What Is ROAS in Facebook Ads? Purchase ROAS Explained

Return on ad spend tells you how much recorded sales value came back for what you spent on ads. Meta does not report one single ROAS. It reports several, each tied to a type of purchase, and each built from the purchase conversion values recorded for your ads. Reading it well means knowing which purchases it counts, which values it uses and where Meta fills gaps with modeling.

How does Meta calculate ROAS?

For purchase ROAS, Meta divides purchase conversion value by the amount spent.

Example: $500 spent and $1,750 in purchase conversion value gives a purchase ROAS of 1,750 ÷ 500 = 3.5.

The ROAS article links to Meta’s guide on setting a value or changing the currency for conversions, so check the values and currency your events send before trusting the ratio.

Which ROAS metrics does Meta report?

Metric	Formula	Notes from Meta
Purchase ROAS	Purchase conversion value ÷ amount spent	May not be calculated in some cases, such as results for ads delivered to iOS 14+ devices
Website purchase ROAS	Website purchases conversion value ÷ amount spent	Purchase events and values may be partly modeled
In-app purchase ROAS	Mobile app purchases conversion value ÷ amount spent	iOS 14+ results come from Apple’s SKAdNetwork API

Meta includes purchase return on ad spend in the Sales column preset, alongside link clicks, cost per link click and cost per result.

Is Meta’s ROAS a measured number or an estimate?

Partly both. For all three versions, Meta says that where purchase events cannot be counted directly because of partial or missing data, statistical modeling may be used to account for some events and for the values assigned to them. That means part of the ratio can rest on modeled purchases.

How does a ROAS goal work?

ROAS goal is a bid strategy where you set the average return you want, and Meta adjusts bids to maximize conversion value while keeping the weekly average ROAS near that goal. Meta’s setup and guidance:

1. Select maximize value of conversions as the performance goal at the ad set level.
2. Choose ROAS goal as the bid strategy, at the campaign level if you use Advantage+ campaign budget.
3. Enter the goal as a number between 0.001 and 1000.00, where 1.100 means about $110 back on $100.
4. Evaluate weekly averages and wait at least 7 days after any change.

You need a working Meta pixel or Meta SDK tracking conversion events. Meta says ROAS goal works best with at least 50 to 100 weekly conversions per ad set and may spend less than your full budget in a competitive market. Highest value bidding instead prioritizes spending the full budget.

FAQ

Is ROAS the same as profit?

No. ROAS divides conversion value by ad spend and subtracts nothing. Product costs, shipping, fees, discounts and returns are not in the formula, so a ROAS above 1.0 can still lose money. Break-even ROAS, an industry calculation, adds your margin to the picture.

Why is purchase ROAS blank for some of my ads?

Meta says that in some cases, such as results reported for ads delivered to iOS 14+ devices, purchase ROAS may not be calculated. Separately, Meta says conversion metrics don’t populate when the campaign or summary level mixes multiple attribution settings.

What ROAS goal should I start with?

Meta suggests starting 10 to 20% below your average ROAS, based on results within your attribution setting. With no history, it suggests running highest value for at least 2 weeks and using the resulting ROAS as the starting goal.