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Customer lifetime value (CLV) calculator
Customer lifetime value (CLV or customer LTV) estimates how much contribution you can expect from a customer over the relationship—often for subscription or repeat-purchase planning. This page is not the loan-to-value (LTV) ratio used in mortgages; for home-loan LTV, use the mortgage payment tool. Pick subscription (churn) or revenue & tenure, add optional margin and CAC for LTV:CAC—illustration only, your definitions of churn and margin must match your model.
When this helps
You have rough ARPU and churn, or a revenue story over time—and want a back-of-sheet check before you open the full model or template.
- SaaS / subscription: type ARPU and monthly churn to read implied lifetime in months and contribution CLV.
- E‑commerce or annual contracts without a churn number: use revenue & tenure with the right month/year alignment.
- Board or investor asks for a 3:1-style LTV:CAC read—enter CAC to print the ratio as an illustration, not a guarantee.
- Spreadsheet parity: check ARPU / (churn/100 × …) and MARGIN against a cell you already built in Sheets or Excel.
We use two transparent views: (1) subscription — contribution per month ÷ monthly churn (as a decimal); (2) tenure — revenue per period × number of periods × margin—then optional CAC and LTV:CAC.
Subscription (churn) path
CLV ≈ (ARPU per month × margin factor) ÷ (monthly churn as decimal). Implied average lifetime (months) = 1 ÷ (monthly churn as decimal). This matches a common SaaS shorthand; your churn definition (logo vs revenue churn) must be yours.
Revenue and tenure path
CLV ≈ (average revenue in one period × number of such periods) × margin factor—minus CAC only in the after CAC line when CAC is entered. Month and year are separate shapes; don’t mix without converting.
What we do not build here
Cohort tables, discounted cash flows, time-varying ARPU, NRR bridges, or industry benchmarks—use your CLV vs CAC or SaaS financial templates when you need a full model.
Related tools and templates on this site: For net burn ÷ net new ARR in the same period, use the burn multiple calculator. For home loan-to-value (LTV), not customer LTV, use the mortgage payment calculator—different ratio, same three letters in search. For a full workbook that compares CLV and CAC, see CLV vs CAC analysis.
Google Sheets & Excel
English function names. Replace names with the cells you already use; churn must be a decimal in formulas (5% → 0.05 or B2/100).
=(ARPU_m*(MARGIN/100))/(CHURN/100)ARPU_m = monthly; MARGIN and CHURN are 0–100 in this UI—divide by 100 in the sheet to match our math.
=1/(CHURN/100)This is the inverse churn view of average lifetime; churn must be >0.
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Frequently asked questions
What is customer lifetime value (CLV)?
CLV is an estimate of the contribution (or sometimes revenue, depending on your team) a customer generates over the life of the relationship. Names in the wild include CLTV, customer LTV, and LCV—check the definition your investor or board uses.
Is this the same “LTV” as on a mortgage?
No—loan-to-value (LTV) in lending is loan ÷ value. Customer LTV/CLV is a revenue and retention idea. In English search, “LTV calculator” often surfaces mortgage tools; this page is not that. Use the mortgage payment calculator for house LTV, not customer value.
Do I enter monthly or annual churn?
In the subscription tab we take monthly churn as a percent. If you only have annual logo churn, a rough month equivalent is annual % ÷ 12 (not perfect for all businesses)—or use revenue & tenure instead of forcing churn here.
What should I put in margin %?
Whatever contribution share of revenue you already use: 0–100% of ARPU/orders after variable costs to serve, not a full P&L allocation. If you are revenue-only in this check, set 100% and be honest in the model that you are uncapped for variable cost.
What does LTV:CAC use in the headline?
We use contribution CLV before subtracting CAC, divided by CAC, when CAC is > 0—a common ratio shape. Not a funding promise; stages and channels differ a lot. The “after CAC” line is separate.
Is a 3:1 LTV:CAC “good”?
Many blogs and funds cite roughly 3:1 as a heuristic for some B2B SaaS contexts as one lens—it is not a goal for every company, not a guarantee, and not advice on this page. Your unit economics and stage come first.
What is the simple SaaS CLV formula?
A common shorthand: (ARPU × margin) ÷ churn in coherent units. ARPU on the same time base as churn (this tool uses monthly and monthly %).
What if I need a full model, not a calculator?
Use our CLV vs CAC analysis template (or a SaaS financial model) when you need a workbook with sensitivity and more structure than one ratio—this free tool is a quick math check, not a full plan.
How do I get Excel or Sheets to match this page?
Name cells; put churn as a decimal in formulas, or use =ARPU * (MARGIN%)/ (CHURN%) with percent cells. Our formulas card uses /100 on typed percents. Use the same margin and churn definitions as the sheet, not a mismatched export.
Is this financial, tax, or investment advice?
No—it is a planner for arithmetic you can reconcile with a CFO or your own definitions. It does not validate your contracts, invoices, or filing positions.