marketing budget calculator
Calculate a marketing budget from revenue using industry-standard percentages, split across channels. Free budget planning calculator.
Enter your numbers
Live results
Annual marketing budget
$150,000.00
Monthly marketing budget
$12,500.00
Monthly paid media budget
$7,500.00
Monthly other (content, tools, fees)
$5,000.00
What this calculator does
The Marketing Budget Calculator answers the question every business asks an agency first: how much should we spend? Enter annual revenue and a target percentage - typically 5-10% for established businesses and 12-20% for growth-stage - and the tool returns annual and monthly budgets, plus a suggested paid-media allocation. Agencies use it in discovery calls to anchor scope conversations in the client’s own numbers rather than guesses, and to sanity-check whether a prospect’s ambitions match their budget reality. The percentage-of-revenue method is a starting point, not a law: adjust for competitive intensity, margins, and growth targets.
How to use this calculator
- 1
Enter annual revenue and choose a marketing percentage (5-10% maintain, 12-20% grow).
- 2
Set the share of budget going to paid media vs content, tools and fees.
- 3
Use the monthly figures to frame scope and set channel-level expectations.
Why this matters for agencies
Budget conversations fail when they start from tactics instead of capacity. Anchoring to a revenue percentage gives both agency and client a defensible starting number and exposes ambition-budget mismatches before a contract is signed.
Frequently asked questions
What percentage of revenue should go to marketing?
Common benchmarks: 5-10% of revenue to maintain position, 12-20% to grow aggressively; B2C typically spends more than B2B. New businesses and competitive categories sit at the high end.
Should the budget include agency fees and tools?
Yes. A complete marketing budget covers media spend, agency or freelancer fees, software, content production, and events - not just the ad platforms.
How should the budget split between paid and everything else?
Growth-focused SMBs commonly put 50-70% into paid media and the rest into content, SEO, email, tools and fees. Businesses with strong organic engines can flip that ratio.
How often should a marketing budget be revisited?
Quarterly. Reallocate toward channels with the best CAC and away from underperformers - a static annual budget wastes the data your reporting generates monthly.
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