Marketing Attribution

    Marketing Attribution Calculator for Channel Credit and ROI

    How to Calculate Channel Credit and ROI with the Marketing Attribution Calculator

    Compare first-touch, last-touch, linear, and time-decay attribution models to estimate channel revenue credit, campaign ROAS, and marketing ROI.

    Formula

    Attributed value is distributed by first, last, linear, or time-decay model weights

    How to use the result

    Compare models side by side and inspect which budget decisions change; no rule model proves causality.

    Attribution credit should sum to 100%. Time decay requires a half-life matched to the sales cycle. Inputs and calculations stay in this browser.

    Compare different attribution models to understand how each marketing channel contributes to your conversions and revenue.

    First-Touch Attribution

    100% credit goes to the first channel that brought the customer

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    First-Touch Results

    All revenue attributed to: Google Ads

    Channel ROI

    400.0%

    Overall ROAS

    2.94x

    CPA

    $85.00

    Total Cost

    $8,500

    Attribution Insight

    First-touch attribution credits Google Ads with 100% of the $25,000 revenue. This model is best for understanding which channels bring new customers to your brand.

    When to use First-Touch:

    • • Measuring brand awareness campaigns
    • • Understanding customer acquisition sources
    • • Top-of-funnel marketing optimization

    Last-Touch Attribution

    100% credit goes to the last channel before conversion

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    Last-Touch Results

    All revenue attributed to: Email

    Channel ROI

    4900.0%

    Overall ROAS

    2.94x

    CPA

    $85.00

    Total Cost

    $8,500

    Attribution Insight

    Last-touch attribution credits Email with 100% of the $25,000 revenue. This model is the default in most analytics platforms and is best for measuring conversion-focused channels.

    When to use Last-Touch:

    • • Measuring bottom-of-funnel campaigns
    • • Short purchase cycles
    • • Direct response marketing

    Linear Attribution

    Equal credit distributed across all touchpoints

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    Linear Attribution Results

    Each channel receives 33.3% of revenue

    Overall ROAS

    2.94x

    Channel Breakdown

    Google Ads
    +66.7% ROI

    Revenue

    $8,333.333

    Cost

    $5,000

    ROAS

    1.67x

    Facebook Ads
    +177.8% ROI

    Revenue

    $8,333.333

    Cost

    $3,000

    ROAS

    2.78x

    Email
    +1566.7% ROI

    Revenue

    $8,333.333

    Cost

    $500

    ROAS

    16.67x

    Attribution Insight

    Linear attribution treats all 3 touchpoints equally, each receiving $8,333.333 in attributed revenue.

    Time Decay Attribution

    More credit to touchpoints closer to conversion

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    Time Decay Results

    Credit weighted by recency with 7-day half-life

    Overall ROAS

    2.94x

    Channel Breakdown (by weight)

    Google Ads (Day 1)
    24.1% weight
    +20.3% ROI

    Revenue

    $6,013.45

    Cost

    $5,000

    ROAS

    1.20x

    Facebook Ads (Day 3)
    32.4% weight
    +169.8% ROI

    Revenue

    $8,093.503

    Cost

    $3,000

    ROAS

    2.70x

    Email (Day 7)
    43.6% weight
    +2078.6% ROI

    Revenue

    $10,893.047

    Cost

    $500

    ROAS

    21.79x

    Attribution Insight

    Time decay gives more credit to recent interactions. With a 7-day half-life, each touchpoint receives half the credit of the one that came after it.

    Attribution Model Comparison

    Understanding when to use each attribution model

    First-Touch

    Best for awareness

    • • Brand discovery
    • • Top-of-funnel
    • • Long sales cycles

    Last-Touch

    Best for conversions

    • • Direct response
    • • Short cycles
    • • E-commerce

    Linear

    Best for balanced view

    • • Equal channel value
    • • Team fairness
    • • Simple analysis

    Time Decay

    Best for recency

    • • B2B sales
    • • Considered purchases
    • • Long research phase

    How to use the Marketing Attribution Calculator

    Attribution models change how you credit revenue to channels. Use this calculator to compare common models and see how the same spend can look profitable or unprofitable depending on where you assign credit. It’s most useful for channel budgeting and for aligning stakeholders on a consistent measurement approach.

    First-Touch

    1. Enter touchpoints and revenue by channel as you would in a path-to-conversion view.
    2. Select the first-touch model to credit the first interaction.
    3. Use it to evaluate acquisition and awareness channels that start journeys.

    Last-Touch

    1. Use the same channel inputs, then select last-touch attribution.
    2. Review which channels receive the most credit at conversion time.
    3. Use it to optimize bottom-of-funnel tactics, but beware of undervaluing discovery channels.

    Linear

    1. Select linear attribution to distribute credit evenly across touchpoints.
    2. Use it when you want a balanced view and fewer extremes in channel credit.
    3. Compare it to first/last touch to spot channels that only appear early or late in journeys.

    Time Decay

    1. Set a half-life (in days) to define how quickly credit decays over time.
    2. Select time decay to weight recent touchpoints more heavily.
    3. Use it for longer consideration cycles where recency matters but early touches still contribute.

    Implementation tips

    • Use one model as your default for budgeting, then sanity-check with at least one alternative.
    • Keep channel definitions stable; changing what “Paid Social” includes breaks comparisons.
    • Track both attribution and incrementality; attribution is not proof of causality.