Marketing key performance indicators (or marketing KPIs) are quantifiable metrics that measure marketing campaign and channel performance against your business goals.
Store owners use marketing KPIs to measure the return on marketing spend and identify which channels and campaigns to adjust.
This guide covers marketing KPIs by category, including financial metrics and channel-specific metrics, and how to calculate and track each one.
What are marketing KPIs?
Marketing KPIs are quantifiable metrics that measure the performance of marketing campaigns, channels, and activities against your store’s business objectives. They track outcomes like revenue, customer acquisition, and engagement, so you can evaluate whether your marketing efforts meet your predefined targets.
Every KPI is a metric, but not every metric is a KPI. A metric is any quantifiable measurement of marketing performance—like page views or email opens. A KPI is a metric tied directly to a specific business objective, chosen because it indicates progress toward that goal.
US marketing budgets fell to 9% of company revenue in early 2026, according to Duke University’s CMO Survey of 308 US marketing leaders.“Rather than investing in deeper customer insights, most marketers focus on developing stronger performance tracking as the primary way to demonstrate value,”says Christine Moorman, professor at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and director of the survey.
For example, conversion rate on an ecommerce store is a KPI that measures the percentage of visitors who make a purchase. Store owners can track KPIs at multiple levels—from individual campaigns to overall marketing spend—to make data-backed decisions about where to adjust.
How to choose the right marketing KPIs
Fewer than half of store owners track profit margin, traffic, average order value, or conversion rate, according to Shopify’s Q4 2025 Survey of Store Owners.* Choosing the right marketing KPIs starts with identifying which funnel stage each metric measures, then tracking only the metrics tied to a specific objective at that stage.
Marketing KPIs align with four funnel stages:
- Awareness. Reach and impressions measure how many potential customers encounter your brand’s marketing across channels like social media and paid search.
- Consideration. Click-through rate and engagement rate measure how many potential customers interact with content after the first impression.
- Conversion. Conversion rate and cost per acquisition measure how many potential customers complete a purchase or target action.
- Retention. Repeat purchase rate and customer lifetime value measure how many customers return after their first purchase.
Assign one primary KPI and, at most, one secondary KPI to each stage to keep your dashboards focused on actionable numbers. For example, a store running a paid social campaign might track reach and impressions during the awareness stage, then shift to conversion rate and cost per acquisition as visitors move toward checkout. Narrowing tracked metrics to two or three per funnel stage keeps reporting tied to each stage’s objective.
A vanity metric is a metric that increases without connecting to a business objective, unlike a KPI, which ties directly to a funnel stage and a goal. Social media followers and page views are common examples of vanity metrics: both numbers grow independently of revenue. A high follower count paired with a flat conversion rate signals a vanity metric, not a funnel-stage KPI.
In Nielsen’s 2025 Global Annual Marketing Survey, 19% of marketers named unclear KPIs and the sheer volume of data among their top challenges in measuring ROI. A quick test you can apply to any tracked number is to ask yourself: Does it connect to revenue, retention, or profit at a specific funnel stage? If not, it’s a vanity metric—not a KPI.
Marketing KPIs to track
- Customer acquisition cost (CAC)
- Customer lifetime value (LTV)
- Average order value (AOV)
- Marketing return on investment (ROI)
- Return on ad spend (ROAS)
- Cost per lead (CPL)
- Marketing qualified leads (MQL)
- Conversion rate (CVR)
- Shopping cart abandonment rate (AR)
- Keyword coverage
- Share of voice (SOV)
- Average social media engagement
- Traffic distribution
- Web engagement rate (ER)
- Email marketing KPIs
- Customer retention rate
1. Customer acquisition cost (CAC)
Customer acquisition cost is the total cost of acquiring a single customer, including advertising expenses such as Google Ads. Store owners define CAC narrowly or broadly, depending on which costs they include in the calculation. Some businesses might expand CAC to cover agency fees and marketing department payroll for a broader view of acquisition costs.
Store owners with more than $1 million in revenue track CAC six times as often as those with less than $100,000 in revenue. Thirty percent of store owners in the higher revenue bracket track CAC, compared with 5% of those in the lower bracket, according to Shopify’s Q4 2025 Survey of Store Owners.*
Calculate CAC by dividing total sales and marketing costs by the number of customers gained over the period the money was spent:
Customer acquisition cost = Total sales and marketing costs / Number of customers acquired
Store owners compare CAC across channels and tactics to identify where acquisition costs are lowest relative to customer volume.
2. Customer lifetime value (LTV)
Customer lifetime value measures the total revenue an average customer generates throughout their relationship with a store.
