Why app marketers should measure return on experience (ROX)

Mobile app success depends on measurable experiences as much as on financial returns. Traditional return on investment (ROI) often shows revenue relative to spend, but it can overlook how experience changes influence retention, engagement, or lifetime value (LTV).

Return on experience (ROX) addresses this by connecting customer experience investments to measurable business performance. Forrester’s 2024 US CX Index reports that “customer-obsessed” organizations saw 41% faster revenue growth and 51% better retention than others. McKinsey analysis also shows that CX leaders achieved more than double the revenue growth of “CX laggards”. Even a minor CX improvement can add substantial revenue through reduced churn and increased engagement.

In this article, we explain what ROX means for mobile marketers, how it differs from ROI, the key metrics to track, and how Adjust helps measure and improve it.

Return on experience (ROX) is a metric that quantifies the value created by customer experience improvements. It captures how factors such as app speed, onboarding design, checkout flow, and personalization influence measurable outcomes including retention, engagement, conversion, and LTV.

For mobile marketers, measuring ROX helps teams identify which parts of the journey create the most long-term value and prioritize improvements that strengthen both satisfaction and results.

Return on investment and return on experience measure different but complementary aspects of performance. ROI focuses on the efficiency of financial spend, while ROX focuses on the business impact of experience quality.

Measuring ROX turns customer experience into a business metric that leaders across marketing, product, and operations can act on. It connects usability, satisfaction, and engagement to financial outcomes, enabling teams to make smarter, aligned decisions.

ROX also helps prioritize investment by highlighting which parts of the user journey deliver the greatest long-term value. Instead of relying solely on ROI from individual campaigns, teams can focus on the changes that move the needle across the entire experience.

By unifying data across functions, including design, engineering, marketing, and support, ROX fosters cross-functional alignment around shared goals. It provides a common language for improving customer experience and tracking the results collaboratively.

Most importantly, ROX shifts the focus from short-term wins to sustained growth. By quantifying how experience drives loyalty and lifetime value, it empowers brands to reduce dependence on acquisition and strengthen customer relationships.

This reinforcing effect is reflected in PwC’s concept of a “virtuous cycle,” where emotional, behavioral, and financial factors build on one another to increase ROX over time.

ROX can be calculated with a simple formula:

Not every KPI has the same weight in ROX. To measure return on experience effectively, it helps to separate customer experience metrics (how users feel) from experience KPIs for apps (what users do). Both types are essential for building a complete view of customer experience ROI.

Customer experience metrics

Customer effort score (CES), customer satisfaction (CSAT), and net promoter score (NPS)

These three survey-based metrics capture different aspects of the user experience. CES indicates how easy it is for users to complete tasks such as signing up or making a purchase. CSAT reflects immediate satisfaction after an interaction like completing a checkout or receiving support. NPS measures long-term loyalty by asking how likely users are to recommend the app to others. Together, these scores provide a rounded view of ease, satisfaction, and advocacy.

Customer loyalty and sentiment

Customer loyalty and sentiment are expressed through ratings, reviews, and direct feedback. These signals reveal the emotional connection users feel toward the app and often predict retention and organic growth through advocacy.

Experience KPIs for apps

Lifetime value (LTV)

Customer lifetime value (LTV) represents the total revenue a user generates during their relationship with the app. Improvements that reduce churn or increase engagement generally raise LTV and provide a clear link between experience and business value.

Retention and churn

Retention rates (day 1, day 7, day 30) show whether users continue to find value in the app, while churn reflects the percentage of users who stop using it over a given period. Tracking both provides a balanced view of long-term user behavior.

Read more in our complete guide to user retention. 

Engagement

Engagement is measured through indicators such as session frequency and session depth. High engagement suggests that users find ongoing value, which often leads to higher retention and revenue.

Conversion rate

Conversion rate tracks the percentage of users who complete a desired action, such as signing up, subscribing, or making a purchase. Reducing friction and clarifying calls to action typically improves this metric.

Time to value (TTV)

Time to value measures how quickly new users reach the app’s core benefit, such as completing a first lesson in an education app. A shorter TTV strongly correlates with higher retention.

App performance

App performance metrics, including load time, responsiveness, and crash rate, directly affect user satisfaction and retention. Poor performance is one of the most common reasons users abandon apps.

Click through rate (CTR)

Click through rate measures how often users engage with in-app prompts, offers, or messages. Higher CTR indicates effective design and targeting and often supports higher conversion.

The metrics outlined above play out differently across app categories. Looking at specific verticals shows how ROX translates into measurable outcomes.

Gaming

Metrics like retention are critical in most gaming subverticals. Streamlined tutorials and stable performance often improve early retention, while engagement features like rewards or social mechanics extend play sessions. As both metrics increase, opportunities for in-app purchases (IAPs) and ad revenue also increase.

E-commerce

Conversion rate and CSAT are central to e-commerce apps. Simplifying account creation, offering guest checkout, and optimizing payment flows reduce friction and raise conversion. Higher CSAT scores often correlate with more repeat purchases and larger order values, reinforcing LTV.

Fintech

In fintech, onboarding and trust indicators are high priority. Metrics like churn and verified account completions reflect how well users are guided through setup. Secure yet simple flows, combined with transparent communication and responsive support, reduce drop-off and strengthen retention.

Artificial intelligence is redefining how marketers measure and improve ROX. With advances in data modeling, adaptive systems, and language processing, AI now plays a critical role in turning user experience into a dynamic, forward-looking business metric. Rather than relying solely on historical KPIs, brands can use AI-powered insights to anticipate behaviors, optimize interactions in real time, and quantify emotional responses, making ROX a richer, more strategic tool.

Predictive analytics, powered by behavioral data, allows marketers to forecast outcomes like churn, conversion probability, and LTV. These insights help teams intervene before value is lost. For example, marketers can proactively engage users at risk of disengagement or tailor offers based on likely purchasing intent. 

Generative AI (GenAI) is also transforming in-app personalization. It can enable shopping and service flows to adapt on the fly, serving content, product recommendations, or messaging that aligns with individual preferences and context. This not only improves engagement but ties the quality of personalized experiences directly to monetization outcomes, strengthening the link between user satisfaction and business value.

At the same time, sentiment-aware systems are expanding what ROX can capture. AI is starting to parse emotional signals from reviews, support chats, and voice interactions, identifying cues like frustration, delight, or trust. By integrating these emotional insights into CX strategies, companies can respond more empathetically and fine-tune the experience in ways that foster loyalty. This emotional intelligence adds a new layer to ROX, quantifying not just what users do, but how they feel, and why it matters.

ROX is only valuable if it can be measured consistently and connected to business outcomes. Adjust makes this possible with accurate attribution and unified analytics that capture user journeys across devices and channels. This visibility shows how experience improvements influence retention, LTV, and revenue.

Adjust Growth Copilot takes this a step further by making answers to data related questions accessible in plain language. Marketers can ask real business questions and receive clear, actionable answers in real time, reducing complexity and helping teams focus on the changes that deliver the greatest impact.

By combining attribution accuracy with AI-driven capabilities, Adjust helps translate complex data into insights that guide strategy, align teams, and support sustainable app growth.

Ready to grow your app business? Request a demo today to find out how Adjust supports your goals.