Ad spend forecasting for founders

Stop guessing.
Start growing.

Tell GrowthFox your goal and budget. Get a precise forecast, a proven channel mix, and the honest truth about your ROI โ€” before you spend a dollar.

Built for niche publishers ยท App developers ยท Bootstrapped SaaS founders

app.growthfox.io/forecast/new

Property

app.example.com

Type & Metrics

SaaS ยท $79/mo ยท 5% free-to-paid

Monthly Budget

$2,000 / month

Unit Economics

Max CPL (6-mo payback)$47.40
Avg CPL (expected)$34.50
Expected MRR added+$228/mo
Verdict: Viable

Viable โ€” max CPL is $47 at 6-month payback. Google Search and Bing are your anchors. LinkedIn CPLs ($120+) exceed threshold โ€” skip for now.

Conservative

34

sign-ups/mo

Expected

58

sign-ups/mo

Optimistic

96

sign-ups/mo

Channel Mix

Google Search Ads
$900
High-intent branded + category$3.50โ€“$9.00 CPC
Microsoft/Bing Search
$400
30โ€“40% cheaper CPCs than Google$1.80โ€“$5.00 CPC
Meta Ads
$500
Retargeting + lookalike audiences$1.20โ€“$3.50 CPC
Reddit Ads
$200
Niche subreddit targeting$0.40โ€“$1.20 CPC

Three steps to clarity

From zero to forecast in under 2 minutes.

01

Add your property

Blog, SaaS app, or mobile app. Enter your key metrics โ€” RPM, price, conversion rate. Takes 90 seconds.

02

Set your goal & budget

Choose what you want to grow โ€” sessions, sign-ups, or installs. Enter your monthly budget.

03

Get your forecast

See conservative, expected, and optimistic outcomes with a recommended channel mix and plain-English verdict.

Built for three types of digital properties

Different unit economics. Different channels. One tool that knows the difference.

๐Ÿ“ฐ

Blog / Content Site

Niche sites, content publishers, Raptive/Mediavine monetized

  • RPM-based break-even CPC
  • Native discovery channels (Taboola, Outbrain)
  • Email capture via Meta

Example

outdoors-weekly.com

$14 RPM ยท Break-even CPC: $0.020

โ†’ Taboola + Google Display viable

โš™๏ธ

SaaS / Lead Gen

Subscription products, free-to-paid funnels, B2B tools

  • CPL vs LTV-derived max CPL
  • Google Search, Bing, Meta, LinkedIn, Reddit
  • Payback period calculation

Example

app.example.com ($79/mo)

5% conversion ยท Max CPL: $47.40

โ†’ Google Search + Bing anchor

๐Ÿ“ฑ

Mobile App

iOS and Android apps with IAP subscriptions

  • CPI vs LTV analysis
  • Apple Search Ads, Google UAC, Meta, TikTok
  • Low-review count warning (CPI 2ร—)

Example

FitTrack Pro ($4.99/mo)

3% conversion ยท Max CPI: $5.96

โ†’ ASA 50% โ†’ Google UAC 30%

The honest ad spend toolkit

Not another ad platform that tells you to spend more.

Budget Forecaster

Input your budget, get a realistic range โ€” conservative to optimistic. Based on actual channel benchmark data, not platform estimates.

Channel Mix Optimizer

Get a recommended allocation across Taboola, Google, Meta, Apple Search Ads, and more โ€” weighted by what actually works for your property type.

Unit Economics Engine

Break-even CPC, max viable CPL, LTV per install, payback period โ€” all calculated automatically from your property metrics.

The Honest Verdict

The feature no one else has: we'll tell you when paid traffic won't work for your property and exactly why. Save the budget for when the unit economics are right.

Simple pricing

Start free. Grow into the plan that fits.

Free

$0

No card. No expiry. Figure out if ads will work before spending a dollar.

  • 2 properties
  • 5 forecasts/month
  • Full channel mix plan
  • Unit economics breakdown
Get started free
Most Popular

Founder

$29/month

For founders actively running paid ads on their own properties.

  • 10 properties
  • 30 forecasts/month
  • Everything in Free
  • PDF export
  • Verdict engine
  • Forecast history & comparison
Start free, upgrade anytime

Pro

$99/month

For agencies and growth teams managing multiple client campaigns.

  • 50 properties
  • 200 forecasts/month
  • Everything in Founder
  • Up to 5 team seats
  • White-label PDF reports
  • Actual vs. forecast tracking
  • API access
Get Pro
EnterpriseCustom contracts, SSO, dedicated account management, and volume pricing.
Contact us โ†’

All plans include the full forecast engine. See full comparison โ†’

Common questions

Your next dollar of ad spend should be a bet, not a guess.

Get a realistic forecast in 2 minutes. Free forever, no card required.

Get your first forecast free