marketing.
- Enter total marketing cost for the same period.
- Add your gross margin.
- Compare ROI on revenue with ROI on gross profit.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate marketing ROI?
Revenue-based ROI is (revenue − marketing cost) ÷ marketing cost. Profit-based ROI uses gross profit instead: (revenue × gross margin − marketing cost) ÷ marketing cost. With ₹5,00,000 revenue, ₹1,20,000 cost and 40% margin, revenue ROI is about 317% but gross-profit ROI is about 67%.
Why are my two ROI figures so different?
Because one ignores product costs. If your gross margin is low, a large share of revenue goes to producing what you sold, so far less is left to cover marketing. The gross-profit ROI is closer to the real return. Use it for budget decisions.
How should I attribute revenue to marketing?
Use a consistent method: tracked conversions in analytics, CRM source fields, promo codes or controlled tests. Whatever you choose, state it alongside the ROI and use the same method period to period. Changing methods between periods makes trends hard to read, so note any change clearly in your reports.