You already paid for it
The cost per lead is sunk the moment they enquire. Whether you convert it comes down to reaching them fast. See the leak with the [revenue leak calculator](/tools/revenue-leak-calculator).
Free tool
What is each lead costing you?
Divide your spend by the leads it brought in, and see your cost per lead. Then remember: every lead you lose to a slow reply throws that money away.
Your own spend and lead count, nothing invented.
Run the numbers
Work out your cost per lead
Enter your spend and the number of leads it generated.
1
Spend2
Leads3
ResultWhat did you spend?
Total spend for the period.
$5,000
$100$100,000
Understand the metric
How to calculate cost per lead
Cost per lead is what you pay, on average, for each new enquiry your marketing generates. It is one of the simplest efficiency measures there is, and one of the most revealing, because it puts a price tag on something most businesses then let go cold. This calculator works it out from your spend and your lead count, so you can see exactly what each enquiry costs before it is ever worked.
How to read your result
The figure is the price of one lead. It is only half a story on its own: a cheap lead you never convert is worse than a dearer one you close. Read cost per lead alongside how many of those leads you actually win, which is where response speed does its quiet damage.
What to include in spend
Count the marketing costs that produced the leads: ad spend, the tools involved and the relevant slice of team cost. A consistent basis between periods matters more than chasing a perfect figure.
Why slow replies waste it
You have paid the cost per lead the moment someone enquires. If that lead goes cold waiting for a reply, the money is simply gone. Reaching every lead fast is how you stop paying for enquiries you then throw away.
How it is calculated
Cost per lead = marketing spend ÷ number of leads
- 1Total the spendMarketing spend for the period.
- 2Count the leadsThe number of enquiries that spend generated.
- 3DivideDivide spend by leads to get the cost of each one.
The build
Every cold lead is this much, wasted
Instant reply saves the spend
An always-on front desk answers every enquiry in seconds, so the money you paid for it is not wasted on a lead that went to a faster competitor.
You own it
Built for your business and handed over.
Read next
Where this goes next
Questions
Questions
Total marketing spend divided by the number of leads it generated. If you spent 5,000 and got 200 leads, each cost 25. Your numbers, not an industry average.
Not on its own. A cheap lead you never convert is worse than a dearer one you close. Cost per lead only matters alongside how many you actually win, which is where response speed comes in.
Because you have already paid the cost per lead by the time they enquire. If they go cold waiting for a reply, that money is simply gone. Reaching them fast is how you stop wasting it.
Answer them instantly, every time, on every channel. That converts more of the leads you already paid for, which beats paying for even more leads you also let slip.
Paying for leads you then lose to slow replies? Book a 30-min call and we will fix the follow-up.
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