--- title: "CMMS ROI Calculator" description: "Estimate year-one net savings, ROI, and simple payback for a maintenance software purchase, from your own costs and savings." --- [Back to Tools](/tools/) Tool # CMMS ROI Calculator Estimate year-one net savings, ROI, and simple payback for a maintenance software purchase, from your own costs and savings. [Get Started Free](https://app.fixahead.com/signup) Example only. The starting values are invented. Costs Setup fee ($, once) Enter 0 or more The setup or implementation fee, including any implementation consultant, any add-on module's setup fee, and sales tax on them. Setup staff hours (hours, once) Enter 0 or more The hours your staff spend on training, data entry, and choosing a vendor. Software cost ($ a year) Enter 0 or more Subscription or license fees, annual maintenance, upgrades, and add-on module fees for the year, with sales tax. Upkeep hours (hours a week) Enter 0 or more The hours your staff spend each week keeping the system in use. Weeks worked (weeks a year) Enter 0 or more The weeks in the year that the upkeep and paperwork hours are counted over. Loaded labor rate ($ an hour) Enter 0 or more Wages plus benefits and payroll costs. It applies to every staff hour on this page. Benefits Downtime hours avoided (hours a year) Enter 0 or more The unplanned downtime you expect to prevent. Downtime cost ($ an hour) Enter 0 or more The idle labor and equipment cost of a stop, plus the margin lost on output you would have sold. Leave overtime out of this figure; it has its own line. Overtime reduced ($ a year) Enter 0 or more The overtime you expect to stop paying. Parts and materials reduced ($ a year) Enter 0 or more The drop in what you spend on parts and materials. Inventory reduced ($, once) Enter 0 or more The cash freed by holding less stock. Enter it once, not as a yearly saving. The page counts its yearly interest. Interest rate on inventory cash (% a year) Enter 0 or more The interest you would earn on that cash. Paperwork hours saved (hours a week) Enter 0 or more The hours no longer spent on paperwork and manual tracking. Count them as cash only where that time is put to paid work or staff hours come down. Otherwise enter zero. Year-one net savings $6,260 Yearly benefits less year-one costs. ROI 79% Year-one net savings as a share of year-one costs. Simple payback 3.9 months The months the savings take to recover the one-time costs. Year-one net savings $6,260 ROI 79% Simple payback 3.9 months This calculator takes what a maintenance software purchase costs and what you expect it to save, and shows the first year’s net savings, the return, and the months the one-time costs take to pay back. Every figure is one you enter. ## Formula - One-time costs = setup fee + setup staff hours × loaded labor rate - Yearly costs = software cost + upkeep hours per week × weeks worked × loaded labor rate - Yearly benefits = downtime hours avoided × downtime cost + overtime reduced + parts and materials reduced + inventory reduced × interest rate + paperwork hours saved per week × weeks worked × loaded labor rate - Year-one costs = one-time costs + yearly costs - Year-one net savings = yearly benefits − year-one costs - ROI = (yearly benefits − year-one costs) ÷ year-one costs - Simple payback in months = one-time costs ÷ ((yearly benefits − yearly costs) ÷ 12) Simple payback assumes the benefits and recurring costs arrive evenly through the year. It ignores everything after the payback month, so read it as a first screen, not a forecast. ## Source NIST Handbook 135, *Life Cycle Costing Manual for the Federal Energy Management Program*, section 6.4: simple payback is the time for cumulative savings, net of costs, to recover the initial investment. It is undiscounted, and NIST calls it a screening measure. U.S. Department of Energy, Federal Energy Management Program, *Operations & Maintenance Best Practices Guide*, chapter 4: the cost and benefit lines below. NIST, *The Costs and Benefits of Advanced Maintenance in Manufacturing* (NIST AMS 100-18): downtime includes the capital and labor cost of a stop, and the revenue lost to it. Plant Services, David Berger, P.Eng., “How to prepare a cost justification document using your CMMS”: inventory is worth the cash freed times the interest rate, and staff time is cash only when headcount changes. ## Worked example Example only. The starting values and every figure are invented. Starting values: - Setup fee: $2,000 - Setup staff hours: 24 - Software cost: $3,000 a year - Upkeep hours: 1 a week - Weeks worked: 48 a year - Loaded labor rate: $40 an hour - Downtime hours avoided: 12 a year - Downtime cost: $400 an hour - Overtime reduced: $2,000 a year - Parts and materials reduced: $3,000 a year - Inventory reduced: $10,000 - Interest rate on inventory cash: 5% a year - Paperwork hours saved: 2 a week The example counts the paperwork hours as cash, so it assumes that time is put to paid work. One-time costs: $2,000 + 24 × $40 = $2,960 Yearly costs: $3,000 + 1 × 48 × $40 = $4,920 Year-one costs: $2,960 + $4,920 = $7,880 Yearly benefits: - Downtime: 12 × $400 = $4,800 - Overtime: $2,000 - Parts and materials: $3,000 - Inventory: $10,000 × 5% = $500 - Paperwork: 2 × 48 × $40 = $3,840 - Total: $14,140 Results: - Year-one net savings: $14,140 − $7,880 = **$6,260** - ROI: $6,260 ÷ $7,880 = **79%** - Simple payback: $2,960 ÷ (($14,140 − $4,920) ÷ 12) = **3.9 months** ## Ready to get ahead of breakdowns? Start free. No credit card required. [Get Started Free](https://app.fixahead.com/signup) [Book a Demo](https://savvycal.com/fixahead/30-minutes-demo)