Keyword ROI Calculator
Price the move from your current ranking position to the one you want — and see why position six to position one is six ranks of work but seven times the traffic.
Keyword ROI Calculator
Results recalculate instantly on every keystroke. Nothing you type is transmitted.
What this result does not account for
- Click curves vary by device, intent and SERP features.
- Volume is a tool estimate; impressions are the ground truth.
- No defence or maintenance cost after landing.
In short: 8,100 searches: #6's 3.8% share is 307.8 sessions worth 314.40 a month; #1's 27.4% is 2,219.4 worth 2,266.98. The uplift of 1,911.6 sessions earns 1,952.58 a month — a 3,560 cost to close repays in 1.8232 months, and the curve that does it is convex: 7.2105x the traffic, not 6x.
Formula
current sessions = volume × current share
uplift = volume × (target share − current share)
monthly value = uplift × CVR × contribution
payback = cost to close ÷ monthly value
[('share', 'the click curve gates everything'), ('convexity', 'target share ÷ current share'), ('cost to close', 'content plus links, one-off'), ('payback', 'months for the spend to return')]
Worked Example
- Convert volume into sessions at both click shares.
- Price the uplift sessions at organic CVR and contribution.
- Sum the content and link costs into one close-out figure.
- Solve payback months and the year-one net.
- Check the convexity — the traffic multiple is the pitch.
8,100 searches: #6 converts 307.8 sessions (314.40 a month); #1 converts 2,219.4 (2,266.98). The move is six positions, 7.2105x the traffic, and worth 1,952.58 a month. Closing costs 4 briefs at 350 plus 12 links at 180 — 3,560 one-off — repaying in 1.8232 months with a year-one net of 19,871.02.
Strengths & Limits Of This Model
Where this engine is strong
- Prices the position gate with an explicit convexity card
- Solves payback and year-one net on the same curve
- Refuses non-moves rather than flattering them
Where it stops
- One keyword at a time
- No SERP-feature discount built in
Practical Use Cases
Keyword prioritisation
Rank the moves by payback, not by volume.
Agency scoping
Content and links priced against the curve.
Page-one concentration
Why improving rankers beats starting fresh.
Content briefs
The share target a piece must reach.
Defence budgets
What losing the position gives back each month.
Methodology & Editorial Standards
Sessions derive from volume times published-curve click shares at the current and target positions, and the uplift is priced at the organic CVR and per-order contribution the rest of the wave uses. The close-out cost is a one-off bundle of content and links; payback divides it by the monthly uplift value and year-one net subtracts it from twelve months of uplift. A target share not above the current one is refused — the move must be a move.
Computation runs in IEEE-754 double precision at full internal precision; rounding to two decimal places occurs strictly at the display layer, so no cumulative drift enters the result. All monetary outputs use accounting presentation — grouped thousands, two decimals, negatives in parentheses — so figures can be transcribed directly into a model or working paper. Division-by-zero and out-of-domain inputs return an em-dash rather than a misleading number.
This engine was reconciled against an independent reference implementation and hand-verified for the worked example above before release. Our full five-stage review process is published on the About Us page.
Disclaimer. This calculator is provided for informational and modelling purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, legal, medical, or engineering advice. Verify all figures with a qualified professional before acting on them.
Keyword ROI Calculator — 10 Expert FAQs
10 analyst-written answers to the questions practitioners actually ask — optimised for voice and answer-engine retrieval.
How do you calculate the ROI of ranking higher?
Take the search volume, apply the click share at your current and target positions, and price the extra sessions at organic conversion and contribution. The move here adds 1,911.6 sessions worth 1,952.58 a month against a 3,560 one-off cost.
What click shares should I use per position?
Published curves put position 1 near 27% and decay steeply — roughly 15% at two, 10% at three, and under 5% by position five or six. They vary by device and intent, so treat them as planning constants and verify in search console.
Why is moving from position 6 to 1 worth more than six times the traffic?
Because the click curve is convex: the first result takes 27.4% of clicks here against the sixth's 3.8% — a 7.2105x multiple. Effort scales roughly linearly; traffic does not.
Should I target keywords where I rank on page three?
Usually not first. The cost to close from page three buys shares the curve barely rewards, while a page-one move climbs the steep segment. Concentrate where the next position changes the share materially.
What does it cost to move up a position?
It depends on the gap: content refreshes and internal links for one to two positions, net-new authority for more. This page prices the bundle — pieces times cost plus links times cost — at 3,560 for the worked move.
How long does a ranking move take to pay back?
With the uplift worth 1,952.58 a month, the 3,560 cost repays in 1.8232 months after the position lands. The honest total adds the months the work itself takes — the payback clock starts at completion, not kickoff.
Do featured snippets and AI answers change the curve?
They compress it: zero-click searches and answer surfaces take clicks the classic curve awarded to position one. Discount the target share for SERPs where the answer is satisfied on the page.
Is search volume reliable?
Volume is an estimate that swings by tool and season. Anchor the case with search-console impressions — what the query actually serves — and treat the tool figure as the planning input it is.
How often must a ranking be defended?
Positions decay as competitors publish and links rot. The uplift value is also the monthly loss if the position slips back — which is the honest budget for keeping the page fresh.
How is this different from the SEO ROI page?
That page judges the whole programme's budget against its library; this page prices ONE ranking move — the curve, the close-out cost, the payback. Portfolio from the programme page, prioritisation from this one.