Conversion rate: definition, formula and optimisation
Updated on February 22, 2026
Quick definition
The conversion rate is the percentage of visitors to a site or page who complete a defined goal action — purchase, sign-up, download, demo request. It is the central indicator for measuring how effectively a website turns its visitors into customers or leads, and the most direct lever on profitability without increasing acquisition budget.
How it works
Formula
Conversion rate = (Number of conversions / Number of visitors or sessions) × 100
Example: 200 purchases for 10,000 visitors = conversion rate of 2%
The definition of a conversion depends entirely on your goals: it can be a purchase (macro-conversion), a newsletter sign-up, a white-paper download, a click on a call button or a demo request (micro-conversion).
Industry benchmarks vary enormously:
- E-commerce: average of 1–3%
- B2B SaaS: 3–5% for free trials
- Specialised landing pages: 10–25%
It is essential to distinguish the site's overall conversion rate from the rate by traffic source, device and segment: these granularities reveal very different optimisation opportunities.
CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization) is the discipline that aims to systematically improve this rate through behavioural analysis, heatmaps and A/B tests.
Why it matters
The conversion rate is the most direct business indicator for measuring a website's profitability.
Doubling your conversion rate amounts to doubling revenue without increasing your acquisition budget — that is why growth and e-commerce teams place such importance on it.
How to improve or use it
- 1Analyse the user journey with heatmaps and session recordings to identify friction points.
- 2Optimise your high-traffic pages first (product page, landing page, checkout).
- 3Simplify forms: each removed field increases the completion rate.
- 4Strengthen reassurance elements (customer reviews, certifications, return policy).
- 5Improve loading speed — each additional second reduces conversions.
- 6Test your hypotheses with A/B tests before deploying definitive changes.
With Sublim
Sublim lets you define custom conversion goals and track them without consent cookies thanks to a no-persistent-identifier approach. You analyse your conversion rates by UTM source, device and country directly in the dashboard, in full compliance with GDPR.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between macro-conversion and micro-conversion?
A macro-conversion is the main goal of your site (purchase, demo request, contract signing). A micro-conversion is an intermediate step that signals growing interest (newsletter sign-up, guide download, add to cart). Tracking micro-conversions allows the sales funnel to be optimised even before macro-conversions improve.
How do you calculate the conversion rate of a sales funnel?
For a multi-step funnel, calculate the conversion rate of each step separately: (users moving to the next step / users at the current step) × 100. For example, if 1,000 users add to the cart, 600 initiate the checkout and 200 complete the purchase, the conversion rates per step are respectively 60% and 33%.
Is a 2% conversion rate good?
It depends entirely on the sector and type of site. For a generalist e-commerce site, 2% is in the average. For a niche site or a premium offering, 1% can be excellent. The most important thing is to track your evolution over time and compare yourself to your own past performance rather than to generic benchmarks.
Related terms
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