Do ROI Analytics, Calculate ROAS in Google Analytics
Table of Contents for Do ROI Analytics, Calculate ROAS in Google Analytics
You can do ROI analytics in Google Analytics by using the ‘ROI Analysis’ and ‘Cost Analysis’ reports.
Through these reports, you can calculate the ROAS of various marketing campaigns under different attribution models.
In Google Analytics, the ROI analysis is done via ROAS (i.e. Return on Advertising Spend). So while the name of the GA report is ‘ROI Analysis’ report, it is actually computing and reporting on ROAS.
How ROAS in Google Analytics is calculated
Google Analytics calculates ROAS as:
Conversion Value / Channel Spend
Here, the conversion value is the ecommerce revenue and/or goal value.
For example, let us suppose: Your ad spend for Google Adwords in the last one month was $100 and your ecommerce sales from Google Adwords in the last one month was $1000
Now Google Analytics will calculate ROAS for Google Adwords as: $1000 / $100 = 1000%
You should consider investing more in those marketing channels/campaigns which have higher ROAS.
Note: Google Analytics can calculate ROAS retroactively for your marketing campaigns.
The Cost Analysis report
Through the ‘Cost Analysis’ report, you can determine the ‘Cost Per Click’ and ‘ROAS’ of all those marketing channels for which you imported the cost data in Google Analytics.
What that means you can determine the ROAS for marketing campaigns like:
- Bing ads
- Facebook ad campaigns
- Affiliate campaigns
- Display campaigns
- Email campaigns etc.
In order to view the ‘Cost Analysis’ report, navigate to Acquisition > Campaigns > Cost Analysis in your GA view:

If you have imported cost data in Google Analytics then you will see the cost and ROAS data in this report, like the one below:

If you have not imported cost data in Google Analytics then your report will look like the one below:

The downside of the ‘cost analysis’ report is that all of the ‘ROAS’ data is calculated using only one attribution model called‘ Last Non-Direct Click’. So if you want to do ROI Analysis under different attribution models (esp. Data Driven Attribution model) then you would need to use the ‘ROI Analysis’ report.
The ROI Analysis report
Through this report, you can determine ‘Cost Per Acquisition’ (CPA) and ‘Return on Advertising Spend’ (ROAS) for each marketing channel under different attribution models.
So instead of just the regular CPA, you can determine:
- Last Interaction CPA
- Last non-direct click CPA
- Last Adwords click CPA
- First Interaction CPA
- Linear CPA
- Time Decay CPA
- Position Based CPA
- Data Driven CPA
- or CPA based on any custom attribution model

Similarly, instead of just the regular ROAS, you can determine:
- Last Interaction ROAS
- Last non-direct click ROAS
- Last Adwords click ROAS
- First Interaction ROAS
- Linear ROAS
- Time Decay ROAS
- Position Based ROAS
- Data Driven ROAS
- or ROAS based on any custom attribution model
To access the ‘ROI Analysis’ report, navigate to Conversions > Attribution > ROI Analysis in your GA premium view:

If you have got cost data then only you will see data in this report like the one below:

Note: The default attribution model for the ‘ROI Analysis’ report is ‘Data Driven Attribution Model’ (provide this model is available to you) and ROI analysis report is available only in Google Analytics 360/premium enabled property.
In the context of attribution modelling in Google Analytics, we do not measure the generic conversions generated by a particular marketing channel. What we actually measure is the conversions generated by a particular marketing channel under a particular attribution model (like ‘Last click conversions’, ‘Data driven conversions’ etc for say ‘paid search’).
Similarly, in the context of attribution modelling in GA, we do not measure the generic ROAS for a particular marketing channel. What we actually measure is the ROAS for a particular marketing channel under a particular attribution model (like ‘Last click ROAS’, ‘Data driven ROAS’ etc say for ‘paid search’).
Requirements for doing ROI Analysis in Google Analytics
There are four main requirements for correctly doing ROI analysis in Google Analytics:
- Ecommerce tracking setup
- Goal Conversion tracking setup
- Availability of cost data in your GA reports. The cost data is simply the cost of running your marketing campaigns.
