LTV:CAC Ratio Calculator

Calculate your LTV to CAC ratio, find required LTV, or max affordable CAC. Includes health ratings and industry benchmarks. Free.

LTV
$
CAC
$
LTV:CAC Ratio Benchmarks
Business Type
Target Ratio
Note
SaaS (B2B)
3:1 – 5:1
Industry standard
E-commerce
3:1 – 4:1
Higher churn
B2B Software
3:1 – 5:1
Longer sales cycle
Subscription
2:1 – 4:1
Varies by churn
Financial Services
3:1 – 6:1
High LTV potential

How to Use

  1. 1 In 'Find Ratio' mode, enter your Customer Lifetime Value (LTV) and Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) to get your LTV:CAC ratio with a health rating.
  2. 2 Use 'Find Required LTV' to calculate the minimum lifetime value needed to achieve a target ratio given your CAC.
  3. 3 Use 'Find Max CAC' to calculate the maximum you can spend on acquisition while maintaining a target LTV:CAC ratio.

Use Cases

Business Health Check

Quickly assess whether your unit economics are sustainable by checking your LTV:CAC ratio against the industry standard of 3:1.

Growth Planning

Determine the maximum CAC you can afford while maintaining healthy unit economics as you scale marketing spend.

Investor Reporting

LTV:CAC ratio is a key metric for SaaS and subscription businesses that investors use to evaluate growth efficiency.

FAQ

The LTV:CAC ratio compares the lifetime value of a customer to the cost of acquiring them. A ratio of 3:1 means each customer generates 3x more revenue than it cost to acquire them.

A ratio of 3:1 is the widely accepted industry standard for SaaS and subscription businesses. Below 1:1 means you are losing money on each customer. Above 5:1 may indicate under-investment in growth.

Either increase LTV (through better retention, higher pricing, or upselling) or decrease CAC (through more efficient marketing channels, better conversion rates, or referral programs).

Related Tools