Calculate LTV by multiplying average order value, purchase frequency, and average customer lifespan:
Customer lifetime value = Average order value x Purchase frequency x Average customer lifespan
You can track LTV alongside CAC to compare acquisition cost against the revenue a customer generates over time. Some store owners also track shorter-term versions of the metric, such as one-month LTV, alongside the standard lifetime calculation.
3. Average order value (AOV)
Average order value (AOV) is the average revenue generated from a single order.
Calculate AOV by dividing total revenue by the number of orders over a given period:
Average order value = Total revenue / Number of orders
Because LTV includes average order value as one of its factors, raising AOV raises LTV without acquiring additional customers.
For example, a store with 1,000 monthly visits and a 5% conversion rate generates 50 sales. At an AOV of $250, monthly revenue is $12,500. Raising AOV to $300 increases revenue to $15,000—an additional $2,500 without added marketing spend to acquire new customers.
4. Marketing return on investment (ROI)
Marketing return on investment (ROI) is a marketing KPI that measures whether marketing activities generated more revenue than they cost.
Calculate marketing ROI by subtracting marketing cost from revenue attributable to marketing, then dividing by marketing cost:
Marketing ROI = (Revenue attributable to marketing − Marketing cost) / Marketing cost
Marketing efficiency ratio (MER) is a related metric that divides total revenue by total marketing spend without subtracting cost. This gives you a gross efficiency view rather than a net profitability figure.
Similar to CAC, you can define marketing costs narrowly, as the amount spent on ads. It can also be defined broadly, as total marketing spend including agency fees, payroll, and other marketing-related expenses.
5. Return on ad spend (ROAS)
Return on ad spend (ROAS) measures the channel-specific return of advertising dollars, alongside overall marketing ROI.
Calculate ROAS by dividing revenue attributable to advertising by the total amount spent on ads:
ROAS = Revenue attributable to advertising / Ad spend
A higher ROAS means more revenue generated per advertising dollar spent. Store owners review ROAS by ad platform or campaign for a more granular view of ad performance.
Calculating ROAS and ROI is among the top challenges marketers report when advertising on social media, cited by 33% of marketers worldwide, according to DoubleVerify’s 2025 Global Insights Report.
6. Cost per lead (CPL)
Cost per lead (CPL) is the total amount spent to acquire a lead, a potential customer who has shown interest in a product or service by providing their email or phone number. CPL is similar to CAC but measures a lead rather than a converted customer.
Calculate CPL by dividing total spend by the number of leads generated over the same period:
CPL = Total spend / Number of leads generated
Store owners segment CPL by channel, campaign, or ad creative to compare lead cost across marketing tactics.
7. Marketing qualified leads (MQL)
Cost per lead and MQL are core marketing KPIs for B2B businesses, where longer sales cycles make lead quality as important to track as lead volume.
Primarily a business-to-business (B2B) marketing KPI, marketing qualified leads are leads who have met specific criteria that indicate interest. This identifies them as more likely to convert than other leads. MQLs eventually become sales qualified leads, meaning the sales team has determined they’re likely to make a purchase.
Measuring MQLs shows you which content and channels engage the most qualified prospects. You can use that data to direct marketing spend toward the business tactics generating those leads.
8. Conversion rate (CVR)
Conversion rate (CVR) is the percentage of website visitors who take a desired action, such as completing a purchase or subscribing to a newsletter. This guide uses conversion rate to refer to purchase completions unless otherwise noted.
Calculate conversion rate by dividing the number of times a desired action occurred by the total number of visits to the site over a given period, then multiplying by 100:
Conversion rate = (Number of conversions / Total visits) x 100
Store owners can compare their conversion rate against similar stores using the Online store conversion over time report in Shopify Analytics.
9. Shopping cart abandonment rate (AR)
Shopping cart abandonment rate (AR) measures the percentage of shoppers who add items to their cart but leave without completing the purchase.
Calculate AR by subtracting completed purchases from carts created, dividing by carts created, then multiplying by 100:
Cart abandonment rate = [(Carts created − Completed purchases) / Carts created] x 100
To improve AR, review each step of the checkout process for friction points. Extra costs such as shipping fees and taxes are the leading reported reason for cart abandonment, according to the Baymard Institute.
A lengthy or complicated checkout process accounts for another 17%. Taking a closer look at carts that convert successfully helps pinpoint commonalities in products, promotions, or user journeys that abandoned carts don’t share.
