Automation ROI calculator
What does automating this process actually save?
Enter the key facts of a recurring process. The calculator instantly shows what it costs you manually today and what automation realistically saves – as a range, not a flattering single number.
The automation ROI calculator estimates how much time and money automating a recurring process saves per year – after deducting maintenance and accounting for how stable the process is.
Your process
Fully loaded ≈ gross wage × 1.3 (incl. social contributions and overhead).
Your result
Range: conservative to realistic. Never the most flattering case.
Manual effort today
170 hrs/year≈ €8,700
Realistically automatable (net, after maintenance)
€3,800 – €5,000/ year
120–130 hrs/year · Automation share 70–80%
Already net of ongoing maintenance.
Payback of implementation
10–28 months
Net value over 3 years
The gap isn't random: without someone maintaining the automation and handling exceptions, its value erodes by 25–40% within 18 months according to industry data. Closing exactly that gap is what a cleanly built and maintained solution does.
Want to know which of your processes pays off the most?
How this tool calculates
- Automation share: 70–85% for normal processes, more only with a very low exception rate – derived from our article on where automation actually pays off.
- Maintenance: 10–40% of implementation cost per year, depending on how stable the rules are – deducted from the gross saving.
- Value erosion: without a named owner, 25–40% value loss within 18 months (industry data) – reflected in the 3-year view.
- Implementation cost: a rough order of magnitude from the complexity, unless you enter your own value.
This calculator provides an estimate as a basis for a decision, not a quote. The actual figures depend on details of your process that we clarify in a conversation.
Frequently asked questions about the calculator
Where do the calculator's assumptions come from?
From our research-based article on where automation actually pays off: automation share 70–85% for normal processes, maintenance 10–40% of implementation cost per year, value erosion 25–40% within 18 months without an owner. The calculator deliberately uses conservative values within these ranges.
Why does the calculator deduct maintenance costs?
Because most ROI calculations forget exactly that – and become too optimistic as a result. An automation isn't a one-off project; it depends on interfaces, formats and systems that change. Ignoring these ongoing costs makes the numbers look richer than they are. That's why they're priced in from the start.
What does the 3-year view with and without an owner mean?
It shows perhaps the most important difference: an automation without someone to maintain it and handle exceptions loses value over time. With a cleanly built, maintained solution, the benefit holds. The distance between the two curves is the real value of good implementation.
What do I do with the result?
Use it as an order of magnitude to decide whether a closer look is worth it. If the calculator shows a clear benefit, the AI Opportunity Scan is the next step: it prioritises which of your processes truly pays off first. If it shows little, it saves you a bad investment.