Calculating ROI on Low-Code Projects

"We should automate this" is easy to say. Proving it's worth the investment is harder. This guide gives you a practical framework for calculating the real ROI of low-code projects—so you can make informed decisions and justify budgets.

The Basic ROI Formula

Simple enough. The challenge is accurately quantifying benefits and costs.

Measuring Benefits: The Three Categories

1. Time Savings (Hard ROI)

The most straightforward benefit to calculate. Ask:

• How long does the manual process take?
• How often is it performed?
• Who performs it (and what's their hourly cost)?

Example: Your operations manager spends 5 hours/week on data entry. Fully loaded cost: $35/hour.

Annual savings: 5 × 52 × $35 = $9,100/year

2. Error Reduction (Hard ROI)

Manual processes have error rates. Errors cost money to fix—or cost customers if unfixed.

• What's the current error rate?
• What does each error cost to correct?
• What's the business impact of uncaught errors?

Example: 3% of manual orders have errors. 500 orders/month. Each error costs $25 to fix.

Annual savings: 500 × 12 × 3% × $25 = $4,500/year

3. Opportunity Gains (Soft ROI)

Harder to quantify but often the largest category:

• Faster response times: What's a lead worth? How many more convert with instant follow-up?
• Scalability: Can you handle 10x volume without hiring?
• Employee satisfaction: Reduced burnout, lower turnover
• Customer experience: Faster service, fewer mistakes, better communication

Calculating Costs

One-Time Costs

• Development/implementation: Internal time or consultant fees
• Training: Time for team to learn new system
• Data migration: Moving from old system to new
• Integration work: Connecting to existing tools

Ongoing Costs

• Platform subscriptions: Airtable, Softr, Make.com, n8n cloud
• Hosting: If self-hosting n8n or other tools
• Maintenance: Updates, fixes, improvements
• API costs: If using paid APIs (AI, SMS, etc.)

Real-World ROI Example

Let's calculate ROI for a lead management automation:

The Scenario

A service business manually processes leads: checking emails, entering data into CRM, sending follow-ups, assigning to sales reps. They get 200 leads/month.

Current State Analysis

Task	Time per Lead	Monthly Total	Annual Hours
Check and triage email	2 min	6.7 hrs	80 hrs
Enter into CRM	3 min	10 hrs	120 hrs
Send acknowledgment email	2 min	6.7 hrs	80 hrs
Assign and notify rep	1 min	3.3 hrs	40 hrs
Total	8 min	26.7 hrs	320 hrs

Benefits Calculation

Benefit	Calculation	Annual Value
Time savings (95% automated)	304 hrs × $30/hr	$9,120
Error reduction	5% error rate eliminated × $20/error × 2,400 leads	$2,400
Faster response (est. 10% more conversions)	240 additional customers × $50 avg value	$12,000
Total Annual Benefits		$23,520

Cost Calculation

Cost	Amount
Implementation (one-time)	$3,000
Make.com subscription (annual)	$348
Airtable subscription (annual)	$240
Maintenance estimate (annual)	$500
Year 1 Total	$4,088
Year 2+ Annual	$1,088

ROI Result

Tips for Accurate ROI Calculation

Be Conservative

Underestimate benefits and overestimate costs. If ROI still looks good with conservative numbers, you're safe. Stakeholders trust conservative projections more.

Track Actuals

After implementation, measure real results against projections. This builds credibility for future projects and helps refine your estimation skills.

Include Hidden Costs

Don't forget:

• Time spent learning the new system
• Temporary productivity dip during transition
• Ongoing time for maintenance and improvements

Document Assumptions

Write down every assumption: hourly rates, error rates, conversion improvements. When questioned, you can explain your reasoning.

When ROI Isn't Enough

Sometimes ROI isn't the right metric:

• Compliance requirements: You must automate certain tracking regardless of ROI
• Competitive necessity: Competitors offer features you can't without automation
• Scaling prerequisite: Growth is impossible without automation, making ROI secondary

In these cases, frame the decision as "cost of not doing" rather than "ROI of doing."