What Is POAS (Profit on Ad Spend) in Print-on-Demand?

Still using spreadsheets? See our breakdown: Why Your Print-on-Demand Store Isn’t as Profitable as You Think. It shows how hidden costs eat margins. If you want to track live POAS with no manual math, check PodVector. For external context, Google Ads has a useful reference on conversion value metrics.

What Is POAS?

POAS means Profit on Ad Spend. It tells you how much profit you make for each dollar of ad spend, not just how much revenue came in. It’s the next level up from ROAS and a much more accurate way to measure ad efficiency in POD.

Instead of asking “How many sales did my ad generate?” POAS asks, “Did I actually make money after all costs?”

POAS Formula

The formula for POAS is:

POAS = Profit ÷ Ad Spend

Where profit = Revenue – (COGS + shipping + transaction fees + refunds + ad spend).

This means POAS takes into account everything that eats into margins.

POAS Example for POD Sellers

Imagine you run a $1,000 Facebook ad campaign for your POD hoodie store:

• Revenue: $4,000 from 80 orders
• COGS + shipping: $2,000
• Transaction fees: $120
• Refunds: $200
• Ad spend: $1,000

Profit = $4,000 – ($2,000 + $120 + $200 + $1,000) = $680

POAS = $680 ÷ $1,000 = 0.68

That means for every $1 spent on ads, you only earned $0.68 in profit — not sustainable long-term. If your POAS were 2.0, it would mean every $1 in ads delivered $2 in profit, a great result.

POAS vs ROAS

In short: ROAS tells you about sales, POAS tells you about survival.

Why POAS Matters More Than ROAS in POD

In print-on-demand, margins are thinner than traditional retail. A campaign can look great on ROAS but be a disaster in profit. For example:

• A ROAS of 3.0 might look solid, but if COGS and shipping eat 70% of sales, you could still lose money.
• Refunds and fees can quietly erase “profitable” campaigns when only ROAS is tracked.
• POD sellers often lack large cash reserves or credit lines, so profit efficiency matters more than growth vanity metrics.

That’s why the smartest POD sellers focus on POAS as their north star metric for ads.

What’s a Good POAS?

Benchmarks vary by niche and product pricing, but here are practical targets:

• Breakeven POAS: 1.0 (you make $1 profit for every $1 in ads — anything lower loses money).
• Healthy POAS: 1.5–2.0. Enough buffer to cover growth, reinvestment, and operating profit margin of 5–10%.
• Excellent POAS: 2.5+. High-margin products, optimized ads, and efficient operations usually produce this level.

Unlike ROAS, which often looks “inflated,” POAS is realistic. It shows how much you can safely reinvest in ads without running out of cash.

How to Track POAS in Your Workflow

1. Step 1: Start with ad reports. Export spend from Meta, TikTok, or Google.
2. Step 2: Pull costs. Get COGS and shipping from Printify/Printful.
3. Step 3: Add fees & refunds. Include Shopify/PayPal fees and returns.
4. Step 4: Calculate profit. Subtract all costs from revenue.
5. Step 5: Divide profit by ad spend. That’s your POAS.

You can run this weekly in spreadsheets. Or you can skip the manual work: PodVector automatically tracks POAS, ROAS, and profit margins in real time across all channels.

FAQs

What’s the difference between POAS and ROAS?

ROAS = revenue ÷ ad spend. POAS = profit ÷ ad spend. ROAS can mislead, while POAS shows true profitability.

Is POAS better than ROI?

POAS is a marketing efficiency metric. ROI is broader, covering all investments. For POD ads, POAS is more tactical and useful.

What’s the fastest way to improve POAS?

Raise AOV with bundles, cut high-refund products, and lower ad spend on low-margin items. These improve profit per dollar spent.

Can you scale with low POAS?

Not sustainably. Scaling at low or negative POAS drains cash, even if ROAS looks fine.

How often should I check POAS?

Weekly is safe. During Q4 or ad-heavy campaigns, daily checks help you react faster.