CalcVault
VI
Free • No login required

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) Calculator

Calculate your Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) and compare it against Customer Lifetime Value (LTV) to evaluate marketing efficiency and business sustainability.

$
customers
$
times
years
%

Fill in the fields above and click Calculate to see your results.

How to use

Calculate your Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) and compare it against Customer Lifetime Value (LTV) to evaluate marketing efficiency and business sustainability.

How it's calculated

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

total_marketing_spend / new_customers

Average cost to acquire one new customer

Customer Lifetime Value (LTV)

avg_order_value * purchase_frequency_per_year * customer_lifespan_years * gross_margin_percent / 100

Total profit generated by a customer over their lifetime

LTV : CAC Ratio

(avg_order_value * purchase_frequency_per_year * customer_lifespan_years * gross_margin_percent / 100) / (total_marketing_spend / new_customers)

How much lifetime value you get per dollar of acquisition cost

CAC Payback Period

(total_marketing_spend / new_customers) / (avg_order_value * purchase_frequency_per_year * gross_margin_percent / 100 / 12)

Months to recover the acquisition cost from a customer

Examples

E-commerce store monthly campaign

  • New Customers Acquired:150
  • Average Order Value:500,000
  • Gross Margin:40
  • Total Marketing & Sales Spend:30,000,000
  • Average Customer Lifespan:3
  • Average Purchases Per Year:4

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a healthy LTV:CAC ratio?

A ratio of 3:1 is the standard benchmark — meaning you earn $3 in lifetime profit for every $1 spent acquiring a customer. Below 1:1 is unsustainable. Above 5:1 may indicate under-investment in growth.

What costs should I include in CAC?

Include all marketing and sales costs: ad spend, agency fees, content creation, sales team salaries, CRM tools, and any other costs directly tied to acquiring new customers. Divide by the number of new customers in the same period.

Related Calculators

ROAS Calculator (Return on Ad Spend)

Calculate your Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) to measure the effectiveness of your advertising campaigns. Know exactly how much revenue each dollar of ad spend generates.

ROI Calculator

Calculate the Return on Investment (ROI) for any business project or personal investment.