CAC Calculator
Work out your customer acquisition cost (CAC) for any period. Enter what you spent on marketing and sales and how many new customers you won to see the cost to acquire each one. Add your average customer lifetime value to see the LTV:CAC ratio, the single number that tells you whether your growth is sustainable.
How to calculate CAC
- Enter your total marketing spend for the period (ads, content, tools).
- Enter your total sales spend and the number of new customers acquired.
- Read off the CAC, then add your customer lifetime value to see the LTV:CAC ratio.
Examples
$15,000 spend across 150 new customers
marketingSpend = 10000, salesSpend = 5000, newCustomers = 150
CAC = $100, total spend = $15,000
LTV:CAC ratio at a $360 lifetime value
marketingSpend = 10000, salesSpend = 5000, newCustomers = 150, customerLtv = 360
CAC = $100, LTV:CAC = 3.6:1
Frequently asked questions
What is customer acquisition cost (CAC)?
CAC is the average amount you spend to win one new customer. It is calculated by adding all of your marketing and sales costs for a period and dividing by the number of new customers acquired in that same period. A CAC of $100 means it cost you $100, on average, to land each new customer.
What costs should I include in CAC?
Include every cost tied to winning customers: ad spend, content and creative, marketing and sales salaries, commissions, and the software those teams use. Keep the spend and the new-customer count over the same time window so the figure is consistent. Leave out costs for serving or retaining existing customers, which belong in different metrics.
What is a healthy LTV:CAC ratio?
A widely cited benchmark is an LTV:CAC ratio of about 3:1, meaning each customer is worth roughly three times what it costs to acquire them. Below 1:1 you are losing money on every customer, and around 1:1 to 2:1 your margins are thin. A ratio far above 3:1 can be healthy but may also signal you are underinvesting in growth and could spend more to acquire faster.
What is the difference between CAC and CPA?
CAC measures the cost to acquire a paying customer, while CPA (cost per acquisition or per action) often measures the cost of a lighter conversion such as a lead, signup or trial. CAC always uses customers in the denominator, so it tends to be higher than a lead-based CPA because not every lead becomes a customer.
How often should I calculate CAC?
Monthly or quarterly is common. Shorter periods react faster to changes in your campaigns but can be noisy if you acquire few customers, while longer periods smooth out spikes. Match the window to your sales cycle so spend and new customers line up.
Is my data sent anywhere?
No. The calculation runs entirely in your browser, so the spend, customer and lifetime value figures you enter never leave your device.
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