Unit Economics · Basic + Advanced
CAC Calculator with Industry Context
Calculate Customer Acquisition Cost — and get an honest verdict based on your industry, not generic platitudes. Switch between Basic mode (just the number) and Advanced mode (industry benchmarks, payback context, and what to look at next).
CAC is one input in the unit-economics system. To understand how CAC interacts with LTV, contribution margin, payback period, and growth velocity — take RGM's unit economics training module. Free, no signup.
Start the training →How to read the result
Basic mode: gives you the CAC number. No verdict — CAC is meaningful only in context.
Advanced mode: compares your CAC to your industry's published range and estimates your payback period given your ARPU and margin. Use this to know whether your CAC is structurally healthy for your business model.
Important: A "low CAC" is not always good (it may signal under-investment in growth). A "high CAC" is not always bad (it may be appropriate for high-LTV enterprise products). The point of context is to interpret the number, not just compute it.
Sources for benchmark ranges
- OpenView Partners — annual SaaS Benchmarks Report
- KeyBanc Capital Markets — annual SaaS Survey
- SaaS Capital — annual SaaS metrics survey
- Common Thread Collective — DTC benchmark publications
- Tinuiti — Q-over-Q digital marketing benchmark reports
- RGM operator notes — aggregated client engagements 2023–2026