Calculate your CAC by marketing channel, blended CAC, LTV:CAC ratio, payback period, and true marketing ROI — then benchmark against industry standards to see where you stand.
Channel CAC · Blended CAC · LTV:CAC ratio · Payback period · Marketing ROI
| Channel | Monthly Spend | New Customers | CAC | % of Spend | Rating |
|---|
It calculates your CAC per marketing channel, blended CAC across all channels, customer lifetime value (LTV), LTV:CAC ratio with a visual health gauge, CAC payback period in months, and total marketing ROI — with a channel comparison table showing your best and worst-performing acquisition sources.
Enter your monthly spend and new customers attributed for each active marketing channel. Add sales & marketing team overhead separately. Enter your average revenue per customer per year, gross margin, and average customer lifespan. Select your industry for benchmark comparison.
An LTV:CAC ratio above 3:1 is the standard benchmark for healthy unit economics. A payback period under 12 months is generally sustainable. Note that payment processing fees reduce your gross margin — and therefore reduce LTV and worsen LTV:CAC. Lower processing rates directly improve this ratio.
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) and Lifetime Value (LTV) are the two most important numbers in growth marketing. Together, they determine whether your business model is economically sustainable — whether each customer you acquire generates more value than it cost to win them.
| LTV:CAC Ratio | What It Means | Action Required | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below 1:1 | Losing money on every customer acquired | Stop growing — fix unit economics first | 🚨 Critical |
| 1:1 – 2:1 | Barely recovering acquisition cost | Reduce CAC or improve margins urgently | ⚠️ Poor |
| 3:1 | The standard benchmark — healthy | Scale carefully, monitor payback period | ✅ Good |
| 4:1 – 5:1 | Strong unit economics — scale confidently | Invest more in best-performing channels | ✅ Strong |
| Above 5:1 | Exceptional — potentially under-investing | Consider increasing marketing spend to grow faster | 🚀 Exceptional |
| Industry | Typical CAC Range | Target LTV:CAC | Payback Target |
|---|---|---|---|
| SaaS / B2B Software | $300 – $5,000+ | 3:1 – 5:1 | 12–18 months |
| eCommerce | $20 – $150 | 3:1+ | 3–12 months |
| Consumer Subscription | $30 – $200 | 3:1+ | 6–12 months |
| Supplements / Nutra | $30 – $120 | 3:1+ | 3–9 months |
| Fintech | $200 – $1,500 | 4:1+ | 12–24 months |
| Online Gaming | $10 – $100 | 3:1+ | 3–12 months |
| Professional Services | $500 – $5,000 | 5:1+ | 3–12 months |
Payment processing fees reduce your gross margin, which directly reduces LTV. For a business with $100 average order value and 50% gross margin, the LTV per customer-year is $50. If processing fees are 3% ($3 per order), the effective gross margin drops slightly — but across a customer lifetime of multiple orders, this compounds significantly.
Reducing processing fees from 3% to 1.5% on a subscription business with 2-year average lifespan can improve LTV by 2–4%, directly improving the LTV:CAC ratio without changing CAC at all. This is why processing cost optimisation is a genuine unit economics lever, not just a cost saving.
QuadraPay is a merchant services consultancy and reseller — not a processor. We connect businesses to the right acquiring partner from our global network of 45+ banks across 32 countries, reducing processing costs that suppress your gross margin and worsen LTV:CAC.
For Estimation & Informational Purposes Only. The QuadraPay CAC Calculator and all other calculator tools published on this website (collectively, "the Tools") are provided solely for general informational and illustrative purposes. All CAC figures, LTV calculations, LTV:CAC ratios, payback periods, and marketing ROI estimates are approximations based entirely on your inputs and should not be treated as audited financial metrics or definitive measures of business performance.
Attribution Limitations. Accurate CAC calculation requires precise customer attribution — determining which marketing channel actually caused each customer to convert. This is a complex, contested area of marketing analytics involving multi-touch attribution, view-through conversions, organic interactions, and many other factors. This tool uses simple per-channel cost division, which may not reflect actual attribution in a multi-channel marketing environment.
LTV Assumptions. The LTV calculation uses a simplified linear model based on average revenue per customer, gross margin, and average lifespan. Real LTV dynamics are more complex, involving cohort analysis, revenue expansion, contraction, and non-linear churn patterns. The LTV figures produced by this tool are estimates only.
Industry Benchmarks Are Illustrative. The industry benchmark figures cited in this tool are general averages based on publicly available market data. They may not reflect your specific sub-industry, geography, business model, pricing, or growth stage. They are provided for general context only.
No Financial, Marketing, or Professional Advice. Nothing produced by the Tools constitutes financial advice, marketing advice, investment advice, or any other professional advice. QuadraPay is a merchant services consultancy and payment solutions reseller — not a licensed financial adviser, marketing consultant, or business analyst.
No Liability for Decisions Made. QuadraPay, its directors, employees, agents, affiliates, and partners expressly disclaim all liability for any loss, damage, cost, or consequence arising from your use of or reliance on any output of the Tools — including marketing spend decisions, channel allocation decisions, pricing decisions, or any other business action taken based on Tool outputs.
Processing Rate Savings Are Not Guaranteed. References to potential processing cost reductions through QuadraPay's network are illustrative. Actual rates depend on underwriting, merchant category, volume, and acquiring partner terms at the time of application.
By using the Tools, you acknowledge and agree to these terms. For real CAC analysis, use proper attribution tools. For real processing rates, contact QuadraPay directly.