Startup Metrics
For unfamiliar placeholders or to check connected tools, see CONNECTORS.md.
Provides core startup metrics framework by business model and stage-specific benchmarks. Delivers metric sets optimized for SaaS, Marketplace, Consumer, and B2B models, with target numbers by funding stage (Pre-seed through Series B).
How It Works
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ STARTUP METRICS FRAMEWORK │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Core Features (Standalone) │
│ ✓ Auto-detect business model (SaaS/Marketplace/Consumer/B2B) │
│ ✓ Model-specific metric sets (North Star + supporting metrics) │
│ ✓ Stage benchmarks by round (Pre-seed ~ Series B) │
│ ✓ Investor-ready metrics dashboard generation │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Enhanced Mode (With Connectors) │
│ + ~~analytics: Auto-collect real-time metric data │
│ + ~~spreadsheet: Cohort analysis and trend charts │
│ + ~~knowledge base: Extract benchmarks from past reports │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Getting Started
- Identify business model: "What are the key metrics for our SaaS product?"
- Compare benchmarks: "How do we compare to Pre-seed SaaS benchmarks?"
- Investor reporting: "Create a monthly metrics dashboard for investors"
- Improve metrics: "Which metrics should we focus on to improve NRR?"
Core Metrics by Business Model
1. SaaS (Software as a Service)
North Star Metric
- ARR/MRR (Annual/Monthly Recurring Revenue)
Core Metrics (8)
| Metric |
Definition |
Target |
Calculation |
| MRR Growth |
Monthly recurring revenue growth rate |
10-20%/mo (early) |
(MRR_this_month - MRR_last_month) / MRR_last_month |
| NRR |
Net Revenue Retention |
>100% (strong: >120%) |
(Start ARR + Expansion - Contraction - Churn) / Start ARR |
| CAC |
Customer Acquisition Cost |
< LTV/3 |
Total Marketing+Sales / New Customers |
| LTV |
Lifetime Value |
> CAC × 3 |
ARPA × Gross Margin % / Churn Rate |
| CAC Payback |
Payback period |
< 12mo (strong: < 6mo) |
CAC / (ARPA × Gross Margin %) |
| Burn Multiple |
Burn vs revenue growth |
< 1.5x (strong: < 1.0x) |
Net Burn / Net New ARR |
| Rule of 40 |
Growth + profitability |
> 40% |
ARR Growth % + EBITDA Margin % |
| Magic Number |
S&M efficiency |
> 0.75 (strong: > 1.0) |
Net New ARR / Prior Quarter S&M Spend |
Supporting Metrics
- Quick Ratio: (New MRR + Expansion MRR) / (Contraction MRR + Churn MRR) — Target > 4x
- Gross Margin: Target > 70% (mature SaaS > 80%)
- Churn Rate: <2%/mo (<20%/yr), Logo Churn < Revenue Churn
- Expansion MRR %: Expansion revenue as % of total MRR — Target > 10%
2. Marketplace
North Star Metric
- GMV (Gross Merchandise Value) or Net Revenue
Core Metrics (7)
| Metric |
Definition |
Target |
Calculation |
| GMV Growth |
Total transaction volume growth rate |
15-30%/mo (early) |
(GMV_this_month - GMV_last_month) / GMV_last_month |
| Take Rate |
Commission rate |
10-30% (varies by category) |
Net Revenue / GMV |
| Liquidity |
Supply-demand balance |
> 80% match rate |
Completed Transactions / Total Requests |
| Buyer Retention |
Buyer repeat purchase rate |
>30%/mo, >60%/yr |
Repeat Buyers This Month / Total Buyers |
| Seller Retention |
Seller retention rate |
>70%/mo, >50%/yr |
Active Sellers This Month / Prior Month |
| Repeat Tx % |
Repeat transaction share |
> 40% (mature > 60%) |
Repeat GMV / Total GMV |
| Supply Utilization |
Supply utilization |
> 60% |
Sellers with Transactions / Total Sellers |
Supporting Metrics
- Average Order Value (AOV): Avg amount per transaction
- Frequency: Avg monthly transactions per customer
