Calculate CLV/LTV and your LTV:CAC ratio — the two numbers that tell you whether acquisition economics work.
CLV = Purchase Value × Purchase Frequency × Customer Lifespan
Uses the traditional CLV formula. For discounted future cash flows, multiply by a discount rate.
The ratio benchmarks
LTV:CAC of 3:1 or higher is healthy for most SaaS businesses. Below 1:1 means you're acquiring customers at a loss — unsustainable before Series A, fatal after. Above 5:1 often signals underinvestment in acquisition.
SaaS founders tracking unit economics before a fundraise. Marketing teams building the business case for investing in organic channels with longer payback periods. Anyone running paid acquisition who needs to know the ceiling on cost-per-acquisition before a channel becomes structurally unprofitable.
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They are the same metric. CLV (customer lifetime value) and LTV (lifetime value) are used interchangeably.
It tells you how much organic traffic is really worth, which is the input that makes SEO ROI honest.
Related tools: SEO ROI calculator and CTR calculator. Background reading: from data to action.