Conversion rate
Short definition
Conversion rate measures the share of website visitors who complete the action a page was built for.
The rate is calculated by dividing the number of conversions by the number of visits, expressed as a percentage. What counts as a conversion depends on the business: a purchase on a shop, a form submission or a call on a service site. At the same traffic volume, a higher conversion rate means marketing spend is working harder.
The figure rarely stands alone; teams look at which channel, which page and which device produced the conversion. A drop on mobile usually points to page speed or a long form, a drop on desktop often points to unclear positioning. Conversion rate optimisation tests small, measurable changes on a page based on this breakdown.
It is often confused with click-through rate: CTR shows how much interest an advert generated, conversion rate shows how well that interest turned into a result. Budget decisions need both read together.
Why it matters
Conversion rate shows whether a website is actually doing its job. Extra traffic on its own does not create revenue, a low conversion rate just means more visitors reach the same dead end. For an owner, it is the basis for every spending decision.
Illustrative example
When a flooring manufacturer cut its quote form from three steps to one, conversion rate rose noticeably on the same traffic, bringing in more quote requests without any change to advertising spend.
