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Break-even ROAS calculator: the lowest ROAS your ads can run at
· Nolyn research team
Enter your selling price, product cost, shipping and the fees your marketplace or payment provider takes. The calculator works out your profit margin before ads, the break-even ROAS and ACOS, the most you can pay in ads for one order and the ROAS you need to keep a target profit after ad spend. Use it to set a target ROAS on Google Shopping or TikTok Shop ads, or a target ACOS on Amazon. Everything runs in your browser: nothing is sent.
How do you calculate break-even ROAS?
Break-even ROAS = 1 ÷ profit margin before ad spend. A $40 product that costs $14, with $6 of shipping and packaging and 15% in fees, keeps $14 per sale: a 35% margin, so ads break even at a ROAS of 2.86 (an ACOS of 35%, or $14 of ads per order). To keep 10% of revenue as profit after ads, you need a ROAS of 4, 1 ÷ (35% − 10%). Formula from the ROAS and ACOS definitions of Google Ads and Amazon Ads, checked 2026-10-23.
Calculate your break-even ROAS
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What the buyer pays for the product, after your discounts and before tax.
Cost of goods per unit, including freight to your warehouse.
Fulfillment or label, box, inserts: everything you pay per order apart from fees and ads.
Referral fee or commission plus payment processing, as a share of the price. Use the TikTok Shop fee calculator for TikTok's.
The net margin you want to keep once ads are paid. 0 gives the break-even ROAS.
- Profit per unit before ads
- $14.00
- Profit margin before ads
- 35%
- Break-even ROAS
- 2.86x
- Break-even ACOS
- 35%
- Max ad cost per order
- $14.00
- Target ROAS for 10% profit
- 4x
- Target ACOS for 10% profit
- 25%
- Ad cost per order for 10% profit
- $10.00
Margin too thin for ads? Check what competitors charge
If the break-even ROAS is out of reach, the fix is often price. Nolyn's competitor price monitoring compares competitors' current Amazon prices, deals, coupons and ratings in one table, with a pricing suggestion. Sign-in required; new accounts get 100 credits.
The break-even ROAS formula
Profit margin before ads = (price − product cost − shipping and other costs − fees) ÷ price. Break-even ROAS = 1 ÷ that margin. At a ROAS exactly equal to it, the ads cost the whole margin on the sales they bring and you make zero.
Break-even ACOS is the same idea from Amazon's side: ad spend ÷ revenue may rise up to your margin. Amazon Ads puts it simply: your ACOS needs to be lower than your profit margin to keep a profit. A 35% margin means break-even ACOS of 35% and break-even ROAS of 2.86.
Target ROAS for a profit goal = 1 ÷ (margin − target profit). It's the number to type into a target ROAS bid strategy if you want ads to leave a profit, not just pay for themselves.
Target ROAS for each profit goal
The $40 product from the example has a 35% margin before ads. Every point of profit you want to keep after ads raises the ROAS you need, and faster as the target approaches the margin.
| Profit after ads | Target ROAS | Target ACOS | Ad cost per order |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0% (break-even) | 2.86 | 35% | $14.00 |
| 5% | 3.33 | 30% | $12.00 |
| 10% | 4 | 25% | $10.00 |
| 15% | 5 | 20% | $8.00 |
| 20% | 6.67 | 15% | $6.00 |
| 25% | 10 | 10% | $4.00 |
$40 price, $14 cost, $6 shipping and packaging, 15% fees: $14 profit per unit before ads.
Mistakes that make break-even ROAS too low
Using markup instead of margin. A product bought at $14 and sold at $40 has a 186% markup, but after shipping and fees the margin is 35%. Dividing by the wrong number gives a break-even ROAS far below the real 2.86.
Forgetting per-order costs. Leave out the $6 of shipping and packaging and the margin looks like 50%, a break-even ROAS of 2. Campaigns run at 2.5 would look profitable while losing money on every order.
Ignoring returns. If one in ten orders comes back unsold, your real margin is lower than the calculator's. Lower the price input or add the expected return cost to shipping and other costs.
How to find your break-even ROAS
Enter price and product cost
Use the price buyers actually pay after discounts and your landed cost per unit.
Add shipping and fees
Per-order shipping and packaging in dollars, marketplace and payment fees as a percentage of the price.
Read your margin and break-even ROAS
Break-even ROAS is 1 ÷ margin: any campaign below it loses money.
Set a target profit
Enter the net margin you want after ads and use the target ROAS or ACOS in your bid strategy.
Questions
What is the break-even ROAS formula?
Break-even ROAS = 1 ÷ profit margin before ad spend. A 25% margin breaks even at a ROAS of 4, a 50% margin at 2.
What's the difference between break-even ROAS and target ROAS?
Break-even ROAS makes zero profit after ads. Target ROAS leaves the profit you choose: 1 ÷ (margin − target). With a 35% margin, break-even is 2.86 and a 10% profit needs 4.
How do I convert break-even ROAS to break-even ACOS?
Break-even ACOS = 1 ÷ break-even ROAS × 100, which is simply your margin. A break-even ROAS of 2.86 is a break-even ACOS of 35%.
Should I include fees and shipping in the margin?
Yes. Use everything a sale costs except the ads: product cost, shipping, packaging, marketplace and payment fees. Leaving them out makes the break-even ROAS look lower than it is.
Can a campaign below break-even ROAS still be worth running?
Sometimes, if it brings first-time buyers who come back, or ranks a new listing. Then it's a budgeted cost of growth, not a profitable campaign. Set a limit and measure repeat orders.
Does this calculator save my numbers?
No. It runs entirely in your browser; nothing is sent or stored.