How this calculator works
| Metric | Formula |
|---|---|
| Channel CAC | channel spend ÷ new customers from that channel |
| Blended CAC | (all channel spend + shared sales & marketing costs) ÷ all new customers |
| CAC payback | blended CAC ÷ (monthly revenue per customer × gross margin) |
Worked example
With these inputs:
- Currency: USD ($)
- Paid search spend: 6,000
- New customers from paid search: 30
- Paid social spend: 4,000
- New customers from paid social: 16
- SEO & content spend: 2,500
- New customers from seo & content: 14
- Other channels spend: 0
- New customers from other channels: 0
- Shared sales & marketing costs: 8,000
- Average revenue per customer per month: 150
- Gross margin: 70%
Blended CAC: $342. Blended customer acquisition cost is $342 across 60 new customers, paid back in 3.3 months.
| Paid search CAC | $200 |
|---|---|
| Paid social CAC | $250 |
| SEO & content CAC | $179 |
| Total new customers | 60 |
| Paid-channel CAC (channel spend only) | $208 |
| Blended CAC (incl. shared costs) | $342 |
| CAC payback period | 3.3 months |
Open this example in the calculator
Blended vs paid CAC
Paid CAC only counts ad spend, so it makes paid channels look cheap. Blended CAC includes salaries, tools and agency fees, and is the number that matters for profitability and fundraising.
Track both: paid CAC to optimise individual channels, blended CAC to decide how much you can afford to grow.
Benchmarks to compare against
| Metric | Commonly cited target |
|---|---|
| LTV:CAC ratio | 3:1 or better |
| CAC payback (SaaS) | Under 12 months |
| First-order profit (e-commerce) | Ideally covers CAC; otherwise repeat orders must |
How to lower customer acquisition cost
- Improve website conversion rate — the same traffic brings more customers.
- Invest in SEO and content, whose cost per customer falls over time.
- Build referral and review programmes.
- Qualify leads earlier so sales time goes to likely buyers.
- Cut channels whose CAC is far above your blended average.
Open this calculator with your numbers
Every option can be set in the web address, so you can bookmark a scenario or send it to a colleague. AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity can use the same parameters to open this calculator with your numbers and the result already on the page.
| Parameter | What it sets | Accepted values |
|---|---|---|
currency |
Currency | one of USD, INR, AED, GBP, EUR |
spend_search |
Paid search spend | number from 0 to 1000000000 (in the chosen currency), default 6000 |
customers_search |
New customers from paid search | number from 0 to 10000000, default 30 |
spend_social |
Paid social spend | number from 0 to 1000000000 (in the chosen currency), default 4000 |
customers_social |
New customers from paid social | number from 0 to 10000000, default 16 |
spend_content |
SEO & content spend | number from 0 to 1000000000 (in the chosen currency), default 2500 |
customers_content |
New customers from seo & content | number from 0 to 10000000, default 14 |
spend_other |
Other channels spend | number from 0 to 1000000000 (in the chosen currency), default 0 |
customers_other |
New customers from other channels | number from 0 to 10000000, default 0 |
shared |
Shared sales & marketing costs | number from 0 to 1000000000 (in the chosen currency), default 8000 |
arpa |
Average revenue per customer per month | number from 0 to 10000000 (in the chosen currency), default 150 |
margin |
Gross margin | number from 1 to 100 (%), default 70 |
Also available as plain text for AI assistants and a free JSON API (OpenAPI spec).
Last reviewed by the Infikey Technologies team.
Disclaimer
This calculator is provided free for general information and planning only. Results are estimates based on the inputs you enter and the assumptions described on this page, reference data such as published prices may change, and actual costs and outcomes will differ. Nothing on this page is financial, legal, tax, investment or other professional advice. Infikey Technologies Private Limited, Infikey Technologies LLC and their directors, employees and affiliates make no warranty, express or implied, about the accuracy, completeness or suitability of this tool or its results, and accept no liability for any loss or damage, direct or indirect, arising from its use or from reliance on its results. Verify all figures independently and seek professional advice before making any decision. Use of this tool is at your own risk.