Gross ROAS vs. Net Profit: Why UA and Finance Speak Different Languages
Bruno Sista · May 20, 2026 · 3:21
UA teams optimise on gross ROAS. Finance only cares about net profit. That gap is one of the most expensive misalignments in mobile growth, and most teams try to paper over it with a single flat gross-to-net ratio across their entire portfolio. The problem: not all campaigns convert the same way.
Kohort's lead UA analyst Bruno Sista breaks down why a one-size-fits-all ratio quietly distorts your decisions. Revenue mix varies: the IAA/IAP split differs campaign by campaign. Store fees aren't evenly distributed: IAP-heavy campaigns get hit with 30% platform fees that IAA campaigns avoid entirely. Tax rates shift with geography: where your revenue comes from changes what you actually keep.
Two campaigns with identical gross ROAS can have wildly different net realities. Ktrl acts as the Rosetta Stone between UA and Finance, letting UA managers optimise for true post-tax, post-fee profitability without relaunching campaigns or writing a line of code.