- Contribution Margin: (Net Revenue - Variable Costs) / Net Revenue — Target > 20%
- Time to Liquidity: Time for new category to reach 80% match rate
3. Consumer / Social
North Star Metric
- DAU (Daily Active Users) or Engagement
Core Metrics (6)
| Metric |
Definition |
Target |
Calculation |
| DAU / MAU |
Daily / Monthly active user ratio |
> 20% (strong: > 50%) |
DAU / MAU |
| L7/L28 |
Weekly/monthly engagement |
> 50% |
Active Last 7 Days / Active Last 28 Days |
| D1/D7/D30 Retention |
Post-signup return rate |
D1 > 40%, D7 > 20%, D30 > 10% |
Day N Active / Day 0 Signups |
| K-factor |
Viral coefficient |
> 1.0 (explosive growth) |
(Invites × Conversion Rate) × Repeat |
| Session Length |
Avg session duration |
Category-dependent |
Total Session Time / Session Count |
| Frequency |
Weekly visit frequency |
> 3x/week (habit formation) |
Total Sessions / Weekly Active Users |
Supporting Metrics
- Activation Rate: % reaching "Aha moment" post-signup — Target > 30%
- Retention Curves: Long-term cohort retention (identify plateau point)
- Resurrection Rate: Reactivated churned user %
- Stickiness: DAU / MAU × 100 (higher = stronger habit)
4. B2B (Enterprise / SMB)
North Star Metric
- ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue) or Bookings
Core Metrics (8)
| Metric |
Definition |
Target |
Calculation |
| Win Rate |
Sales close rate |
20-40% (Ent), 10-20% (SMB) |
Won Deals / Total Opportunities |
| Sales Cycle |
Avg sales duration |
SMB 30-60d, Mid 60-120d, Ent 120-270d |
Avg (Close Date - Opp Create Date) |
| ACV |
Average Contract Value |
Ent >$100K, SMB $10K-50K |
Total Contract Value / Contract Years |
| Pipeline Coverage |
Pipeline coverage ratio |
3-5x quota |
Total Pipeline Value / Quarterly Quota |
| Lead Velocity Rate |
Qualified lead growth |
10-20%/month |
(This Month Leads - Prior Month) / Prior |
| Conversion Rates |
Stage conversion |
Lead→Opp 10-20%, Demo→Prop 30-50% |
Next Stage / Current Stage |
| Customer Concentration |
Customer concentration |
Top 5 < 50% ARR |
Top 5 ARR / Total ARR |
| Expansion ARR |
Existing customer expansion |
> 30% of New ARR |
Upsell + Cross-sell / Total New ARR |
Supporting Metrics
- Sales Productivity: ARR per sales rep — Target > $500K (mature > $1M)
- NPS (Net Promoter Score): Target > 30 (strong: > 50)
- Time to Value: Time from contract to first value — Target < 30 days
- Implementation Time: Onboarding completion timeline
Metrics by Funding Stage
Pre-seed / Seed
Primary Goal: Validate Product-Market Fit
| Stage |
Core Metrics |
Benchmarks |
| Pre-seed |
• Activation Rate<br>• D7/D30 Retention<br>• Qualitative Feedback |
• First value realization > 30%<br>• D7 Retention > 20%<br>• "Would be very disappointed" > 40% |
| Seed |
• MRR/GMV Growth<br>• Unit Economics (CAC/LTV)<br>• Retention Curves |
• 10-15%/mo growth<br>• LTV:CAC > 1:1 (early acceptable)<br>• Flattening curve |
Series A
Primary Goal: Scalable Growth Engine
| Core Metric |
Benchmark |
| MRR/GMV Growth |
8-12%/mo (2.5-3.5x/yr) |
| CAC Payback |
< 18 months |
| LTV:CAC |
> 3:1 |
| NRR (SaaS) |
> 100% |
| Burn Multiple |
< 2.0x |
Series B
Primary Goal: Efficient Growth + Path to Profitability
| Core Metric |
Benchmark |
| ARR/GMV Growth |
5-8%/mo (1.8-2.5x/yr) |
| Rule of 40 |
> 30% (target > 40%) |
| CAC Payback |
< 12 months |
| Gross Margin |
> 70% (SaaS), > 30% (Marketplace) |
| Magic Number |
> 0.75 |
| Burn Multiple |
< 1.5x |
Detailed Benchmarks: See references/benchmarks-by-stage.md
Output Format
Metrics Dashboard (Investor-ready)
