ARPA Calculator
Calculate Average Revenue Per Account (ARPA) for SaaS businesses and understand the ARPA formula.
ARPA (Average Revenue Per Account) is revenue / average paying accounts for a period. It often matches B2B SaaS pricing better than ARPU because you sell to companies, not individual users.
To compare ARPA over time, keep the definition of 'paying account' and the revenue base consistent (gross vs net of refunds/credits).
ARPA is most useful when paired with churn or payback to understand unit economics.
Prefer an explanation- Read the guide.
ARPA: how to calculate Average Revenue Per Account (formula + examples)ARPU growth decomposition: what drove revenue (ARPU vs users)Cohort payback curves: how to model payback with early churnGross margin improvements: how margin changes LTV, payback, and growth ability
$
1 for monthly, 12 for annual.
Used to estimate gross profit per account.
%
Use the same period as revenue.
$
Tip: you can type commas (e.g., 10,000).
Example
Using the default inputs, the result is:
$2,000.00
- Total revenue (period)
- $120,000
- Period length (months)
- 1
- Average paying accounts (period)
- 60
- Gross margin (optional)
- 80%
- Target ARPA (optional)
- $0
How to calculate
- Pick a time window (month/quarter) and define what counts as a paying account.
- Sum revenue for that same window (choose a consistent revenue base).
- Compute the average number of paying accounts for the window.
- Divide revenue by average paying accounts to get ARPA.
- Optional: annualize ARPA to compare across period lengths.
- Optional: add a target ARPA to see required revenue.
Formula
ARPA = Revenue / Average Paying Accounts
- Revenue, accounts, and period length use the same time window.
- Annualized ARPA scales linearly by period length.
FAQ
ARPA vs ARPU-
ARPA is per paying account/customer. ARPU is per active user. If you sell to companies, ARPA often matches pricing and reporting better.
Should ARPA use revenue or gross profit-
ARPA is usually revenue-based. For unit economics decisions, also compute gross profit per account (ARPA x gross margin).
Common mistakes
- Mixing accounts and users (ARPA vs ARPU mismatch).
- Including free/trial accounts in the denominator without labeling.
- Comparing ARPA across periods with big pricing/mix changes without segmentation.
- Using booked revenue instead of recurring revenue for SaaS run-rate comparisons.
How to interpret
Use ARPA effectively
- Segment by plan and customer size; blended ARPA can hide mix shifts.
- Pair ARPA with gross margin and churn to estimate LTV and payback.
- Keep 'paying account' definition consistent over time.
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Quick checks
- Keep time units consistent (monthly vs annual) across inputs and outputs.
- Segment by cohort/channel/plan before trusting a blended average.
- Use the related guide to avoid common definition and denominator mismatches.