The 3x rule: how much a roofing company should spend to win one roof
A simple rule for roofers to set a marketing budget per signed roof, per sit-down and per lead from your own ticket, margin and close rate, with examples.
Roofer removing old asphalt shingles during a residential roof replacement. Illustrative photo: Zohair Mirza / Unsplash
The 3x rule says that everything it costs you in marketing to win a roof should stay under one third of the gross profit that roof brings. If a roof leaves $6,000 in gross profit, you can spend up to about $2,000 in marketing (ads, agency, leads, everything) to win it, and still make three times what you spent.
It is a planning rule, not a law. But it turns vague questions like “is $150 a lead expensive?” into clear answers based on your own numbers.
The formula
- Gross profit per roof = average ticket × gross margin.
- Max marketing per signed roof = gross profit ÷ 3.
- Max marketing per sit-down = max per roof × close rate.
- Max per lead (optional) = max per sit-down × the share of leads that turn into sit-downs.
Try it with your own numbers in the calculator.
Worked examples
These are examples to show the math, not industry averages. Plug in your own ticket, margin and close rate.
| Roofing job | Average ticket | Margin | Gross profit | Max per roof (3x) | Close rate | Max per sit-down |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smaller reroof | $10,000 | 35% | $3,500 | $1,167 | 30% | $350 |
| Typical retail reroof | $14,000 | 35% | $4,900 | $1,633 | 30% | $490 |
| Larger reroof | $25,000 | 30% | $7,500 | $2,500 | 25% | $625 |
Why three?
Three to one is the floor most operators and investors use for what a customer brings in gross profit against what it cost to win them. Below 3x, marketing eats too much of the profit once you count overhead, callbacks and warranty work. Between 3x and 5x the channel pays and you keep investing. Above 5x you usually want more volume, not less. And a roof is rarely the last job: referrals, gutters and the next roof are upside the rule does not count.
How to use it
- Compare offers. Turn any pricing (per lead, per appointment, retainer) into cost per signed roof and check it against your 3x ceiling.
- Set targets. Give your marketing a maximum cost per sit-down, not a vague “get us more leads”.
- Fix the right thing. If your cost per sit-down is over the ceiling, the problem might be the ads, but it is often follow-up speed or show rate. See response time and show rate.
How Booked Contractor uses the 3x rule
We set each roofing client’s price per sit-down from their real ticket, margin and close rate so they make at least 3 times what they spend with us, ads included, and we review it after 30 days with real numbers. See pricing.
Related: How much do roofing leads cost · Pay per lead vs pay per appointment · 3x rule calculator
David Sierra is the founder of Booked Contractor. In 10+ years of digital marketing and lead generation he has worked with 300+ clients, generated thousands of qualified sales calls and invested more than US$30M in ads.