Marketing ROI Calculator

Project a 12-month return on Google Ads and SEO spend: leads, jobs won, revenue, gross profit, and the month your marketing breaks even.

Last updated August 16, 2026

Project Your Marketing ROI Over 12 Months

Plan your Google Ads and SEO spend with realistic 12-month projections. The calculator uses sensible defaults for lead volume (Google Ads steady from month 1, SEO ramping up over the year) that you can override with your own numbers. Combine with your closing rate and average job value to see leads, jobs won, revenue, gross profit, ROI, and the month you start making money.

12-month projection with sensible defaults. Google Ads runs flat; SEO ramps in three tiers (months 1–4, 5–8, 9–12). Override any number to match your provider's forecast. Enable/disable each channel to compare scenarios.

Google Ads

Pay-per-click — leads start immediately, stay flat, stop when you pause spend.

Channel
Ad budget plus any management fee, per month.
Lower in month 1 — account is still learning.
Steady-state leads from month 2 onward.

SEO

Slow start, compounds — leads ramp as your site builds authority. Three tiers across the year.

Channel
What you pay for SEO each month.
Early phase — site warming up.
Mid phase — gaining traction.
Mature — steady compounding traffic.

Conversion Assumptions

Applied to leads from both channels. Be honest — these numbers drive the ROI.

% of leads that turn into paying jobs. 20–30% is typical.
Average invoice amount per job.
Profit per job after materials + labor. 30–50% typical.

Enter your closing rate, average job value, and gross margin above to see your 12-month projection. These vary too much between contractors to assume — your real numbers drive the ROI.

Defaults are middle-of-the-road estimates for a contractor in a mid-sized market. Actual results vary with location, competition, season, and provider quality. After 3 months running, replace the defaults with your real lead numbers and re-run the projection. Pair with the Marketing Cost Per Day Calculator to bake the spend back into your quoting.

How the Marketing ROI Calculator Works

  1. Enable Google Ads, SEO, or both. The toggles let you compare each in isolation or together.
  2. For Google Ads, set monthly spend and expected leads for month 1 (ramp-up) and month 2+ (steady state).
  3. For SEO, set monthly spend and expected leads across three phases: months 1 to 4 (early), 5 to 8 (mid), 9 to 12 (mature). Defaults reflect the typical SEO ramp.
  4. Set your closing rate (% of leads that become paying jobs), average job value, and gross margin per job.
  5. Read the 12-month projection table and the summary card: total leads, jobs, revenue, gross profit, net ROI, and break-even month.

Examples

ScenarioBoth channels for a typical contractorInputAds $2,000/mo (18 → 22 leads) · SEO $490/mo (10 → 20 → 30 leads) · 25% close · $4,500 job · 40% marginResult12-mo: 500 leads → 125 jobs → $562,500 revenue → $225,000 gross profit · spend $29,880 → ROI ≈ 7.5× · break-even month 1
ScenarioAds only, for instant tractionInputAds $2,000/mo (18 → 22 leads) · SEO disabled · 25% close · $4,500 job · 40% marginResult12-mo: 260 leads → 65 jobs → $292,500 revenue → $117,000 gross profit · spend $24,000 → ROI ≈ 4.9× · break-even month 1
ScenarioSEO only, a slow start that compoundsInputSEO $490/mo (10 → 20 → 30 leads) · Ads disabled · 25% close · $4,500 job · 40% marginResult12-mo: 240 leads → 60 jobs → $270,000 revenue → $108,000 gross profit · spend $5,880 → ROI ≈ 18.4× · break-even month 1

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does SEO start with fewer leads and ramp up?

Google takes time to crawl new content, build authority, and rank pages. New SEO campaigns typically deliver little traffic in months 1 to 3, start producing real leads somewhere around month 4 to 6, and compound from there. The default tiers (10 → 20 → 30 leads/month) reflect that ramp for a typical contractor in a competitive market. Adjust based on your area and competition.

Why do Google Ads leads stay flat?

Google Ads is mostly pay-to-play: turn on the spend, get the clicks. Month 1 is usually slightly lower because the account is still learning (ad copy, bid optimization, audience), but by month 2 you're at steady state. Ads stop the moment you stop paying, so there's no compounding.

How realistic are the default lead numbers?

They're middle-of-the-road for a contractor in a mid-sized market spending $1,500 to $2,000/month per channel. Your actual numbers vary hugely with: local competition, average job value (high-ticket = fewer but bigger leads), seasonality, and the quality of your provider. Use the defaults as a starting point, then update with real data after 3 months of running.

What closing rate should I use?

20% to 30% is typical for contractors with a decent sales process. Below 15% means your leads are mostly tire-kickers or you're losing on price. Above 40% usually means you're only counting "good" leads (people who actually called you back). Be honest and use a number that reflects every lead the marketing brings in, not just the easy wins.

How is ROI calculated?

Net ROI is your 12-month gross profit less your 12-month marketing spend, divided by that same spend. So $100,000 gross profit on $25,000 spend is $75,000 net, ROI = 3.0×. The "break-even month" is the first month where cumulative profit ≥ cumulative spend.

Is gross profit the right measure?

For marketing decisions, yes. Gross profit (revenue minus job costs) is what marketing actually generates. Operating profit (after office, insurance, etc.) is for whole-business decisions. If you don't know your gross margin, 30% to 50% is typical for contractors depending on labor-vs-material mix.

Why does the calculator show a 12-month projection but no chart?

Kept it as a compact table to stay readable on phones and printable on quotes/board reports. The break-even month is highlighted in the row, and the summary card gives you the 12-month totals at a glance.

Can I project beyond 12 months?

Not in this version. SEO continues to compound past month 12, but we'd need a 3rd or 4th tier to model that. If your provider gives you a 12-month forecast, that's usually the right horizon to plan against. Re-run the calc each year with updated lead numbers.

Important Notes

  • Lead numbers are estimates. Actual results vary with market, season, and provider quality. Re-run with real data after 3 months.
  • SEO break-even is typically months 3 to 6 depending on spend. Plan cash flow accordingly.
  • Google Ads break-even is typically month 1 if leads convert at the assumed rate.
  • For a side-by-side comparison, run the calculator twice with one channel disabled each time.
  • Use the Marketing Cost Per Day Calculator to convert your spend into a per-day overhead figure for quoting.
Marketing Cost Per Day CalculatorOnce you've decided your spend, work out how much to add to each day rate to recover the cost.Profit Margin CalculatorSet sell prices for your target margin and work out the per-job profit that feeds into the ROI here.Garage Floor Estimate CalculatorBuild a representative job estimate to anchor the "average job value" input above.