Unit Economics & Customer Growth Lab

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) Lab

Calculate Customer Lifetime Value (CLV / LTV), LTV to CAC ratios, payback periods, and customer equity across subscription and ecommerce business models.

CLV Model Unit Economics CLV Theory FAQ

Industry CLV Presets

Load benchmark cohort parameters.

Step 1: Configure Business Model & Unit Economics

Cohort Economics & Acquisition Inputs

Subscription Metrics

$
%
%
Average lifespan = 1 ÷ Monthly Churn.

Acquisition & Portfolio Scale

$
Blended sales, marketing, and onboarding cost per customer.
Used to capitalize total customer equity.
Gross Lifetime Value (LTV)
$56,666.67
Net Margin: $50,166.67 per Customer
LTV : CAC Multiple
8.7x
Strong Unit Economics (>= 3.0x Target)
CAC Payback Period
9.6 mo
Avg Lifespan: 83.3 Months
Total Customer Equity
$25,500,000.00
Across 450 Active Customers

Unit Economics & Customer Portfolio Audit

Unit Economic Metric Calculated Value Strategic Benchmark & Definition

Growth Marketing & Valuation

Mastering Customer Lifetime Value

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) is the definitive economic anchor for marketing budgets, sales compensation, customer success investment, and company valuation.

  • LTV:CAC Multiple (3.0x Benchmark): If LTV:CAC is below 1.5x, acquisition is value-destructive. If above 5.0x, the company is likely underinvesting in marketing.
  • CAC Payback Duration: High-growth SaaS companies target a CAC payback period under 12 months to maintain cash flow efficiency.
  • Cohort Customer Equity: Capitalizing the expected gross contribution of existing accounts quantifies enterprise asset value.

Analyze customer churn in the Customer Churn Lab.

Lifetime Value Math & Formulas

Essential unit economic formulas

Subscription LTV = (ARPU × Gross Margin %) ÷ Monthly Churn Rate

E-Commerce LTV = AOV × Frequency × Gross Margin % × Lifespan

LTV : CAC Ratio = Gross LTV ÷ Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

CAC Payback (Months) = CAC ÷ (Monthly Revenue × Gross Margin %)

Total Customer Equity = Gross LTV × Active Customer Accounts

Model marketing spend efficiency in the Marketing ROAS Lab.

FAQ

Customer Lifetime Value and unit economic questions

What is Customer Lifetime Value (CLV / LTV)?

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV or LTV) is the total gross profit contribution a business expects to earn from a single customer relationship over its entire duration.

What is a healthy LTV to CAC ratio?

A benchmark LTV:CAC ratio of 3.0x or higher indicates healthy unit economics. A ratio below 1.5x indicates unsustainable acquisition spending, while above 5.0x may suggest underinvestment in growth.

How is CAC payback period calculated?

CAC Payback Period = Customer Acquisition Cost / (Average Monthly Revenue per Customer × Gross Margin %). It measures the number of months required to recover upfront marketing costs.

What is Customer Equity?

Customer Equity is the total capitalized lifetime value of an entire active customer base, calculated as Active Customers × Gross LTV.

Can I export the CLV audit to CSV?

Yes. You can export complete unit economics, LTV, CAC ratios, payback duration, and customer equity metrics as a UTF-8 CSV spreadsheet with formula injection defense.

Is this tool certified valuation software?

No. This tool provides educational simulations for financial and marketing analysis without certified financial appraisal warranties.

Continue Exploring Marketing & Growth Tools

Explore our Marketing & Customer Demand Hub, test hypothesis significance in the A/B Testing Lab, calculate payback in the CAC Payback Lab, or optimize sales pipelines in the Sales Pipeline Velocity Lab.