ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) measures how much revenue your app generates for every unit of currency spent on advertising. It is the primary metric for evaluating the profitability of mobile ad campaigns.
ROAS Formula
Example: If you spend $1,000 on ads and generate $4,000 in revenue, your ROAS is 400% (or 4x).
What is a Good ROAS?
| ROAS | Interpretation |
|---|---|
| Below 100% | Losing money on ads |
| 100-200% | Breaking even (after costs) |
| 200-400% | Profitable — industry average |
| 400%+ | Strong performance |
ROAS vs ROI
ROAS measures revenue relative to ad spend only.
ROI measures profit relative to total costs (including COGS, salaries, overhead etc.)
A campaign with 300% ROAS might still have negative ROI if the cost of goods sold and other expenses are high.
D1, D7, D30 ROAS
In mobile apps, ROAS is often measured at different time horizons to understand revenue recovery over time:
- D1 ROAS — Revenue generated within 1 day of install
- D7 ROAS — Revenue generated within 7 days of install
- D30 ROAS — Revenue generated within 30 days of install
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