- At least 60 days of historical data in Google Analytics (in order to make the data statistically significant). This data include: ecommerce data, goal conversion data, cost data and website usage data.
Unless you do not meet all of these requirements, your ROI analysis is most likely to be inaccurate.
However without ‘cost data’, GA won’t be able to calculate ROAS. So importing cost data into GA is critical. To get the cost data in your GA reports you need to carry out following two tasks:
Task-1: Link your Google Analytics account to your Google Adwords account. Once the two accounts are linked, Google Analytics will automatically start getting cost data (‘campaign cost’, ‘cost per click’, ‘return on advertising spend’ etc) from Adwords.
Task-2: Import cost data from all non-Google paid marketing campaigns via Google Analytics ‘Data Import’ feature (available under ‘Admin‘ > ‘Property‘ > ‘Data Import‘). You can also use GA management API to automate this process.


I generally upload one month of cost data for non-Google paid marketing campaigns in the first week of every month.
If you are using some third party tool to automate the cost data import process then you can import cost data every week or even every single day into GA.
Once you have imported cost data into GA, it will automatically get integrated with your website usage data, goals data and ecommerce data. Thus allowing you to do detailed ROI analysis for your marketing campaigns via ‘Cost Analysis’ and ‘ROI Analysis’ reports.
Google Analytics already provides website usage data (like sessions, bounce rate etc) so you do not need to set it up separately. To get ecommerce data (like revenue) in your GA reports, you would need to set up ecommerce tracking or enhanced ecommerce tracking.
Similarly, to get goal conversions data in your reports, you would need to setup Conversion tracking.
Make sure that each Goal you set up is assigned correct ‘Goal value’.
Otherwise, your ROAS calculations may not be accurate.
Other Articles on ROI
- How NOT to calculate Marketing ROI
- SEO ROI Analysis – How to do ROI calculations for SEO
- How to measure the ROI of Content Marketing
- How to do ROI calculations for conversion optimization
- ROI, Conversions and You
- How To Calculate The ROI Of Your Social Media Campaigns?
Other articles on Attribution Modelling
- How to analyse and report the true value of your SEO Campaign
- How to valuate Display Advertising through Attribution Modelling
- Understanding Shopping Carts for Analytics and Conversion Optimization
- 6 Keys to Digital Success in Attribution Modelling
- Google Analytics Attribution Modeling Tutorial
- How to Measure and Improve the Quality of SEO Traffic through Google Analytics
- How to explain attribution modelling to your clients
- Default and Custom Attribution Models in Google Analytics
- Understanding Missing Touchpoints in Attribution Modelling
- What You Should Know about Historical Data in Web Analytics
- Model Comparison Report Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Data-Driven Attribution Model in Google Analytics – Tutorial
- Conversion Lag Report Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Selecting the Best Attribution Model for Inbound Marketing
- How to do ROI Analysis in Google Analytics
- Conversion Credit Models Guide – Google Analytics Attribution
- Introduction to Nonline Analytics – True Multi Channel Analytics
- Conversion Types Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Attribution Channels Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Differences Between Google Attribution & Multi-Channel Funnel Reports
- Introduction to TV Attribution in Google Analytics Attribution 360
- Conversion Credit Distribution for Attribution Models in Google Analytics
- Conversion Paths Report Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Attribution Model Comparison Tool in Google Analytics
- Touchpoint Analysis in Google Analytics Attribution Modelling
- Attributed Conversions & Attributed Revenue Explained in Google Attribution
- Which Attribution Model to use in Google Analytics?
- Google Attribution Access and User Permissions – Tutorial
- Conversion Path Length Report Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- How to set up a data-driven attribution model in Google Analytics
- View-Through Conversion Tracking in Google Analytics
- Offline Conversion Tracking in Google Analytics – Tutorial
- How to Create Custom Attribution Model in Google Analytics
- 8 Google Analytics Conversions Segments You Must Use
- You are doing Google Analytics all wrong. Here is why
- How to Use ZMOT to Increase Conversions and Sales Exponentially
- Connected Properties Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Marketing Mix Modelling or Attribution Modelling. Which one is for you?
