How to calculate the ROI of an AI support agent
The formula
Monthly value = tickets resolved by the AI x average handle time (hours) x fully loaded agent cost per hour
Then subtract your AskVault plan price ($39, $99 or $249 a month on Starter, Growth or Business).
You need four inputs:
- Monthly ticket volume reaching your team today.
- Average handle time per ticket, in minutes.
- Fully loaded agent cost per hour, including salary, benefits and tools.
- The share of tickets the AI resolves without a person. This is the number that matters most, and the one you should measure rather than guess.
A worked example
Suppose a team gets 2,000 tickets a month, spends 8 minutes on each, and an agent costs $30 an hour. If the AI resolved 20% of tickets:
- 2,000 x 20% = 400 tickets resolved
- 400 x 8 minutes = 3,200 minutes, about 53 hours
- 53 hours x $30 = about $1,600 a month
- Minus AskVault Growth at $99 = about $1,500 a month
The 20% is an assumption chosen to show the arithmetic, not a prediction. Change it to 10% or 40% and the result scales in a straight line, which is why measuring your real rate matters more than any example.
How to measure your real resolution rate
- Put AskVault on your site, on the Free plan, or on the paid plan you intend to buy if you want to test messaging channels.
- After two to four weeks, count the conversations that ended without a handoff to a person.
- Spot-check a sample of them to confirm the customer actually got a correct answer, not just a reply.
- Use that share as the fourth input above.
The analytics dashboard shows conversation volume, handoffs and unanswered questions to help with steps 2 and 3. An ROI estimator in the dashboard lets you plug in your own numbers; it is an estimate, not a measurement.
Benefits that are harder to price
- Answers outside office hours, so a midnight question does not wait until morning.
- Fewer repeat questions for your team, which leaves time for the hard ones.
- A list of content gaps from the questions the AI could not answer, in AI Insights.
Count these only if you can put a defensible number on them.
Common mistakes
Using someone else's deflection figure. Vendor benchmarks, including ours if we ever publish one, will not match your content and customers.
Counting replies as resolutions. A conversation is only resolved if the customer got what they needed.
Forgetting setup time. Include the hours you spend adding content and testing.
FAQ
What resolution rate should I expect?
We do not publish one. Measure it on your own conversations.
How soon can I measure it?
After a few weeks of real traffic, once you have enough conversations to spot-check.
Does the plan price change with volume?
Only if you move plans or buy a top-up pack. There are no per-seat or overage fees. See the pricing breakdown.