SaaS Lifetime Value Calculator
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What is Customer Lifetime Value (LTV)?
A browser-based SaaS unit economics calculator for subscription businesses. Customer Lifetime Value (LTV) measures the total net revenue a SaaS company earns from one subscriber over their full subscription lifecycle. Formula: LTV = ARPU × Gross Margin ÷ Monthly Churn Rate. A healthy SaaS business targets an LTV:CAC ratio of 3:1 or higher — meaning acquisition costs are recovered three times over the customer's lifetime.
How the Calculator Works
Input Fields Explained
Learn what each input field means and its typical range.
| Input | Description | Typical Range |
|---|---|---|
| ARPU | Average monthly revenue per user | $10 – $10K+ |
| Gross Margin | Revenue minus direct costs | 65 – 85% |
| Monthly Churn | Customers canceling each month | 1 – 12% |
| CAC | Cost to acquire one customer | $25 – $15K+ |
| Net Revenue Expansion | Monthly cumulative revenue change per customer (±) | -$20 – $50+ |
Output Metrics & Formulas
| Metric | Formula |
|---|---|
| Monthly Gross Margin | ARPU × Gross Margin % |
| Customer Lifespan | 1 ÷ Monthly Churn Rate |
| LTV | ARPU × Gross Margin ÷ Churn |
| LTV:CAC | LTV ÷ CAC |
| CAC Payback | Churn-adjusted cumulative margin interpolation |
| Annual Churn | 1 − (1 − Monthly Churn)¹² |
When Net Revenue Expansion is set, the calculator automatically switches to a model where each customer's revenue grows cumulatively each month.
Example Calculation
B2B SaaS example: ARPU $100, 80% margin, 5% churn, $200 CAC
- Monthly Gross Margin = $100 × 0.80 = $80
- Customer Lifespan = 1 ÷ 0.05 = 20 months
- LTV = $80 × 20 = $1,600
- LTV:CAC = $1,600 ÷ $200 = 8:1
- CAC Payback = $200 ÷ $80 = 2.5 months
LTV Benchmarks by Industry (2026)
Use these benchmarks to compare your results after calculating your LTV above. All figures are based on median values across industry reports and may vary by region and business maturity.
SaaS (SMB)
| Segment | Monthly Price | Avg Churn | Typical LTV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self-Serve | $25 – $100/mo | 4 – 7% | $300 – $1,500 |
| Sales-Assisted | $100 – $500/mo | 3 – 5% | $1,000 – $6,000 |
For SMB SaaS, maximizing LTV depends on keeping monthly churn below 5% while minimizing CAC through self-serve onboarding.
SaaS (Enterprise)
| Segment | Monthly Price | Avg Churn | Typical LTV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mid-Market | $500 – $5K/mo | 2 – 3% | $50,000 – $150,000 |
| Enterprise | $5K+/mo | 0.5 – 1.5% | $300,000 – $1M+ |
Enterprise SaaS achieves 10–100× higher LTV than SMB through annual contracts and deep workflow integration that drive churn below 2%.
E-commerce / DTC
| Segment | Avg Order | Repeat Rate | Typical LTV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fast Fashion | $40 – $80 | 2 – 3×/yr | $150 – $300 |
| Premium Beauty | $60 – $120 | 3 – 5×/yr | $250 – $750 |
| Health Supplements (Subscription) | $40 – $70 | 4 – 8×/yr | $300 – $1,000 |
Subscription-based DTC brands (supplements, skincare) achieve 2–3× higher LTV than one-time purchase models at similar price points.
Marketplace / Platform
| Segment | Take Rate | Avg Churn | Typical LTV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freelance / Services | 10 – 20% | 5 – 8% | $500 – $3,000 |
| Product Marketplace | 5 – 15% | 4 – 7% | $800 – $5,000 |
Marketplaces with built-in payments and dispute resolution retain sellers 40% longer than listing-only platforms.
Mobile App (B2C)
| Segment | Monthly Price | Avg Churn | Typical LTV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Streaming / Media | $10 – $20/mo | 5 – 8% | $150 – $400 |
| Fitness & Wellness | $10 – $30/mo | 8 – 12% | $80 – $300 |
| Education / Learning | $15 – $50/mo | 7 – 10% | $150 – $600 |
| Creator / Membership | $5 – $20/mo | 8 – 12% | $50 – $200 |
Family and annual plans reduce churn by 40–60%, making plan structure the single biggest LTV lever for consumer subscription apps.
Fintech
| Segment | Monthly Rev | Avg Churn | Typical LTV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neobanking (Retail) | $15 – $50/mo | 2 – 4% | $200 – $800 |
| B2B Payments | $1K – $10K/mo | 1 – 2% | $30,000 – $100,000+ |
Fintech has the highest CAC in any industry (~$1,450 avg), making LTV optimization critical.
Agency / Services
| Segment | Monthly Retainer | Avg Churn | Typical LTV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing Agency | $2K – $10K/mo | 2 – 4% | $25,000 – $100,000 |
| Management Consulting | $5K – $50K/mo | 1 – 3% | $80,000 – $700,000 |
Agencies billing as a percentage of ad spend (typically 10–20%) scale LTV automatically as client budgets grow.
Sources: First Page Sage 2025, Optifai Pipeline Study Q3 2025, Recurly 2025 Churn Report