- How is attribution modelling helpful for ecommerce and non-ecommerce websites?
- Conversion Time & Interaction Time Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- How to Allocate Budgets in Multi Channel Marketing
- How Does Attribution Work?
- Data-Driven Attribution Model Explorer in Google Analytics
- Introduction to Attribution Beta – Attribution Project in Google Analytics
Register for the FREE TRAINING...
"How to use Digital Analytics to generate floods of new Sales and Customers without spending years figuring everything out on your own."
Here’s what we’re going to cover in this training…
#1 Why digital analytics is the key to online business success.
#2 The number 1 reason why most marketers are not able to scale their advertising and maximize sales.
#3 Why Google and Facebook ads don’t work for most businesses & how to make them work.
#4 Why you won’t get any competitive advantage in the marketplace just by knowing Google Analytics.
#5 The number 1 reason why conversion optimization is not working for your business.
#6 How to advertise on any marketing platform for FREE with an unlimited budget.
#7 How to learn and master digital analytics and conversion optimization in record time.
My best selling books on Digital Analytics and Conversion Optimization
Maths and Stats for Web Analytics and Conversion Optimization
This expert guide will teach you how to leverage the knowledge of maths and statistics in order to accurately interpret data and take actions, which can quickly improve the bottom-line of your online business.
Master the Essentials of Email Marketing Analytics
This book focuses solely on the ‘analytics’ that power your email marketing optimization program and will help you dramatically reduce your cost per acquisition and increase marketing ROI by tracking the performance of the various KPIs and metrics used for email marketing.
Attribution Modelling in Google Analytics and Beyond
Attribution modelling is the process of determining the most effective marketing channels for investment. This book has been written to help you implement attribution modelling. It will teach you how to leverage the knowledge of attribution modelling in order to allocate marketing budget and understand buying behaviour.
Attribution Modelling in Google Ads and Facebook
This book has been written to help you implement attribution modelling in Google Ads (Google AdWords) and Facebook. It will teach you, how to leverage the knowledge of attribution modelling in order to understand the customer purchasing journey and determine the most effective marketing channels for investment.
Table of Contents for Do ROI Analytics, Calculate ROAS in Google Analytics
You can do ROI analytics in Google Analytics by using the ‘ROI Analysis’ and ‘Cost Analysis’ reports.
Through these reports, you can calculate the ROAS of various marketing campaigns under different attribution models.
In Google Analytics, the ROI analysis is done via ROAS (i.e. Return on Advertising Spend). So while the name of the GA report is ‘ROI Analysis’ report, it is actually computing and reporting on ROAS.
How ROAS in Google Analytics is calculated
Google Analytics calculates ROAS as:
Conversion Value / Channel Spend
Here, the conversion value is the ecommerce revenue and/or goal value.
For example, let us suppose: Your ad spend for Google Adwords in the last one month was $100 and your ecommerce sales from Google Adwords in the last one month was $1000
Now Google Analytics will calculate ROAS for Google Adwords as: $1000 / $100 = 1000%
You should consider investing more in those marketing channels/campaigns which have higher ROAS.
Note: Google Analytics can calculate ROAS retroactively for your marketing campaigns.
The Cost Analysis report
Through the ‘Cost Analysis’ report, you can determine the ‘Cost Per Click’ and ‘ROAS’ of all those marketing channels for which you imported the cost data in Google Analytics.
What that means you can determine the ROAS for marketing campaigns like:
- Bing ads
- Facebook ad campaigns
- Affiliate campaigns
- Display campaigns
- Email campaigns etc.
In order to view the ‘Cost Analysis’ report, navigate to Acquisition > Campaigns > Cost Analysis in your GA view:
If you have imported cost data in Google Analytics then you will see the cost and ROAS data in this report, like the one below:
If you have not imported cost data in Google Analytics then your report will look like the one below:
The downside of the ‘cost analysis’ report is that all of the ‘ROAS’ data is calculated using only one attribution model called‘ Last Non-Direct Click’. So if you want to do ROI Analysis under different attribution models (esp. Data Driven Attribution model) then you would need to use the ‘ROI Analysis’ report.
