A basic building block many other SaaS metrics reference indirectly — computed directly from total revenue and user count over the same period.
How it works
Total revenue divided by total users gives ARPU.
What this does not include
This uses a single blended ARPU across all users — many businesses segment ARPU by customer tier or plan type, since a blended average can mask very different revenue contributions across segments.
How to use this calculator
- Enter total revenue and total users for the same period.
A worked example
$500,000 total revenue across 10,000 users: ARPU = 500,000 ÷ 10,000 = $50 per user.
What the variables mean
| Variable | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Total revenue | Revenue over the measurement period |
| Total users | Active user count over the same period |
Edge cases worth knowing
ARPU averages across the whole user base, including light or non-paying users. It can mask a small group of high spenders subsidizing many low-revenue users, so it’s often paired with other metrics rather than read alone.
Zero total users makes ARPU undefined — there’s no user base to divide revenue across, so the calculator returns no result.
Frequently asked questions
How does ARPU relate to LTV calculations?
Many customer lifetime value models start from an ARPU-like monthly (or annual) revenue-per-customer figure as a core input, before applying churn and margin assumptions.
Should ARPU be calculated monthly or annually?
Either works, as long as revenue and user count are measured over the same consistent period — mixing periods (annual revenue against a monthly user count) would distort the result.
Why might ARPU trend downward even as revenue grows?
If user count grows faster than revenue (common when adding many lower-tier or free-to-paid converting users), ARPU can decline even while total revenue increases.
