5 Key Metrics Every SAAS Startup Should Track : Share Your Startups

5 Key Metrics Every SAAS Startup Should Track

Track these or you might as well be driving blind:

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) - This is your lifeblood, folks. Predictable revenue can make or break you.
Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) - Know how much an average customer is worth to maximize profit and plan for long-term strategies.
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) - How much you're spending to get a new customer. Got to keep this lower than CLV or you're losing the game.
Churn Rate - The % of customers you lose each month. Keep this low or you're basically just filling a leaky bucket.
Lead Conversion Rate - How many leads turn into customers? This tells you if your sales process is tight or needs work.

Understanding these can make scaling predictable instead of just throwing stuff at the wall and seeing what sticks. Happy to elaborate on any of these if anyone’s got questions!

Submitted 11 months, 2 weeks ago by serial_entrepreneur

Echoing what others said about MRR. devs, don't forget to set up alerts for weird spikes/drops. Spent 3 hours last month tracking down a false 'growth' from a bug in the billing system. Not fun.

11 months, 2 weeks ago by JustACoder

Metrics shmectrics. I knew a guy who tracked nothing and sold his startup for millions. Maybe the real metric is just pure, dumb luck lol.

11 months, 2 weeks ago by NaysayerNick

Thanks for sharing this. But feels overwhelming. Anyone got like a simple tool or template for tracking all these? Or maybe a service that doesn't break the bank?

11 months, 2 weeks ago by NoobieDoobieDoo

People obsess over CAC but often ignore the quality of customers they're bringing in. Sure, you can have a low CAC, but if they're all low-value customers who churn fast, you're not winning. Might wanna qualify that in the post.

11 months, 2 weeks ago by TheCritique

You hit the nail on the head with these metrics. I'd also suggest keeping a close eye on the Quick Ratio for SaaS, which provides a snapshot of your growth efficiency by evaluating your ability to either grow or reduce churn. By balancing MRR growth from new and upgraded customers against lost MRR from downgrades and churn, you get a solid picture of your revenue momentum or lack thereof.

11 months, 2 weeks ago by DataGeek247

Heard lots about these but never got around to seriously tracking them. Guess it's high time. That lead conversion rate tho... sales team’s gonna get a workout.

11 months, 2 weeks ago by FreemiumFred

Great post! Question about CLV - does anyone have a good tactic for increasing it without just jacking up prices? Maybe improving customer service or adding features? Would love to hear what's worked for others.

11 months, 2 weeks ago by StartupSidekick

Solid list! One thing I'd add to MRR is tracking not just the total, but also expansions, contractions, new business, and churn separately. Helps a ton when you're trying to figure out where to focus efforts. btw, anybody else freak out a little inside when churn rate inches up even by a tiny bit?