The ROI Analysis report
Through this report, you can determine ‘Cost Per Acquisition’ (CPA) and ‘Return on Advertising Spend’ (ROAS) for each marketing channel under different attribution models.
So instead of just the regular CPA, you can determine:
- Last Interaction CPA
- Last non-direct click CPA
- Last Adwords click CPA
- First Interaction CPA
- Linear CPA
- Time Decay CPA
- Position Based CPA
- Data Driven CPA
- or CPA based on any custom attribution model
Similarly, instead of just the regular ROAS, you can determine:
- Last Interaction ROAS
- Last non-direct click ROAS
- Last Adwords click ROAS
- First Interaction ROAS
- Linear ROAS
- Time Decay ROAS
- Position Based ROAS
- Data Driven ROAS
- or ROAS based on any custom attribution model
To access the ‘ROI Analysis’ report, navigate to Conversions > Attribution > ROI Analysis in your GA premium view:
If you have got cost data then only you will see data in this report like the one below:
Note: The default attribution model for the ‘ROI Analysis’ report is ‘Data Driven Attribution Model’ (provide this model is available to you) and ROI analysis report is available only in Google Analytics 360/premium enabled property.
In the context of attribution modelling in Google Analytics, we do not measure the generic conversions generated by a particular marketing channel. What we actually measure is the conversions generated by a particular marketing channel under a particular attribution model (like ‘Last click conversions’, ‘Data driven conversions’ etc for say ‘paid search’).
Similarly, in the context of attribution modelling in GA, we do not measure the generic ROAS for a particular marketing channel. What we actually measure is the ROAS for a particular marketing channel under a particular attribution model (like ‘Last click ROAS’, ‘Data driven ROAS’ etc say for ‘paid search’).
Requirements for doing ROI Analysis in Google Analytics
There are four main requirements for correctly doing ROI analysis in Google Analytics:
- Ecommerce tracking setup
- Goal Conversion tracking setup
- Availability of cost data in your GA reports. The cost data is simply the cost of running your marketing campaigns.
- At least 60 days of historical data in Google Analytics (in order to make the data statistically significant). This data include: ecommerce data, goal conversion data, cost data and website usage data.
Unless you do not meet all of these requirements, your ROI analysis is most likely to be inaccurate.
However without ‘cost data’, GA won’t be able to calculate ROAS. So importing cost data into GA is critical. To get the cost data in your GA reports you need to carry out following two tasks:
Task-1: Link your Google Analytics account to your Google Adwords account. Once the two accounts are linked, Google Analytics will automatically start getting cost data (‘campaign cost’, ‘cost per click’, ‘return on advertising spend’ etc) from Adwords.
Task-2: Import cost data from all non-Google paid marketing campaigns via Google Analytics ‘Data Import’ feature (available under ‘Admin‘ > ‘Property‘ > ‘Data Import‘). You can also use GA management API to automate this process.
I generally upload one month of cost data for non-Google paid marketing campaigns in the first week of every month.
If you are using some third party tool to automate the cost data import process then you can import cost data every week or even every single day into GA.
Once you have imported cost data into GA, it will automatically get integrated with your website usage data, goals data and ecommerce data. Thus allowing you to do detailed ROI analysis for your marketing campaigns via ‘Cost Analysis’ and ‘ROI Analysis’ reports.
Google Analytics already provides website usage data (like sessions, bounce rate etc) so you do not need to set it up separately. To get ecommerce data (like revenue) in your GA reports, you would need to set up ecommerce tracking or enhanced ecommerce tracking.
Similarly, to get goal conversions data in your reports, you would need to setup Conversion tracking.
Make sure that each Goal you set up is assigned correct ‘Goal value’.
Otherwise, your ROAS calculations may not be accurate.
Other Articles on ROI
- How NOT to calculate Marketing ROI
- SEO ROI Analysis – How to do ROI calculations for SEO
- How to measure the ROI of Content Marketing
- How to do ROI calculations for conversion optimization
- ROI, Conversions and You
- How To Calculate The ROI Of Your Social Media Campaigns?