10. Keyword coverage
Keyword coverage measures how many keywords a website ranks for on search engines like Google. Each ranked keyword is a potential entry point for organic search traffic.
Measure, monitor, and benchmark your business’s keyword ranking coverage against direct competitors using tools like Ahrefs, Moz, or Semrush. You can extend coverage by targeting keywords that your competitors currently rank for but your store doesn’t yet.
11. Share of voice (SOV)
Share of voice (SOV) measures a brand’s online engagement relative to competitors.
Calculate SOV by summing a brand’s organic search traffic and social media mentions, then dividing by the combined total for the brand and its top three to five competitors:
SOV = (Brand’s search traffic + social mentions) / (Brand’s + competitors’ combined search traffic and social mentions) x 100
SOV measures volume, not tone. Pairing SOV with brand sentiment shows whether that visibility is working in a store’s favor or against it. You can learn more about your business’s SOV and brand sentiment with tools like Semrush for search analytics, Emplifi for social monitoring, and a sentiment analysis tool for tracking tone.
12. Average social media engagement
Social media engagement refers to how users interact with your brand’s social media posts, such as likes, comments, saves, and shares.
Calculate average social media engagement by totaling all engagement interactions and dividing by the number of posts:
Average engagement per post = Total engagement interactions / Number of posts
Engagement rates vary widely by platform. Average engagement per post in 2025 was 2.7% on TikTok, compared with 0.45% on Instagram, 0.15% on Facebook, and 0.1% on X, according to Socialinsider.
Influencer marketing is one channel store owners can use to drive engagement, since creator content allows you to reach target audiences who already trust that creator’s recommendations.
Shopify Collabs connects store owners with creators for affiliate and influencer partnerships, letting you recruit creators, send commission offers, and track affiliate sales from the Shopify admin.
Content with above-average engagement points to what resonates with an audience. This marketing KPI gives store owners a reference point for planning future campaigns and content.
13. Traffic distribution
Traffic distribution is the percentage of website traffic driven by each traffic source, such as organic search, paid ads, or social media.
You can actively test new business channels, rather than relying on a fixed mix. Dan Demsky, co-founder and CEO at Unbound Merino, said on an episode of Shopify Masters, “We can’t have all our eggs in that basket. So we’re always looking: Where are the influencers? Where are the affiliates? How do we figure out TikTok? Is Pinterest worth trying?”
Calculate traffic distribution per channel by dividing sessions from that channel by total sessions, then multiplying by 100:
Traffic distribution (per channel) = (Sessions from channel / Total sessions) x 100
Shopify’s Marketing reports break down sessions and sales by referrer, showing which channels bring visitors to a store and which convert them into customers. You can also use analytics software like Google Analytics to segment traffic and identify whether your store depends heavily on a single channel.
Traffic distribution highlights the performance of less visible channels, like email, referral, and direct traffic, alongside better-tracked channels like paid ads and organic search.
14. Web engagement rate (ER)
Engagement rate (ER) is a Google Analytics marketing KPI that measures the percentage of engaged sessions on a website. Google qualifies a session as engaged when it lasts longer than 10 seconds, includes two or more page views, or includes a conversion event such as clicking a link or watching a video.
Calculate engagement rate by dividing engaged sessions by total sessions, then multiplying by 100:
Engagement rate = (Engaged sessions / Total sessions) x 100
Tracking site-wide, page-level, and channel-specific engagement rate shows how content performs across different traffic contexts. For example, some content generates higher engagement from social traffic. Other content performs better with email traffic.
Comparing engagement rate across pages helps you understand which pages have the largest gap between traffic volume and visitor engagement.
15. Email marketing KPIs
Email marketing KPIs measure how subscribers respond to your email campaigns and automated flows, from list growth through to completed orders.
Email subscribers
Email subscribers are individuals who opt in to receive email communications. A subscriber list is the audience your store can reach directly, without depending on a search or social algorithm to surface content.
Open rate, click rate, and placed-order rate
Calculate these core email metrics by dividing each outcome by the number of emails delivered, then multiplying by 100:
Open rate = Emails opened / Emails delivered x 100
Click rate = Unique clicks / Emails delivered x 100
Placed-order rate = Orders placed / Emails delivered x 100
The average email campaign open rate across all industries is 31%. The average click rate is 1.69%. The average placed-order rate is 0.38%. This is all according to Klaviyo 2026 benchmark data from more than 183,000 brands.
Automation performance
Automated flows, such as welcome series, abandoned cart, and post-purchase emails outperform one-time campaigns on these same metrics, according to Klaviyo. Email flows generate click rates more than three times higher than campaigns.
