Rev share break-even calculator
This rev share break-even calculator shows the most you can pay per click and still break even on a lead offer. Enter your own numbers for sale price, rev share, cost per click and conversion rates. It works out what you earn per sold lead after returns, per click, and per 100 clicks.
Already generating leads on your own forms? Sell your leads instead.
Calculator
The share of clicks that become submitted leads.
The share of submitted leads that sell.
The share of sold leads that are returned.
Results
- Earnings per sold lead after returns
- -
- Earnings per click
- -
- Break-even cost per click
- -
- Profit or loss per 100 clicks
- -
Results show a dash until the inputs they need are filled in.
Formulas
- Earnings per sold lead after returns = sale price × rev share × (1 − return rate)
- Earnings per click = click-to-lead rate × sold rate × earnings per sold lead after returns
- Break-even cost per click = earnings per click
- Profit or loss per 100 clicks = 100 × (earnings per click − cost per click)
How to use this
- Take the inputs from your own reports for one campaign or one ad set, over the same period. Mixing campaigns hides which one loses money.
- Average sale price per sold lead: what your sold leads sold for, on average, before your share is applied.
- Your rev share: the share of the sale price you are paid under your agreement.
- Cost per click: what you paid per click on the traffic source.
- Click-to-lead rate: submitted leads divided by clicks.
- Sold rate: sold leads divided by submitted leads. Unsold leads are not paid.
- Return rate: returned leads divided by sold leads. Returns are deducted under the terms agreed during onboarding.
- Read the break-even cost per click. If you pay more than that per click, the campaign loses money at these rates. If you pay less, the gap is your margin per click.
Run it again whenever a rate changes. A change in sold rate or return rate moves the break-even point as much as a change in cost per click. To learn what moves each rate, see how to increase your sold rate and why leads get returned.
How to read the results
| Result | What it tells you | What to do with it |
|---|---|---|
| Earnings per sold lead after returns | What one sold lead is worth to you once returns are taken out | Compare offers and states on this, not on sale price alone |
| Earnings per click | What one click is worth to you at your current rates | The ceiling for what a click can cost |
| Break-even cost per click | The cost per click at which earnings equal spend | Set bids below it, with room for variation |
| Profit or loss per 100 clicks | Margin at your actual cost per click, on a readable scale | A negative number means the campaign loses money at these rates |
What the numbers do not include
- Ad account fees, platform fees and payment processing charges.
- Creative production: images, video, copywriting and landing or pre-lander pages you build.
- Tools: trackers, analytics and any software you pay for.
- Your time, and the time of anyone who manages the campaigns.
- Timing: when you pay for traffic and when you are paid. Payment terms are agreed during onboarding.
- Variation: rates change day to day. A campaign that breaks even on average can lose money on a bad week.
Subtract these costs from the profit figure before you decide a campaign works. For the payout model behind these numbers, see how payouts work and rev share vs CPL.
Frequently asked questions
What is a break-even cost per click?
The cost per click at which what you earn from a click equals what you paid for it. Below it the campaign makes money at your current rates; above it the campaign loses money.
Why does the calculator need the sold rate?
Rev share is paid on sold leads only. Unsold leads earn nothing, so the share of leads that sell changes what each click is worth.
Where do I find my sale price and rates?
From your reports by tracking link and sub ID. Leads are reported by tracking link; ask during onboarding how reporting is delivered. See reading your publisher reports.
Does Summit publish a rev share rate?
No. Rev share and payment terms are agreed during onboarding. The calculator uses the numbers you enter.
Related
- Publisher tools: The calculator and three launch checklists.
- How payouts work: Sold leads, unsold leads, returns and reporting.
- How to plan a first test campaign: Scope and stop rules for a first test.
- When to cut a losing lead gen campaign: How to decide when a campaign should stop.
Run the traffic. We handle the rest.
Every publisher is reviewed before going live. Email us your verticals, traffic sources, states and expected volume.
Or write to team@summitleads.ai. We reply by email.
What happens next
- Step 1: You email us.
- Step 2: We reply by email.
- Step 3: Every publisher is reviewed, and return and payment terms are agreed during onboarding, before you go live.