Other articles on Attribution Modelling
- How to analyse and report the true value of your SEO Campaign
- How to valuate Display Advertising through Attribution Modelling
- Understanding Shopping Carts for Analytics and Conversion Optimization
- 6 Keys to Digital Success in Attribution Modelling
- Google Analytics Attribution Modeling Tutorial
- How to Measure and Improve the Quality of SEO Traffic through Google Analytics
- How to explain attribution modelling to your clients
- Default and Custom Attribution Models in Google Analytics
- Understanding Missing Touchpoints in Attribution Modelling
- What You Should Know about Historical Data in Web Analytics
- Model Comparison Report Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Data-Driven Attribution Model in Google Analytics – Tutorial
- Conversion Lag Report Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Selecting the Best Attribution Model for Inbound Marketing
- How to do ROI Analysis in Google Analytics
- Conversion Credit Models Guide – Google Analytics Attribution
- Introduction to Nonline Analytics – True Multi Channel Analytics
- Conversion Types Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Attribution Channels Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Differences Between Google Attribution & Multi-Channel Funnel Reports
- Introduction to TV Attribution in Google Analytics Attribution 360
- Conversion Credit Distribution for Attribution Models in Google Analytics
- Conversion Paths Report Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Attribution Model Comparison Tool in Google Analytics
- Touchpoint Analysis in Google Analytics Attribution Modelling
- Attributed Conversions & Attributed Revenue Explained in Google Attribution
- Which Attribution Model to use in Google Analytics?
- Google Attribution Access and User Permissions – Tutorial
- Conversion Path Length Report Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- How to set up a data-driven attribution model in Google Analytics
- View-Through Conversion Tracking in Google Analytics
- Offline Conversion Tracking in Google Analytics – Tutorial
- How to Create Custom Attribution Model in Google Analytics
- 8 Google Analytics Conversions Segments You Must Use
- You are doing Google Analytics all wrong. Here is why
- How to Use ZMOT to Increase Conversions and Sales Exponentially
- Connected Properties Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- Marketing Mix Modelling or Attribution Modelling. Which one is for you?
- How is attribution modelling helpful for ecommerce and non-ecommerce websites?
- Conversion Time & Interaction Time Explained in Google Analytics Attribution
- How to Allocate Budgets in Multi Channel Marketing
- How Does Attribution Work?
- Data-Driven Attribution Model Explorer in Google Analytics
- Introduction to Attribution Beta – Attribution Project in Google Analytics
Register for the FREE TRAINING...
"How to use Digital Analytics to generate floods of new Sales and Customers without spending years figuring everything out on your own."
Here’s what we’re going to cover in this training…
#1 Why digital analytics is the key to online business success.
#2 The number 1 reason why most marketers are not able to scale their advertising and maximize sales.
#3 Why Google and Facebook ads don’t work for most businesses & how to make them work.
#4 Why you won’t get any competitive advantage in the marketplace just by knowing Google Analytics.
#5 The number 1 reason why conversion optimization is not working for your business.
#6 How to advertise on any marketing platform for FREE with an unlimited budget.
#7 How to learn and master digital analytics and conversion optimization in record time.
My best selling books on Digital Analytics and Conversion Optimization
Maths and Stats for Web Analytics and Conversion Optimization
This expert guide will teach you how to leverage the knowledge of maths and statistics in order to accurately interpret data and take actions, which can quickly improve the bottom-line of your online business.
Master the Essentials of Email Marketing Analytics
This book focuses solely on the ‘analytics’ that power your email marketing optimization program and will help you dramatically reduce your cost per acquisition and increase marketing ROI by tracking the performance of the various KPIs and metrics used for email marketing.
Attribution Modelling in Google Analytics and Beyond
Attribution modelling is the process of determining the most effective marketing channels for investment. This book has been written to help you implement attribution modelling. It will teach you how to leverage the knowledge of attribution modelling in order to allocate marketing budget and understand buying behaviour.
Attribution Modelling in Google Ads and Facebook
This book has been written to help you implement attribution modelling in Google Ads (Google AdWords) and Facebook. It will teach you, how to leverage the knowledge of attribution modelling in order to understand the customer purchasing journey and determine the most effective marketing channels for investment.