- Free, no sign-up
- Low, likely and high, never one number
- AI Overview CTRs built in
Free SEO ROI Calculator
Is SEO worth paying for? Put in today's traffic or the keywords you want to rank for, your conversion rate and what a customer is worth, and see the extra leads, revenue and the month it pays back, as a low, likely and high range that grows over months the way SEO really does. Keywords with an AI Overview get the lower click rate. Free, nothing to sign up for.
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How to use it
Visits, worth, cost
Where the extra visits come from
Either today's organic visits and the growth you expect, or up to 20 keywords with their monthly searches, today's position and the target. Tick the ones where Google shows an AI Overview.
What a visitor is worth
How many visits become a lead, how many leads become customers, and what a customer is worth. Add your margin to count profit instead of revenue.
What SEO costs
The monthly fee, any one-off work and how many months until the full effect. The result updates as you type: the range, the payback month, the chart and a paragraph for your proposal.
Built forBusiness ownersFreelancersAgency proposalsBudget decisions
Quick answer
How do you calculate SEO ROI?
SEO ROI = (extra revenue from organic search − SEO cost) ÷ SEO cost. Extra revenue = extra visits × conversion rate × close rate × customer value. Estimate extra visits from search volume × the click-through rate at the position you expect, lower where Google shows an AI Overview, and let it build over 6 to 12 months rather than counting it from the first month.
A worked example
A plumber in Austin
| Step | Number |
|---|---|
| Six searches move to their targets; two show an AI Overview | 676 extra visits a month at full effect |
| 4% become a lead, 40% of leads hire | 27 leads, 11 jobs a month |
| $420 a job | $4,543 a month at full effect |
| Building over 9 months, against $1,500 a month and $2,000 to start | $36,342 in year one against $20,000: +82%, paying back in month 7 |
The same inputs give $20,351 to $56,693 between the low and high cases. That range is the honest answer.
Where the numbers come from
Use your own data
| Input | Where to find it |
|---|---|
| Monthly searches | Google Keyword Planner, or your keyword tool |
| Position today | Search Console, Performance, the query's average position |
| Visits that become a lead | GA4 key events in the Organic Search row, divided by its sessions |
| Leads that become customers | Your calls, WhatsApp or CRM |
| Value of a customer | Average order, or what a customer spends in a year |
| Cost per click | Keyword Planner's top-of-page bid |
Click rates
CTR by position, and AI Overviews
The share of searchers who click a result falls fast down the page, and further where Google shows an AI Overview. Studies disagree: position 1 sat around 19% in GrowthSRC's 2025 data and 27.6% in Visionary Marketing's 2026 figures; Ahrefs found the top result gets 58% fewer clicks when an AI Overview shows. Our defaults are rounded down from these, and Advanced Web Ranking publishes a monthly curve by device and intent to compare with. Every rate is editable, so you can paste your own from Search Console.
Not the same thing
Traffic value is not revenue
Tools such as Ahrefs and Semrush show "traffic value": what the same clicks would cost as Google Ads. It is a fair way to say what traffic is worth to buy, but it is not money the business earns. This calculator shows both, labelled.
In a proposal
What not to promise
Google's own advice on hiring an SEO says no one can guarantee a #1 ranking. Show the range, say where each number comes from, and promise the work, not the position. The proposal paragraph the calculator writes carries that line.
FAQ
Questions people ask
Is SEO worth it for a small business?
When enough people search for what you sell and a customer is worth a few hundred dollars or more, usually yes over a year. Put your own numbers in and look at the low case.
How long until SEO pays back?
Often 6 to 12 months, because results build slowly. The calculator spreads the gain over the months you set.
What CTR should I expect at position 1, 3 or 10?
Our defaults are 20%, 8% and 1.7%, lower where an AI Overview shows. Your own Search Console data beats any study.
Revenue or profit?
Revenue looks bigger; profit is what pays for the SEO. Enter your margin to see profit.
Can an SEO guarantee results?
No. Google says no one can guarantee a #1 ranking.
Are my numbers sent anywhere?
No. Everything is worked out in your browser and remembered on this device only.
Keep going
More free tools and guides
- Starting as a freelancer (Career guide, chapter 5): pricing, proposals and what not to promise.
- Measuring SEO (Intermediate, chapter 11): outcomes first.
- Monthly SEO Report Builder: measure the result after the work.
- Get a quote: what SEO from our team would cost.
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Is SEO worth it for you?
Your numbers in, an honest range out. Free.