Conversion Rate
The percentage of visitors who complete a desired action (purchase, signup, etc.).
Conversion Rate is the percentage of users who complete a desired action (a "conversion") out of the total number of users who had the opportunity to take that action. Conversion Rate = (Conversions / Total Visitors) × 100%. Conversions can be macro (purchase, subscription) or micro (newsletter signup, download, enquiry). Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO) is the practice of systematically improving conversion rates.
Why Conversion Rate Matters
Improving conversion rate is often the most cost-effective way to grow revenue without increasing traffic or ad spend. A 2× improvement in conversion rate doubles revenue with the same traffic. Even small CRO improvements compound over time.
Real-World Example
An e-commerce site has 10,000 monthly visitors and 200 sales. Conversion rate = 2%. If they improve to 3% through better UX and A/B testing, monthly sales increase to 300 — a 50% revenue boost with no extra traffic cost.
Conversion Rate FAQs
What is a good conversion rate?
Average e-commerce conversion rates are 1–4%. Lead generation sites typically see 5–15%. SaaS free trial signups: 2–10%. Good CRO is relative — always benchmark against your own historical performance and industry averages.
Related Terms
CTR
Click-Through Rate — the percentage of people who click on a link after seeing it.
Bounce Rate
The percentage of visitors who leave a website after viewing only one page.
Lead Generation
The process of attracting and capturing interest from potential customers.
A/B Testing
Comparing two versions of a page, email, or ad to determine which performs better.
Conversion Rate Optimization
The systematic process of increasing the percentage of visitors who take a desired action.