Store owners can use campaigns for one-time promotions and product launches, and automated flows for messages triggered by specific customer actions. These actions might include signing up for email, abandoning a cart, or completing a purchase.
Sean Reyes, founder at automotive brand Shock Surplus, said on an episode of Shopify Masters, “We’re doing eight figures in business, and we have very tight attribution on Klaviyo. Even then, we do about 18% to 20% of our revenue through email. You can’t ignore it. There’s no replacement for it, even with everyone’s crowded inboxes.”
Shopify’s built-in email capabilities
Shopify Messaging lets store owners create email campaigns and automated flows directly from the Shopify admin. It offers pre-built templates for triggers like abandoned checkout, welcome series, and post-purchase follow-up.
Shopify Forms grows your subscriber list through pop-up and inline sign-up forms, and customer segments let store owners send targeted campaigns to specific groups. For automations that connect to third-party apps or require custom logic, Shopify Flow builds the workflow.
16. Customer retention rate
Customer retention rate is a marketing KPI that measures the proportion of customers who continue to purchase from a store over a given period.
Calculate customer retention rate by dividing the number of non-new customers at the end of a period by the number of customers at the start of that period, then multiplying by 100:
Customer retention rate = (Non-new customers at end of period / Customers at start of period) x 100
Shopify’s Customer cohort analysis includes customer retention rate as a metric, letting store owners view retention by acquisition cohort.
Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a complementary marketing KPI that measures customer loyalty through a single survey question. While customer retention rate measures actual repeat-purchase behavior, NPS measures stated intent, giving store owners two different angles on the same relationship.
How to track marketing KPIs
Tracking marketing KPIs for your business starts with the tools built into Shopify, then extends to dedicated reporting apps as your marketing program grows.
The Analytics overview dashboard in the Shopify admin displays customizable metric cards for sales, sessions, and marketing performance, viewable across any date range. You can use the Marketing reports to see sessions and sales broken down by referrer, and the Campaigns tool, under the Marketing section of the Shopify admin, to create and monitor your individual marketing campaigns.
Eighty-five percent of marketers feel confident tracking holistic performance, yet only 32% actually measure holistically, according to Nielsen’s 2025 Marketing ROI Blueprint. Dedicated reporting apps close part of this gap by consolidating data from multiple marketing channels into a single dashboard.
Polar: AI-Analytics Platform connects Shopify data with other marketing channels to build unified dashboards and track metrics like CAC, LTV, and ROAS in one place. Geckoboard dashboards pulls Shopify data into a real-time dashboard for sharing sales and marketing metrics with your team.
*Disclaimer: Based on a 2025 survey of 500 Shopify merchants conducted in English across Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United States. Respondents were established merchants with two or more years on the platform. Results reflect the experiences of this specific sample and may not be representative of all merchants.
Marketing KPIs FAQ
What are KPIs in marketing?
Marketing KPIs are quantifiable metrics store owners track to gauge how campaigns and channels perform against specific business objectives. Common examples include customer acquisition cost, conversion rate, and email open rate. Store owners choose which KPIs to track based on the funnel stage and channel they want to measure.
What are some examples of marketing KPIs?
Marketing KPIs fall into a few categories. These include financial metrics like customer acquisition cost, customer lifetime value, and marketing ROI. They also include channel metrics like conversion rate, cost per lead, and return on ad spend; and engagement metrics like social media engagement and email open rate. It’s best to choose which examples to track based on the funnel stage or channel your business wants to measure, rather than tracking every available metric at once.
What are the 5 most important marketing KPIs?
Store owners commonly track five KPIs: customer acquisition cost, customer lifetime value, conversion rate, marketing ROI, and email open rate. These metrics span acquisition cost, customer value, and channel performance, giving store owners a view across the full funnel rather than a single stage. Which KPIs matter most depends on your business’s specific goals and current funnel stage.
What is the difference between a marketing KPI and a marketing metric?
Every KPI is a metric, but not every metric is a KPI. A metric is any trackable number, such as page views or email sends. A KPI is a metric a store owner has tied to a specific business objective, such as revenue growth or customer retention. Tracking a metric without an objective attached, like page views alone, doesn’t make it a KPI.
What is a marketing KPI dashboard?
A marketing KPI dashboard is a visual tool that displays key performance indicators relevant to a store’s marketing objectives in one place. Dashboards pull data from sources like the Shopify admin, email platforms, and ad accounts, showing metrics such as conversion rate, CAC, or ROAS side by side. You can use dashboards to compare performance across business channels without checking each platform separately.
