Free Break-Even ROAS Calculator
Enter your selling price, cost of goods and shipping to find the ROAS at which you make exactly zero profit. Every campaign target has to clear this floor first.
Break-even ROAS appears here — fill in the fields above.
About the Break-Even ROAS Calculator
Free break-even ROAS calculator: enter price, COGS and shipping to find the ROAS floor below which every sale loses money — plus the costs most people forget to subtract.
Every calculation and generation runs entirely in your browser - free, instant, nothing uploaded. The floor sets what you can afford to pay for a customer. Cheaper creative widens the gap between that floor and your actual ROAS. Start with Creetr - no camera, no creator fees.
Break-even ROAS is the return on ad spend at which you make exactly zero profit — the floor every campaign target has to clear. The formula is break-even ROAS = price ÷ gross margin per unit. Enter your selling price, cost of goods and shipping above to get yours.
How to Calculate Break-Even ROAS
First find gross margin per unit, then divide the price by it.
Worked example. You sell at $80, COGS is $28, shipping is $7.
- Margin = 80 − 28 − 7 = $45
- Break-even ROAS = 80 ÷ 45 = 1.78x
Below 1.78x you lose money on every sale. At 1.78x you break even. Everything above it is gross profit — before overheads, which is why most operators target comfortably above the floor rather than at it.
Break-Even ROAS by Margin
| Gross margin | Break-even ROAS |
|---|---|
| 20% | 5.00x |
| 25% | 4.00x |
| 30% | 3.33x |
| 40% | 2.50x |
| 50% | 2.00x |
| 60% | 1.67x |
| 70% | 1.43x |
This is why "what's a good ROAS?" has no general answer. A 3x ROAS is a strong result on 70% margins and a slow loss on 25%. Anyone quoting a target without asking your margin is quoting a number they made up.
What People Forget to Subtract
The calculator above takes COGS and shipping because those are per-unit and unavoidable. Several other costs are equally real:
Payment processing — roughly 2.9% + $0.30 per order. On a $40 order that is about $1.46, which visibly moves a thin margin.
Returns and refunds. A 10% return rate effectively cuts margin by more than 10%, because you usually eat the outbound shipping too.
Discounts. If a third of orders use a 15% code, your true average selling price is 5% below list. Use the realistic average, not the sticker price.
Pick, pack and fulfilment per order, if a third party handles it.
Build these in and your break-even ROAS rises — sometimes a lot. A business that thinks its floor is 2.5x and is really at 3.1x will scale confidently into a loss.
Break-Even ROAS vs Target ROAS
Break-even keeps the lights level. It does not pay for overheads, salaries, software or your time. Target ROAS = break-even ROAS ÷ (1 − overhead share of revenue), roughly — if overheads eat 20% of revenue, a 2.5x floor implies a target nearer 3.1x.
The exception is deliberate first-order loss-leading: if repeat purchase is proven and measured, buying customers below break-even on order one is rational. It is only rational when the repeat rate is a number you have, not a number you hope for. Size it with the CPA calculator.
Using It
- Work out the floor with real, all-in costs.
- Set the campaign target above it by your overhead share.
- Treat anything below the floor as a stop-loss, not a slow start.
- Recalculate whenever COGS, shipping or your discount rate changes — most people set this once and never revisit it, then wonder why a "profitable" account isn't producing cash.
Turn this into a real UGC video ad
Paste a product link, pick an AI actor, and Creetr generates a ready-to-post ad.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate break-even ROAS?+
Divide the selling price by gross margin per unit. Break-even ROAS = price ÷ (price − COGS − shipping). At $80 with $28 COGS and $7 shipping, margin is $45 and break-even ROAS is 80 ÷ 45 = 1.78x. Below that you lose money on every sale.
What is break-even ROAS at my margin?+
It is the inverse of gross margin. 20% margin needs 5.00x, 25% needs 4.00x, 30% needs 3.33x, 40% needs 2.50x, 50% needs 2.00x, 60% needs 1.67x and 70% needs 1.43x. This is precisely why 'what is a good ROAS?' has no general answer — the same 3x is a strong result at 70% margin and a slow loss at 25%.
What costs should I include in break-even ROAS?+
COGS and shipping at minimum, but several others are equally real: payment processing at roughly 2.9% + $0.30 per order, returns and refunds (a 10% return rate cuts margin by more than 10%, since you usually eat outbound shipping too), discount codes (if a third of orders use 15% off, your true average price is 5% below list), and per-order fulfilment. A business that thinks its floor is 2.5x and is really at 3.1x will scale confidently into a loss.
What is the difference between break-even ROAS and target ROAS?+
Break-even keeps unit economics level — it does not pay for overheads, salaries, software or your time. Target ROAS ≈ break-even ROAS ÷ (1 − overhead share of revenue), so if overheads eat 20% of revenue a 2.5x floor implies a target nearer 3.1x.
Can I run below break-even ROAS?+
Deliberately, yes — if repeat purchase is proven and measured. Buying customers at a first-order loss is rational when you know the repeat rate, and irrational when you merely hope for one. Size it against lifetime value using the [CPA calculator](/tools/cpa-calculator) rather than assuming customers will come back.