Cybersecurity ROI Calculator

What this calculator estimates

Estimate expected financial ROI from a cybersecurity investment. The calculation runs locally in your browser and is intended for planning and comparison.

How to use it

Enter the requested values, select Calculate, review the headline result and supporting figures, then change one input at a time to compare another scenario.

How the calculation works

Expected annual loss is incident probability times loss severity; the selected risk reduction produces expected avoided loss, compared with program cost.

Input checklist

The Cybersecurity ROI Calculator uses the values shown in its form. Before calculating, check each input independently so an incorrect unit or time period does not carry through to the final result.

• Annual probability of a significant incident (%): verify that this value uses the unit, period, and definition shown by the calculator.
• Estimated financial loss per incident ($): verify that this value uses the unit, period, and definition shown by the calculator.
• Expected risk reduction from investment (%): verify that this value uses the unit, period, and definition shown by the calculator.
• Annual cybersecurity program cost ($): verify that this value uses the unit, period, and definition shown by the calculator.
• One-time implementation cost ($): verify that this value uses the unit, period, and definition shown by the calculator.

Practical interpretation

Use the Cybersecurity ROI Calculator result as the answer to the specific inputs entered, not as a universal value. The calculation currently described on this page is: Expected annual loss is incident probability times loss severity; the selected risk reduction produces expected avoided loss, compared with program cost. Change one important input at a time when comparing scenarios so you can see which assumption actually drives the difference.

Checks before relying on the result

Business results depend on accounting definitions, reporting periods, pricing, operating conditions, and which costs or revenues are included in the inputs. Recalculate when a key value changes, and keep the original inputs with the result if you need to reproduce or compare the calculation later.

Important limitations

Cyber risk is uncertain and correlated. Regulatory, reputational, operational and catastrophic losses may exceed entered values.

Frequently asked questions