FREE TOOL

Unit Economics Calculator

Model your business economics with precision. Calculate CAC, LTV, payback periods, and ROAS for both SaaS subscriptions and e-commerce businesses.

Unit Economics
CAC & LTV
SaaS Metrics
Business Modeling
Customer Economics
Calculate Now - 100% Free
Free Version
Basic models without costs

Upgrade to Pro for cost analysis, advanced subscription models, conversion funnel view, and scenario planning.

Choose Your Business Model

Business Metrics Input

Enter your basic business metrics to calculate unit economics

Total marketing spend per month

Number of customers acquired monthly

Average monthly revenue per customer

How long customers stay on average

Unit Economics Results

Your key business metrics and health indicators

Enter your metrics to see results

We'll calculate CAC, LTV, and more

Unlock Full Power

✅ Free Version:

  • CAC & LTV calculations
  • Payback period analysis
  • ROAS calculations
  • Basic funnel metrics
  • Export results

Premium Version:

  • Advanced cohort modeling
  • Multi-channel attribution
  • Scenario planning & forecasting
  • Competitive benchmarking
  • Team collaboration
  • Historical data tracking
  • Custom business models
  • API integrations

Start free trial • No credit card required

Trusted by 10,000+ PMs

"Best PM tools I've ever used"

Master Your Unit Economics

Follow this step-by-step guide to get accurate results

1

Choose Your Business Model

Select between subscription (SaaS/apps) or one-time payment (e-commerce) models. Each has different calculation methods.

Pro Tip: If you have both models, calculate them separately for clearer insights

2

Input Your Marketing Funnel

Enter your advertising spend, impressions, click rates, and conversion data. Be as accurate as possible with recent data.

Pro Tip: Use data from your best-performing channel first, then expand to other channels

3

Set Pricing & Costs

Input your subscription prices, transaction fees, product costs, and operational expenses. Include all variable costs.

Pro Tip: Don't forget hidden costs like payment processing, customer support, and refunds

4

Configure Retention

Set your churn rates and repeat purchase behavior. This heavily impacts LTV calculations.

Pro Tip: Use cohort data if available - first-month churn is usually higher than later months

5

Analyze Key Metrics

Review your CAC, LTV, LTV:CAC ratio, and payback period. Look for improvement opportunities.

Pro Tip: Healthy SaaS: LTV:CAC > 3:1, Payback < 12 months. E-commerce: LTV:CAC > 2:1

6

Optimize Your Model

Test scenarios by adjusting conversion rates, pricing, or costs. Focus on metrics with biggest impact.

Pro Tip: Small improvements in retention often have bigger impact than acquisition improvements

What is Unit Economics Calculator?

Unit economics analysis examines the direct revenues and costs associated with a particular business model on a per-unit basis. It helps you understand whether each customer acquisition is profitable by calculating metrics like Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC), Lifetime Value (LTV), and payback periods.

Why is it Important?

Understanding unit economics is crucial for sustainable business growth. It tells you whether your business model is fundamentally profitable, helps you make informed marketing spend decisions, and identifies the key levers for improving profitability. Without solid unit economics, businesses often burn cash unsustainably.

How to Use This Tool

Select your business model (subscription or one-time), input your marketing funnel data, set your pricing and costs, configure retention rates, and analyze the calculated metrics. Focus on improving the metrics with the biggest impact on profitability.

✅ Best Practices
  • Use recent, accurate data for all inputs
  • Include all variable costs, not just obvious ones
  • Segment analysis by customer type or channel
  • Track cohort-based retention, not just averages
  • Model different scenarios for planning
  • Update calculations monthly as data changes
  • Focus on metrics that matter most for your business stage
  • Benchmark against industry standards
❌ Common Mistakes
  • Ignoring hidden costs like support and refunds
  • Using average churn instead of cohort data
  • Not accounting for seasonality in calculations
  • Mixing different time periods in analysis
  • Focusing only on acquisition without retention
  • Not segmenting by customer type or channel
  • Using overly optimistic projections
  • Ignoring the impact of pricing changes on volume

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)?

CAC is the total cost to acquire one paying customer, including all marketing and sales expenses. It's calculated by dividing your total acquisition costs by the number of customers acquired in that period. This helps you understand if your marketing is profitable.

How do you calculate Customer Lifetime Value (LTV)?

LTV is the total revenue you expect from a customer over their entire relationship with your business. For subscriptions, it's (Monthly Revenue per User ÷ Monthly Churn Rate). For e-commerce, it includes repeat purchases over the customer lifecycle.

What's a good LTV:CAC ratio?

For SaaS businesses, aim for 3:1 or higher (LTV should be at least 3x your CAC). For e-commerce, 2:1 is often acceptable due to shorter customer lifecycles. Higher ratios indicate more profitable customer acquisition.

What's the difference between ROAS and ROI?

ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) measures revenue generated per dollar spent on advertising. ROI includes all costs and measures profit. ROAS focuses on marketing efficiency, while ROI shows overall business profitability.

How long should my payback period be?

For SaaS, aim for 12 months or less to recover your CAC. For e-commerce, 3-6 months is typical. Shorter payback periods mean faster cash flow recovery and ability to reinvest in growth.

More Free PM Tools

Test pricing and funnel optimizations to improve your unit economics

Prioritize features that will improve your key economic metrics

Analyze feedback to reduce churn and improve LTV

Ready for the Full PM Toolkit?

Get access to 15+ advanced tools, AI insights, team collaboration, and unlimited calculations.