ScaleyGoogle Ads Budget Calculator
To set a Google Ads budget, work back from the sales you want. Divide your goal by your conversion rate to get clicks, then multiply clicks by your CPC. 400 orders at a 2% conversion rate and a $0.80 CPC needs 20,000 clicks, so about $16,000 a month.
How to Work Out a Google Ads Budget
- Orders
- revenue goal / average order value
- Clicks
- orders / conversion rate
- Monthly budget
- clicks x CPC
- Daily budget
- monthly budget / 30.4
Why 30.4 and not 30? It is Google's own number, the average days in a month (365 / 12). Google says your monthly bill won't go over your average daily budget times 30.4.
Google can also spend up to 2 times your daily budget on one day, then less on other days. So a $50 daily budget can show $100 on a busy Tuesday. That is normal, not a bug.
The three inputs that matter most are your conversion rate, your CPC and your order value. Use your own numbers from the last 30 to 90 days. If you are brand new, start with a test (second tab) instead of a guess.
Three Worked Examples
A Store with a Revenue Goal
You want $30,000 a month from Google Ads. Your average order is $60, 2.5% of clicks buy, and clicks cost $0.90.
- Orders: $30,000 / $60 = 500
- Clicks: 500 / 2.5% = 20,000
- Monthly budget: 20,000 x $0.90 = $18,000
- Daily budget: about $592
- ROAS at that budget: about 1.67x
Now hold that 1.67x up against your break-even ROAS. If it is below, the goal costs more than it makes. Raise the order value, lift the conversion rate or cut the CPC. A new goal or budget will not move it.
A Small Store Starting Out
Goal: 60 orders a month. Order value $45, 1.8% conversion rate, $0.60 clicks.
- Clicks: 60 / 1.8% = about 3,334
- Monthly budget: about 3,334 x $0.60 = about $2,000
- Daily budget: about $66
Small numbers swing a lot. Give it a full month before you judge, and check the search terms every week while you wait.
Testing One Dropshipping Product
You need 2% of clicks to buy to break even. Clicks cost about $0.70. Break-even cost per sale is $35. You will run $40 a day.
- Clicks to judge it: 149
- Test budget: 149 x $0.70 = $104.30
- That is about 2.98x your break-even cost per sale
- Days at $40 a day: $104.30 / $40 = about 2.6, so 3 days
If 149 clicks bring zero sales, you have your answer. If it really converted at 2%, zero sales in 149 clicks would happen less than 5% of the time. Kill it and test the next one. One or two sales? Keep going to a bigger sample before you call it.
How Much Should You Spend on Google Ads
Enough to get a real read, and no more than you can lose while you learn. There is no right budget for every store. A store with high prices needs fewer sales, so fewer clicks, so less money.
Google gives no minimum budget. What decides your number is maths: how many clicks it takes to get one sale, and what each click costs. That is what this calculator does.
When the numbers work, and the campaign loses impression share to budget, raise the budget in steps. A big jump in one day makes the bid strategy relearn, and results often wobble while it does.
How Much to Spend Testing a Product
Most product tests die too early or run too long. Both waste money. You need a stop rule you set before you start.
Our rule comes from basic chance, not a guru. If a product really converts at 2%, the chance of zero sales in 149 clicks is under 5%. So 149 clicks and no sale is strong proof it is not a 2% product. At 1% it takes 299 clicks. At 5% it takes 59.
Pick the conversion rate you need to break even, put in your CPC, and the second tab gives you the test budget.
Common Mistakes
Picking a budget, then hoping
Start from the sales you want and work back. A number pulled from the air gives you results pulled from the air.
Using someone else's conversion rate
Your rate depends on your store, price and traffic. Use your own, or test to find it.
Panicking at a 2x day
Google can spend up to 2 times your daily budget on one day. The month still stays under 30.4 times your daily budget.
Killing a product after 20 clicks
At a 2% rate you expect less than half a sale in 20 clicks. Zero sales there tells you nothing yet.
Raising the budget on a losing campaign
More budget makes a loss bigger. Fix the ROAS first, then scale.
Questions People Ask
Work back from your goal. Orders = revenue goal / order value, rounded up. Clicks = orders / conversion rate, rounded up. Monthly budget = clicks x CPC. Daily budget = monthly budget / 30.4.
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