# [Company Name] Monthly Metrics Dashboard
**Reporting Period**: [YYYY-MM] | **Business Model**: [SaaS/Marketplace/Consumer/B2B]
## 📊 North Star Metric
- **[ARR/MRR/GMV/DAU]**: $X.XM (+Y% vs prior month)
- **Goal Achievement**: Z% (monthly target $X.XM)
## 🎯 Core Metrics (MoM)
| Metric | Current | Prior Month | Change | Benchmark | Status |
|--------|---------|-------------|--------|-----------|--------|
| MRR Growth | 12% | 10% | +2%p | 10-15% | 🟢 |
| NRR | 108% | 105% | +3%p | >100% | 🟢 |
| CAC Payback | 14mo | 16mo | -2mo | <18mo | 🟡 |
| Burn Multiple | 1.8x | 2.1x | -0.3x | <2.0x | 🟢 |
🟢 = Target met/exceeded | 🟡 = Caution | 🔴 = Needs improvement
## 📈 Cohort Analysis (Retention)
[Monthly cohort table or chart]
## 💡 Insights
- **Positive**: [2-3 key wins]
- **Concerns**: [1-2 areas needing improvement]
- **Next Month Focus**: [Key metrics and targets]
Execution Flow
- Detect Model: Auto-classify as SaaS/Marketplace/Consumer/B2B from description
- Identify Stage: Determine Pre-seed/Seed/Series A/B (explicit or traction-based)
- Select Metrics: Choose 5-8 metrics optimized for model + stage
- Collect Data:
- Basic: User input or file upload
- Enhanced: Auto-collect from ~~analytics tools
- Compare to Benchmarks: Assess current metrics vs stage targets
- Generate Dashboard: Investor-ready format or internal monitoring
- Provide Insights: Prioritized improvements and action recommendations
Metrics-Specific Improvement Strategies
Improve NRR (SaaS)
- Strengthen Expansion: Build upsell/cross-sell motions
- Reduce Churn: Early identify at-risk customers (Health Score)
- Prevent Downsells: Transition from usage-based to feature-based pricing
Improve Liquidity (Marketplace)
- Acquire Supply: Seller onboarding incentives, exclusive inventory
- Activate Demand: Buyer acquisition campaigns, repeat loops
- Optimize Matching: Search/recommendation algorithms, category refinement
Improve Retention (Consumer)
- Strengthen Activation: Shorten time to "Aha moment", optimize onboarding
- Build Habit: Push notifications, email reminders, streak systems
- Enable Network Effects: Social features, viral loops, community
Improve Win Rate (B2B)
- Refine ICP: Focus on highest-win-rate segments
- Enable Sales: Battlecards, demo environments, ROI calculators
- Handle Objections: Standardized responses to common concerns
Connectable Tools
| Tool Category |
Placeholder |
Purpose |
Example Tools |
| Analytics Platform |
~~analytics |
Auto-collect real-time metric data |
Mixpanel, Amplitude, Segment |
| Spreadsheet |
~~spreadsheet |
Cohort analysis, trend charts |
Google Sheets, Excel |
| Knowledge Base |
~~knowledge base |
Extract benchmarks from past reports |
Notion, Confluence |
| BI Tool |
(~~analytics) |
Dashboard visualization |
Looker, Tableau, Metabase |
Related Skills
- financial-modeling — Integrate metrics into financial models
- fundraise-comms — Include metrics in investor updates
- market-sizing — Reverse-engineer metrics for TAM/SAM achievement
- gtm-strategy — Select key metrics by GTM motion
Tips
- Less is More: Focus on 5-8 core metrics. Tracking 30 kills execution
- Stage-specific Focus: Pre-seed emphasizes Retention, Seed emphasizes Unit Economics, Series A+ emphasizes efficiency
- Cohort Analysis Required: Averages mislead. Cohort analysis reveals true trends
- Benchmarks as Reference Only: Vary by industry/region/model. Compare vs your own history first
- Leading vs Lagging: CAC/LTV are lagging; Pipeline Coverage/Lead Velocity are leading
- Investor Perspective: Rule of 40, Burn Multiple, CAC Payback are most VC-watched
- Consistency Matters: Definition of same metric varies by company. Once defined, maintain consistently