Email Marketing ROI Calculator 💸

Multiple industry sources place the average email marketing ROI at $36–$42 for every $1 spent — a return of 3,600–4,200%. This makes it the highest-ROI digital marketing channel available, outperforming Google Ads (around $8 per $1), social media advertising, and SEO in most sectors. Retail and ecommerce tend to see the highest returns, often reaching $45 or above.

The basic formula is: (Revenue from email – Total cost of email) ÷ Total cost of email × 100. Your total cost includes your email platform subscription plus any team time you spend on email. Revenue from email is trickier — you need to track purchases or bookings influenced by your campaigns in your analytics. If you don’t have that number yet, our calculator will estimate it using your industry benchmark.

It depends on your list size and the platform you use. With Benchmark Email, it’s free up to 500 contacts. From there, plans start at $19/month for up to 1,000 contacts and scale based on your list size — with every feature included on every paid plan, no hidden tiers. Enter your contact count in the calculator above and we’ll show you exactly what Benchmark would cost you.

The most common reasons are: sending to unengaged contacts, lack of segmentation (sending the same message to everyone), not tracking email-attributed revenue accurately, or a platform that’s costing more than it should for your list size. The tips in your calculator results will point you toward the fastest fixes for your specific situation.