Internal tool ROI calculator
Enter who will use the tool and how much time it saves them each day, and see the payback period and the net result.
Free, runs in your browser, no sign-up. Updated 2026-10-25.
Result
Saves 175 hours and $6,600 net a month. Pays back in 6.8 months; net $192,600 over 3 years. With the saving 25% lower: 9.3 months.
- Hours saved / month
- 175
- Time saving / month
- $7,000
- Net saving / month
- $6,600
- ROI over 3 years
- 324%
| Case | Net / month | Payback | Net over 3 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saving 25% lower | $4,850 | 9.3 months | $129,600 |
| Expected | $6,600 | 6.8 months | $192,600 |
| Saving 25% higher | $8,350 | 5.4 months | $255,600 |
The defaults are example inputs, not benchmarks. Replace them with your own numbers.
Assumptions
Every number the result depends on, and where it comes from. Change any value and the result updates.
| Assumption | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Working days per month | days | OceanLab assumption. About 252 working days a year divided by 12. Change it for your country and calendar.Reviewed 2026-10-25 |
| Horizon | months | OceanLab assumption. Three years, a common planning horizon for internal software.Reviewed 2026-10-25 |
| Sensitivity range | 25 % | OceanLab assumption. The saving is shown 25% lower and higher, because time saved is the least certain input.Reviewed 2026-10-25 |
Send this estimate to OceanLab
Opens an email to OceanLab with this result and a link to your inputs. Nothing is sent until you press send, and there is no sign-up.
How this is calculated
Hours saved per month = people × minutes saved per person per day × working days ÷ 60.
Net monthly saving = hours saved × loaded hourly cost + errors avoided − running cost. Payback = build cost ÷ net monthly saving.
The sensitivity row repeats the result with the saving 25% lower and higher, because time saved is the least certain input.
The defaults are example inputs, not benchmarks.
Questions about this tool
How do I measure minutes saved?
Time the task today for a few people over a week: spreadsheets, copy-paste, status chasing. Then estimate what the tool removes. Be conservative.
Why show a sensitivity row?
Time saved is usually an estimate. If the build still pays back with the saving 25% lower, the case is robust.
What is a loaded hourly cost?
Salary plus benefits, taxes, equipment and overhead, divided by productive hours. It is higher than the hourly wage.
Is anything I enter sent anywhere?
No. The tool runs in your browser and there is no sign-up. Nothing leaves the page unless you choose to email your result to OceanLab.
Other free tools
OceanLab product builds like this
Products OceanLab designed and built. Each case study covers the screens, the scope and the rules it was built for.
Kleidi - SaaS Admin Console with Consented Support Access and a Full Audit Trail
Designed and built a clickable internal admin console for an Athens SaaS company that sells housekeeping software to EU hotels: find any tenant and see everything about it on one page, enter a customer's workspace only with their consent, work GDPR data requests on the clock, and give staff elevated rights only for a limited window with someone else's approval.
Viti - IT Service Desk for a Nordic Engineering Firm
Designed and built a clickable IT service desk for a Reykjavík engineering consultancy with five offices in three countries: ticket queues with SLA clocks on each office's hours, service requests with approval chains, a major incident room that keeps every office informed, and joiner and leaver checklists triggered from HR.
Rovás - Scan-First Asset and Inventory Tracker for a Film Equipment Rental House
Designed and built a clickable asset and inventory tracker for a Budapest camera, lighting and grip rental house: one register of every serialised lens, light and laptop with its location, holder, condition and book value, reservations from hold to closed, and a dispatch desk where every item is scanned out and back in.
Dawuro - Approval Workflow Engine for a Ghanaian Public University
Designed and built a clickable approval workflow engine for a public university in Accra: request forms routed by amount, cost centre and the department hierarchy, an approvals inbox and two-tap decision screen designed phone first, delegation and out-of-office cover, and a route and history on every request that shows who approved what, and when.
Cahow - Tamper-Evident Audit Log and Viewer for a Bermuda Reinsurer
Designed and built a clickable audit log viewer for a Bermuda property and casualty reinsurer: every internal system sends its events to one hash-chained store, and compliance, security, internal audit and legal search them, follow a person or a record, triage unusual behaviour and prove nothing was changed.
