Free tool · SEO ROI calculator
Is SEO worth it for your business?
The AI Search Return Calculator shows what ranking on Google, and showing up in ChatGPT and AI answers, could bring in for a business like yours. Three taps, real numbers, no sign-up to see your results.
1. What kind of business?
2. What type?
3. Where are your customers?
That’s about 500,000 people. About 724 searches a month there for what you do.
4. Your yearly revenue (optional)
We’ll show what a healthy marketing budget looks like for a business your size, and where SEO fits in it.
What Google + AI search could bring you
Conservative
On page one
$40,400
first-year value
- Visits/mo
- 48
- Leads/yr
- 14
- New jobs/yr
- 4
- First sales
- $40,400
- Lifetime value of those jobs
- $40,400
🤖 Includes less than 1 lead/yr from ChatGPT, Gemini & AI answers. Same traffic in Google Ads: ~$722/mo.
Likely
In the top 3
$87,400
first-year value
- Visits/mo
- 102
- Leads/yr
- 31
- New jobs/yr
- 9
- First sales
- $87,400
- Lifetime value of those jobs
- $87,400
🤖 Includes ~1 leads/yr from ChatGPT, Gemini & AI answers. Same traffic in Google Ads: ~$1,500/mo.
Strong
#1 on Google
$123,000
first-year value
- Visits/mo
- 138
- Leads/yr
- 43
- New jobs/yr
- 13
- First sales
- $123,000
- Lifetime value of those jobs
- $123,000
🤖 Includes ~3 leads/yr from ChatGPT, Gemini & AI answers. Same traffic in Google Ads: ~$2,100/mo.
Estimates, not promises. Numbers last updated October 2026. See every source.
The math, in plain English
Four honest numbers, multiplied together.
- 01
How many people search
Real search volumes for your main services, scaled to your area, plus related searches like prices and "best near me."
- 02
How many click you
Click-through rates by Google ranking from a 2025 study of 200,000+ keywords, already reflecting AI Overviews.
- 03
How many reach out
Industry-average website conversion rates from First Page Sage, then your close rate.
- 04
What they're worth
First sale, first year and lifetime value, so a repeat customer counts like one.
What about AI search?
ChatGPT doesn't replace Google. It reads the same signals.
AI tools still send far fewer clicks than Google. When Ahrefs looked at its own site, AI search was just 0.5% of visits but brought in 12.1% of signups. The people who click through from an AI answer have usually already compared their options.
Here’s the part most people miss: AI tools recommend businesses they can find and trust online, which is the same work that ranks you on Google. Good SEO is how you get recommended by AI. That’s why this calculator counts both.
Wondering what all this costs? We break that down in our SEO plans, and why it pays off over time in is SEO worth it?
Questions
Good questions people ask about this calculator.
How does this SEO ROI calculator work?
It starts with how many people search for what you do in your area, using real search data. Then it applies how often people click a result depending on where it ranks, how often website visitors reach out in your industry, and how many of those leads become customers. Multiply by what a customer is worth and you get the three scenarios.
Are these numbers a promise?
No. They're an estimate built from published benchmarks and starting assumptions, so you can see whether SEO is worth a closer look for your business. Your real results depend on your market, your competition, your website and how well you follow up with leads.
Does it count ChatGPT and AI search?
Yes. Each scenario includes a small, clearly labeled share of visits from ChatGPT, Gemini and Google's AI answers. Those visitors are few today but convert better: Semrush found the average AI search visitor is worth 4.4 times a traditional organic visitor. The same SEO work is what gets you cited by AI tools.
Why doesn't it count Google Maps?
To keep it conservative. For local businesses, calls and direction requests from your Google Business Profile often add a lot on top of website visits. This calculator only counts people who click through to your website.
What if I don't know my close rate or customer value?
Leave the defaults. Every industry type starts with a typical value. If you know your own numbers, tap "Make it mine" and the results update instantly.
Sources
Where every number comes from.
- GrowthSRC: 2025 Google organic click-through rates by position (200,000+ keywords, after AI Overviews)
- First Page Sage: average website visitor conversion rates by industry (3.9% B2C average used for other local businesses)
- Semrush (June 2025): the average AI search visitor is worth 4.4x a traditional organic search visitor
- Ahrefs (June 2025): AI search sent 0.5% of its traffic but 12.1% of signups
- Search volumes and ad costs: SE Ranking, US database
- Angi/HomeAdvisor national average roof replacement, about $9,500 (2025)
- SBA rule of thumb: 7-8% of revenue on marketing for businesses under $5M with healthy margins (as reported by the Houston Chronicle)
- Close rates, average sales, repeat purchases and years as a customer are starting estimates for a typical business of each type, not published benchmarks. Change them to your own numbers with “Make it mine.”
- Searches in your area = typical US monthly searches for your main services × your area’s share of the US population × 2.5 for related searches.
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