SaaS Metrics Benchmarks 2026: Published Comparisons and Definitions
Published SaaS comparisons for retention, LTV:CAC, NPS, revenue growth, and CAC payback, with source scope and measurement limits
Published SaaS comparisons are useful only when the population, period, definition, and calculation method match yours.
How to read these comparisons
The sources in this reference measure different populations: private B2B SaaS companies, SaaS monthly-plan cohorts, U.S. consumers, and vendor customers. Their figures are observations or operating guidance, not a single scorecard for every SaaS company.
Before using a number, match its customer population, time period, metric definition, calculation method, and business model to your own. A comparison can then prompt an investigation; it cannot prove that a metric is good or bad.
1. Retention and churn comparisons
Customer churn counts accounts lost during a period; revenue churn measures recurring revenue lost from existing customers. Do not convert between the two or compare them as if they were interchangeable.
ChartMogul's SaaS Billing Report 2025 reports 2024 annual customer retention, the complement of annual customer churn, for monthly-plan cohorts. It covers 2,500 SaaS companies overall, while this chart excludes companies under $300,000 ARR and companies with only one billing model. The source does not publish subgroup counts.
| Monthly ARPA | Top quartile retention | Median retention | Bottom quartile retention |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under $25 | 56% | 41% | 29% |
| $25–100 | 69% | 55% | 38% |
| $100–250 | 75% | 63% | 50% |
| $250–500 | 76% | 65% | 48% |
| $500–1,000 | 79% | 69% | 52% |
| $1,000+ | 77% | 65% | 42% |
These figures are annual retention for a defined SaaS monthly-plan sample, not monthly churn targets or benchmarks for every SaaS business. Use the same customer population, billing model, period, and retention definition before making a comparison.
Keep expansion separate
Calculate gross revenue churn before expansion offsets losses. Net revenue retention and net revenue churn combine expansion, contraction, and churn. NRR above 100% means the measured customer cohort's revenue grew after those movements; it does not describe total-company growth.
2. LTV:CAC Ratio Benchmarks
LTV:CAC compares an LTV estimate with acquisition cost. The calculation depends on the LTV method, gross-margin treatment, churn period, included CAC costs, and customer cohort.
Bessemer Venture Partners' cloud-company guidance uses a gross-margin-adjusted CLTV:CAC reference of 3:1 or higher when deciding whether to invest in acquisition. This is operating guidance from a portfolio investor, not an observed distribution or a universal cutoff.
| Ratio result | What it establishes | What to check next |
|---|---|---|
| Below 1:1 | The chosen LTV estimate is below acquisition cost | Validate the formulas, time period, and gross-margin treatment; then review pricing, retention, and acquisition cost |
| At or above 3:1 | Aligns with Bessemer's stated cloud-company reference when the inputs use comparable definitions | Review CAC payback, cash needs, capacity, and results by channel and segment |
| Well above the reference | Does not by itself show underinvestment or profitability | Review demand, payback, and whether acquisition spending or measurement choices drive the result |
No published stage-by-stage or channel-by-channel LTV:CAC distribution is used here because the source does not provide one. Segment the ratio by acquisition channel and customer group so a blended number does not conceal materially different inputs.
Calculate your LTV:CAC ratio →
3. NPS Benchmarks
NPS = % Promoters (scores 9-10) minus % Detractors (scores 0-6). The calculation is fixed; a useful comparison also requires the same market, customer population, relationship or transaction context, timing, and sampling method.
Qualtrics XM Institute's 2024 U.S. consumer study surveyed 10,000 consumers about 354 organizations in 22 industries during Q3 and Q4 2024. It averaged organization-level NPS scores within each industry.
| Industry in the Qualtrics study | Average NPS |
|---|---|
| Grocery | 34.3 |
| Retail | 33.0 |
| Bank | 28.0 |
| Wireless | 27.4 |
| Software firm | 21.1 |
| TV/internet service provider | 16.2 |
This consumer study is not a B2B SaaS or company-stage benchmark. Separately, the Userpilot 2025 benchmark page reports an average NPS of 35.7 and median of 39 for 229 B2B SaaS companies using its NPS Dashboard. Its public page does not disclose the collection window or industry subgroup counts.
Review open-text responses, product feedback, support data, and retention alongside NPS. A score alone does not identify the cause of customer behavior.
4. Annual revenue growth comparisons
The SaaS Capital 2025 growth research brief reports 2024 year-over-year revenue growth from a Q1 2025 survey of more than 1,000 private B2B SaaS companies. It groups observations by ARR, not funding stage or monthly MRR growth.
| ARR band | Median 2024 year-over-year revenue growth |
|---|---|
| Less than $1M | 40% |
| $1M to $3M | 28% |
| $3M to $5M | 24% |
| $5M to $10M | 24% |
| $10M to $20M | 20% |
| More than $20M | 20% |
The all-company median was 25%. These are observed 2024 results, not 2026 targets. Use annual and monthly growth rates only when the time period and revenue definition match.
A five-year compounding scenario
T2D3 describes triple, triple, double, double, double. It is a growth-planning scenario, not a cohort median or a required path.
| Year | Target | Cumulative Multiple |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 3x ARR | 3x |
| Year 2 | 3x ARR | 9x |
| Year 3 | 2x ARR | 18x |
| Year 4 | 2x ARR | 36x |
| Year 5 | 2x ARR | 72x |
The sequence compounds to 72x: a company beginning at $1M ARR would reach $72M after five years. Reaching $100M with the same sequence would require an initial ARR of about $1.39M. The starting ARR therefore matters when using this scenario to plan a revenue target.
Track new, expansion, contraction, and churned MRR separately. The mix and trend can clarify where revenue changes come from without assigning universal targets to each component.
5. CAC Payback Period Benchmarks
CAC payback period measures the months required to earn back acquisition cost through gross-margin-adjusted revenue. It describes the timing of cash recovery; it does not establish lifetime profitability on its own.
Formula: CAC Payback = CAC / (Monthly Revenue per Customer x Gross Margin %)
Bessemer cloud-company payback targets
Bessemer's Scaling to $100 Million guidance presents the following targets for cloud companies. They are recommendations, not industry medians or observed percentiles.
| Customer segment | Stated target payback |
|---|---|
| SMB | Under 12 months |
| Mid-market | Under 18 months |
| Enterprise | Under 24 months |
Compare payback only after documenting whether CAC includes fully loaded sales and marketing costs and whether revenue is adjusted for gross margin. Read it with LTV:CAC, retention, growth, cash requirements, and the contract model.
Calculate your CAC payback period →
How to Use These Benchmarks
Use a published figure as a diagnostic prompt:
- Match the source population, business model, period, and metric definition to yours.
- Recalculate your metric using the same denominator and time period.
- Investigate material differences with cohort, segment, and qualitative data before setting a target.
- Track the result consistently over time rather than treating one external value as a pass or fail grade.
Use the PM Toolkit calculators to compute current values:
- Churn Rate Calculator for logo and revenue churn
- LTV Calculator for lifetime value
- CAC Calculator for acquisition cost and payback
- NPS Calculator for promoter score tracking
- MRR/ARR Calculator for growth rate monitoring
- Retention Analytics for cohort-level analysis
Methodology
This article uses publisher figures that identify a population and period. It labels observed samples separately from Bessemer's operating targets and excludes unsupported stage, channel, and percentile ranges. Some publishers do not disclose subgroup counts or full cost definitions; those limits are stated with the relevant figures.