Cost per lead formula in Excel or Google Sheets
Put the inputs in column B from row 2, then paste the formulas below. They work the same in Excel and Google Sheets.
| Cell | What | Value or formula | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| B2 | Marketing spend ($) | 20000 | 20000 |
| B3 | Leads generated | 800 | 800 |
| B4 | Opportunities from these leads | 100 | 100 |
| B6 | Cost per lead ($) | =ROUND(B2/B3,2) | 25 |
| B7 | Cost per opportunity ($) | =ROUND(B2/B4,2) | 200 |
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Frequently asked questions
- How do you calculate cost per lead?
- Divide what you spent by the leads it produced. $20,000 for 800 leads is $25 per lead; if 100 became opportunities, each opportunity cost $200.
- What is a good cost per lead?
- It depends on deal size. A $200 lead is cheap for a $50,000 contract and expensive for a $500 one. Judge CPL against customer acquisition cost and lifetime value.
- Why look at cost per opportunity too?
- Cheap leads that never become opportunities waste sales time. Cost per opportunity shows which channels bring buyers, not just names.
About the author
Abdessamad Ghanem
Customer Experience & Customer Success Consultant · Founder of Clarivoxx
Abdessamad Ghanem works across Customer Support, Sales, Customer Success, Account Management and Partner Management. He writes Clarivoxx Insights for B2B SaaS professionals who own retention, adoption and customer outcomes.