ROAS calculator with a break-even check
Enter your ad spend, the revenue those ads brought in and your gross margin. The calculator returns your ROAS, the break-even ROAS your margin requires, gross profit after ad spend and ad cost of sale. Add your work email to see the results and an AI analysis for your market.
- Your ROAS, as a multiple and a percentage
- Your break-even ROAS at your gross margin
- Gross profit after ad spend and ad cost of sale
- A verdict: above or below break-even
- An AI analysis with next steps
This ROAS calculator divides the revenue your ads brought in by what you spent on them, then checks the result against the break-even ROAS your gross margin requires. It also shows gross profit left after ad spend and ad cost of sale, so you can tell whether a healthy-looking ROAS actually makes money.
How to calculate ROAS with this calculator
Three inputs drive the math: ad spend for the period, revenue from those ads over the same period, and your gross margin, the share of revenue left after product costs. Main channel, business type and market give the AI analysis context; currency labels your results.
| Result | How it is calculated |
|---|---|
| ROAS | Revenue ÷ ad spend, shown as a multiple and as a percentage |
| Break-even ROAS | 100 ÷ gross margin % |
| Gross profit after ad spend | Revenue × gross margin − ad spend |
| Ad cost of sale | Ad spend ÷ revenue × 100 |
If your ROAS is at or above break-even, the verdict says the ads earn gross profit; below it, each sale costs more in ads than it earns in gross profit. An analysis with next steps follows, written by AI from your numbers (or rule-based if the AI is unavailable). For the definition, see the ROAS glossary entry.
Worked example (illustrative)
The calculator's default values, not a benchmark: AED 20,000 of ad spend, AED 70,000 of revenue from those ads and a 45% gross margin.
| Result | Calculation | Value |
|---|---|---|
| ROAS | 70,000 ÷ 20,000 | 3.50x (350%) |
| Break-even ROAS | 100 ÷ 45 | 2.22x |
| Gross profit after ad spend | 70,000 × 45% − 20,000 | AED 11,500 |
| Ad cost of sale | 20,000 ÷ 70,000 × 100 | 28.6% |
3.50x is above the 2.22x break-even, so the verdict reads: "Your ROAS of 3.50x is above your 2.22x break-even point, so these ads earn gross profit." If your gross margin leaves out shipping, payment fees or returns, those still come out of the AED 11,500.
How to read your result
There is no single good ROAS, because the line between profit and loss depends on your margin:
| Gross margin | Break-even ROAS |
|---|---|
| 20% | 5.00x |
| 30% | 3.33x |
| 45% | 2.22x |
| 60% | 1.67x |
| 80% | 1.25x |
Watch the revenue figure: if you add up what each ad platform reports, one order can be counted twice. Our guide to marketing attribution models explains how to credit each sale once. This break-even covers product costs only. To include VAT, fulfillment, payment fees and returns, use the break-even ROAS calculator or the break-even ROAS formula guide.
Using the ROAS calculator in the UK, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar
ROAS is a ratio, so currency (AED, SAR, QAR, GBP, USD or EUR) does not change it. VAT does, because VAT is collected for the tax authority, not kept. The standard rate is 20% in the UK, 15% in Saudi Arabia since July 2020 and 5% in the UAE, and Qatar's General Tax Authority lists no VAT among its taxes. If your margin excludes VAT but your revenue figure includes it, divide revenue by 1.20, 1.15 or 1.05 first. In the example, AED 70,000 including 5% VAT is AED 66,666.67 net: ROAS becomes 3.33x and gross profit after ad spend AED 10,000.
How Grower helps
Grower's channels leaderboard ranks every connected ad channel by ROAS, conversions, cost, CPA, impressions and CTR. Its attribution engine de-duplicates conversions from every channel and app into one count before crediting each touchpoint. Approve one of its weekly recommendations and Grower pushes it to the channel for you.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate ROAS?
Divide the revenue your ads generated by what you spent on them over the same period. AED 70,000 of revenue from AED 20,000 of spend is a ROAS of 3.5, written 3.5x or 350%. Google Ads uses the percentage form for target ROAS: its help center's example is $5 in sales for every $1 of ad spend, or 500%.
What is a good ROAS?
One that beats your break-even ROAS, which is 100 divided by your gross margin percentage. At a 45% margin that is 2.22x; at 25% it is 4.00x. A single "good ROAS" figure ignores margin, so the same number can be profitable for one business and loss-making for another. To keep a profit after ads, aim for a target ROAS above break-even.
Can I use this as a ROAS calculator in the UK?
Yes. Choose UK as your market and GBP as your currency. VAT weighs more in the UK than in the Gulf because the standard rate is 20%: £12,000 of VAT-inclusive revenue is £10,000 net. Enter revenue on the same basis as your gross margin, or use the break-even ROAS calculator, which takes VAT out for you.
What is the difference between ROAS and ad cost of sale?
They describe the same relationship from opposite ends. ROAS is revenue divided by ad spend; ad cost of sale is ad spend as a percentage of revenue. A 3.5x ROAS is a 28.6% ad cost of sale. When ad cost of sale is higher than your gross margin, your ROAS is below break-even and the ads lose money.
Want ROAS for every channel on one de-duplicated count? Book a demo and we'll connect a channel and show the recommendations it produces.