SaaS Metrics
The complete SaaS metrics resource for product managers. Free calculators for every key metric, industry benchmarks, formulas, and guides for building a data-driven SaaS business.
What are SaaS Metrics?
SaaS metrics are the financial and operational KPIs that measure the health of a subscription business. Unlike one-time purchase businesses, SaaS companies need to track recurring revenue, retention, and customer economics over time. The right metrics tell you whether your growth is efficient, your customers are happy, and your unit economics are sustainable.
For product managers, understanding SaaS metrics is essential for making roadmap decisions. Features that improve retention (NRR) are often more valuable than features that drive acquisition. Read our complete metrics guide for a full breakdown, or use the SaaS benchmarks tool to see how you compare.
Key SaaS Concepts
ARR / MRR
Annual and monthly recurring revenue, the foundation of SaaS metrics
Net Revenue Retention (NRR)
Revenue kept from existing customers including expansion
Customer Lifetime Value (LTV)
Total revenue expected from a customer over their lifetime
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
Total cost to acquire a single new customer
Churn Rate
Percentage of customers or revenue lost per period
Net Negative Churn
When expansion revenue exceeds lost revenue
Burn Rate
Monthly cash spend rate for startups
Rule of 40
Growth rate + profit margin should exceed 40%
Unit Economics
Revenue and costs analyzed per customer unit
Free SaaS Metric Calculators
MRR Calculator
Calculate new, expansion, churned, and net MRR
NRR Calculator
Net Revenue Retention with expansion and contraction inputs
LTV Calculator
Customer lifetime value using ARPU and churn rate
LTV:CAC Calculator
Unit economics ratio for acquisition efficiency
Churn Calculator
Customer and revenue churn rates across time periods
Quick Ratio Calculator
Growth efficiency: new + expansion vs churn + contraction
Rule of 40 Calculator
Growth rate + profit margin health check
Runway Calculator
How many months of cash you have left at current burn
SaaS Benchmarks
Compare your metrics against industry benchmarks by stage
ROI Calculator
Calculate return on investment for feature and tool decisions
Get the SaaS Metrics Toolkit
Benchmark reports, metric dashboards, and formula cheat sheets. Delivered weekly.
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Further Reading
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the most important SaaS metrics?
The essential SaaS metrics are MRR (Monthly Recurring Revenue), NRR (Net Revenue Retention), LTV (Customer Lifetime Value), CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost), churn rate, and Rule of 40. Together these tell you whether your business is growing efficiently and retaining revenue.
What is a good Net Revenue Retention (NRR) rate?
For B2B SaaS, 100% NRR means you retain all revenue from existing customers. Best-in-class companies hit 120-140% NRR through expansion revenue. Below 90% signals a retention problem. Above 110% means your existing customers grow faster than you lose them.
What is the Rule of 40?
The Rule of 40 states that a SaaS company's revenue growth rate plus profit margin should exceed 40%. A company growing at 60% with -15% margins scores 45 (good). A company growing at 10% with 20% margins scores 30 (below threshold). It balances growth against profitability.
What LTV:CAC ratio should I target?
An LTV:CAC ratio of 3:1 or higher is considered healthy for SaaS businesses. Below 1:1 means you lose money on every customer. Between 1:1 and 3:1 suggests room to optimize either retention (increase LTV) or acquisition efficiency (reduce CAC). Above 5:1 may indicate underinvestment in growth.
How do I calculate MRR?
MRR = sum of all monthly subscription revenue from active customers. Include new MRR (new customers), expansion MRR (upgrades), and subtract churned MRR (cancellations) and contraction MRR (downgrades). Do not include one-time fees, setup charges, or professional services revenue.
What is the difference between gross churn and net churn?
Gross churn measures only revenue lost from cancellations and downgrades. Net churn subtracts expansion revenue from existing customers. You can have positive gross churn but negative net churn (net negative churn), which means expansion revenue exceeds lost revenue. Net negative churn is the gold standard for SaaS.