ROAS Benchmarks by Industry: What "Good" Actually Looks Like

The single biggest mistake in paid media is comparing your ROAS to a number someone else posted. Your "good" depends on margin, order value and whether you're measuring blended or incremental return.

Why a flat benchmark lies

A 2× ROAS is fantastic for a 70% margin business and a disaster for a 15% margin one. Before judging your ads, know your breakeven ROAS — then add your target profit on top.

Ranges that actually hold up

• E-commerce (high margin, >50%) — blended ROAS of 3.5–5× is healthy; scale 2.5×+.
• E-commerce (low margin, <25%) — 5–7× blended is the realistic bar.
• B2B SaaS — judge by CAC payback and LTV:CAC (3:1+), not raw ROAS.
• Lead gen / B2B services — cost per qualified lead beats ROAS as a north star.
• DTC / paid social — top-of-funnel blends lower; retargeting blends 5–10×.

The one metric that matters more

Incrementality. If a channel would have converted anyway, its ROAS is an illusion. Ask whether you're measuring attribution, not just return.

Benchmark against your own unit economics first. Industry averages are a floor, not a target.

Wondering what your accounts are actually returning? Let w3logics run an analytics review and a PPC audit to find out.