AI ROI benchmarks

Ten functions.
No magic number.

These are editable planning scenarios grounded in published research. Each page separates observed evidence from our assumptions, shows the math, and names the work that should stay under human control.

How to read the estimatesModeled value is capacity, not cash, until you redeploy time, avoid cost, or produce more accepted work.Methodology →
  1. 01
    Customer support

    Customer support AI ROI benchmark

    Support has the best direct field evidence in this cluster. Start with agent assist, not an unsupervised bot.

    Modeled annual net value$5,172direct evidence fit
  2. 02
    Sales

    Sales AI ROI benchmark

    The safer case is reclaimed seller time. Revenue lift is too dependent on pipeline quality to use as a default.

    Modeled annual net value$4,488adjacent evidence fit
  3. 03
    Marketing

    Marketing AI ROI benchmark

    Drafting can move faster. Distribution, judgment, and differentiated ideas remain the bottlenecks.

    Modeled annual net value$11,076adjacent evidence fit
  4. 04
    Finance and accounting

    Finance and accounting AI ROI benchmark

    Use AI around the ledger before using it on the ledger. Reviewable analysis is a better starting point than autonomous posting.

    Modeled annual net value$192limited evidence fit
  5. 05
    HR and recruiting

    HR and recruiting AI ROI benchmark

    Administrative assistance is defensible. Candidate ranking creates legal, bias, and data-quality risks that this model excludes.

    Modeled annual net value$2,904adjacent evidence fit
  6. 06
    Operations

    Operations AI ROI benchmark

    The useful layer is explanation and retrieval. Keep execution in deterministic systems with permissions and logs.

    Modeled annual net value$1,488limited evidence fit
  7. 07
    Software development

    Software development AI ROI benchmark

    Coding tasks can accelerate, but code generation is only one slice of delivery. Do not apply a 55.8% task result to the whole engineering budget.

    Modeled annual net value$21,816direct evidence fit
  8. 08
    Professional services

    Professional services AI ROI benchmark

    This category has strong upside and a clear warning: performance can reverse when the model is confidently outside its competence.

    Modeled annual net value$34,344direct evidence fit
  9. 09
    Local service businesses

    Local service business AI ROI benchmark

    The first win is usually faster office response, not replacing dispatchers or technicians.

    Modeled annual net value$108limited evidence fit
  10. 10
    Executive and administrative work

    Executive and administrative AI ROI benchmark

    The economics can work on small time savings because executive attention is expensive. Confidentiality and bad summaries can erase that value quickly.

    Modeled annual net value$4,788adjacent evidence fit