How to Calculate SaaS Unit Economics in Google Sheets (Free Template)

If you're running a SaaS startup, unit economics are your lifeline.

CAC, LTV, churn, payback period — these metrics tell you if each customer is profitable or if you're burning cash on unprofitable growth.

The problem? Most founders calculate these in Excel spaghetti. Formulas break, cohorts get mixed up, and you waste hours rebuilding.

Here's a better way: use a dedicated unit economics tracker in Google Sheets.

What you need to track:

1. MRR — monthly recurring revenue (new + expansion - contraction - churn)
2. Churn rates — logo churn (customers lost / customers at start) and revenue churn (churned MRR / previous month's total MRR)
3. CAC — total sales & marketing spend divided by new customers acquired
4. LTV — average MRR per customer divided by monthly churn rate (annualized)
5. Payback period — CAC divided by monthly gross margin per customer

How to build it in Google Sheets:

Step 1: Input sheet
Columns: Month, New MRR, Expansion MRR, Contraction MRR, Churned MRR, Customers at Start, New Customers, Churned Customers.
Formulas: Total MRR = New + Expansion - Contraction - Churned. Customers at End = Start + New - Churned.

Step 2: Churn calculations
Logo churn rate = Churned Customers / Customers at Start (monthly).
Revenue churn rate = Churned MRR / (New MRR + Expansion MRR + previous total MRR).

Step 3: Unit economics
Average MRR per customer = Total MRR / Total Customers.
CAC = Sales & Marketing Spend / New Customers.
LTV = (Avg MRR per customer / Monthly Churn Rate) * 12.
LTV/CAC ratio = LTV / CAC (target > 3x).
Payback = CAC / (Avg MRR per customer * Gross Margin).

Step 4: Visualize
Create a dashboard with MRR trend line, churn rates dual-axis chart, and LTV/CAC bar chart. This makes investor decks easy.

I've packaged the exact template I use with my clients into a ready-to-use Google Sheet. It includes cohort analysis, 6 dashboard charts, and 10 pre-filled months of sample data.

Get the SaaS Unit Economics Calculator → [PRODUCT LINK]

It's $27 — less than an hour of your time rebuilding from scratch. Works in Google Sheets and Excel, no macros needed.