ROI calculator
AI automation ROI calculator
Enter how often a task happens, how long it takes and what staff time costs. The calculator returns the monthly saving, the payback period and the first-year return.
In short
This calculator estimates the return on automating one repeated task. You enter monthly volume, minutes per task, hourly staff cost, the share you expect to automate, the build cost and the monthly running cost. It returns monthly saving, payback in months and first-year return, so you can see if the task is worth automating at all.
What the calculator does
It models one task at a time, such as keying invoices, qualifying leads or answering the same support question. It compares the cost of doing the task by hand with the cost of an automated version that still needs a person for the exceptions.
One task per run keeps the answer honest. Add several tasks together and the weak ones hide behind the strong ones.
Inputs
| Input | What to enter | Where to find it |
|---|---|---|
| Tasks per month | How many times the task happens | Ticket counts, inbox counts, order exports |
| Minutes per task | Time from start to finish, including checking | Time a few real examples, do not guess |
| Cost per hour | Loaded cost of the person doing it: pay plus overhead | Finance team or payroll |
| Share automated | Percent of tasks the automation handles without a person | Start at 50 to 70 and test with a sample |
| Build cost | One-off cost to design, build and test | A quote from a builder, or your own estimate |
| Running cost per month | Software, model usage and upkeep | Vendor price pages and a monthly review allowance |
The formulas
- Hours saved per month = tasks per month x minutes per task / 60 x share automated
- Monthly saving = hours saved x cost per hour
- Net monthly gain = monthly saving minus running cost
- Payback in months = build cost / net monthly gain
- First-year return = (net monthly gain x 12 minus build cost) / build cost
Worked example: invoice entry
A finance team keys 1,200 supplier invoices a month. Each takes 6 minutes. Staff time costs 22 per hour. An automation reads the invoice and fills the accounting system, and handles 70 percent without help. The build costs 6,000 and running it costs 150 a month.
| Step | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Manual hours | 1,200 x 6 / 60 | 120 hours |
| Hours saved | 120 x 0.70 | 84 hours |
| Monthly saving | 84 x 22 | 1,848 |
| Net monthly gain | 1,848 minus 150 | 1,698 |
| Payback | 6,000 / 1,698 | 3.5 months |
| First-year return | (1,698 x 12 minus 6,000) / 6,000 | 240 percent |
How to read the result
- Payback under 6 months: a strong case. Check the share automated with a real sample before you commit.
- Payback of 6 to 12 months: reasonable if the task is stable and volume is growing.
- Payback over 12 months: look for a cheaper version, such as a rule or a template, before building anything.
- Very low volume: the formula may pass, but the maintenance effort rarely does.
The result is only as good as the minutes per task and share automated. Measure both on a sample of at least fifty real cases.
What it leaves out
It does not price errors avoided, faster response times or staff who move to better work. Those are real, but easy to overstate, so we keep them out of the headline number. See AI automation for how we scope a project and AI automation vs RPA for when a simpler tool is enough. For build cost context, the AI automation cost page lists the factors.
Updated 30 October 2026
Questions, answered
Is this a quote for an automation project?
What share automated should I use?
Should I include my time managing the automation?
Can I compare two tasks?
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Found a task worth automating?
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