Live simple vs discounted customer lifetime value with a gross vs net-of-CAC twin and a churn → lifespan ladder for retention literacy.
Planning sketch only. Not GAAP/IFRS LTV, audited metrics, valuation, or investment advice. Align definitions with your finance team.
By Ahmet C. Toplutaş·Site owner & editor · Business tools
Last updated May 21, 2026 · Reviewed May 21, 2026 · Planning estimates only - not tax, medical, or investment advice
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Customer lifetime value (CLV / LTV) asks how much contribution a customer is worth over their expected stay. A simple model divides monthly contribution by monthly churn. A discounted model present-values the same contribution path with survival decay and a discount rate.
This page's framing is a simple ↔ discounted twin, with a gross ↔ net-of-CAC twin, a churn → lifespan ladder, and a contribution peel. It is not the CAC spend stack, not the payback recovery clock, and not the cash-flow runway board.
Decision framing: “How large is lifetime contribution before and after discounting, and how much is left after CAC?”
Planning sketch only. Not GAAP/IFRS LTV, audited SaaS metrics, valuation, or investment advice. Align definitions with your finance team. See our disclaimers.
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Gross CLV on this board is the discounted lifetime contribution before acquisition cost. Net CLV subtracts CAC so you see value left after paying to win the customer. Leave CAC blank if you only want the lifetime twins.
Tip: if CAC is unclear, close spend on the CAC calculator, then paste the blended CAC here for the net twin.
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Expected lifespan is roughly 1 / monthly churn (capped at 120 months on this sketch). The ladder holds ARPU, margin, and discount fixed while stepping churn through common marks so you can see how retention stretches both months and discounted CLV.
It is retention literacy, not a cohort forecast. Real customers churn in waves; this board uses a constant monthly rate.
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Contribution peel, simple close, and discounted path (conceptual).
Example: $100 ARPU, 70% margin, 5% monthly churn → CM = $70, simple CLV = $1,400, lifespan ≈ 20 months. Discounting pulls the present value below $1,400; subtract CAC for the net twin.
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Sibling unit-economics boards for acquisition cost, recovery timing, and revenue.
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Scenario A: SaaS mid. $100 ARPU, 5% churn, 70% margin, $300 CAC, 10% discount. Read the simple ↔ DCF twin, then net of CAC.
Load Sticky: 2% churn lifts lifespan toward 50 months and widens both CLV twins. Watch the ladder highlight lower-churn rungs.
Scenario B: High churn. 10% monthly churn compresses lifespan to about 10 months. Simple CLV still looks tidy on a napkin; discounting and CAC make net thinner fast.
Scenario C: Enterprise. High ARPU with low churn and a large CAC. Gross DCF can look strong while net depends on whether CLV:CAC clears your internal bar.
Scenario D: Blank CAC. Clear CAC and keep only the lifetime twins when you are still shaping pricing and retention before acquisition spend is known.
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Stop here for lifetime-contribution literacy and simple vs discounted intuition. Hand off for acquisition cost stacks, payback months, or cash timing. For board reporting and fundraising, use your finance definitions and audited data.
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It peels monthly contribution (ARPU × gross margin), then shows a simple undiscounted CLV beside a discounted present-value CLV. A gross vs net-of-CAC twin subtracts acquisition cost when you enter CAC, and a churn → lifespan ladder shows how expected months and value stretch as churn falls.
Simple CLV is monthly contribution divided by monthly churn (an undiscounted margin model). Discounted CLV present-values expected monthly contribution with survival decay and your annual discount rate. The haircut between them is the teaching point of this board.
Gross CLV is the discounted lifetime contribution before acquisition cost. Net CLV subtracts CAC so you see value left after paying to win the customer. Leave CAC blank if you only want the lifetime contribution twin.
At fixed ARPU and margin, it estimates expected lifespan (about 1 / monthly churn) and both CLV models at common churn marks (10%, 7%, 5%, 3%, 2%) plus your rate. It is retention literacy, not a cohort forecast.
In practice teams use CLV and LTV interchangeably for customer lifetime value. This page uses CLV in the UI and treats LTV as the same literacy idea.
CAC payback asks how many months of contribution recover acquisition cost. This board asks how large the lifetime contribution is, with or without discounting, and after CAC. Use both for unit-economics literacy.
No. It is a planning sketch only. Not GAAP/IFRS LTV, audited metrics, valuation, or investment advice. Confirm definitions with your finance team and see our disclaimers.
LIVE CLV BOARD
Simple vs DCF →Scene presets
Avg revenue per customer / month
For DCF twin
Blank = skip net-of-CAC twin
CONTRIBUTION PEEL
ARPU × margin → contribution. Lifespan ≈ 1 / monthly churn (capped at 120 mo).
SIMPLE ↔ DISCOUNTED TWIN
Simple
$1,400
Discounted
$835.6
Discount haircut 40.3% from simple to DCF.
GROSS ↔ NET OF CAC
Gross (DCF)
$835.6
Net of CAC
$535.6
CLV:CAC 2.79× (discounted CLV / CAC). Secondary readout; build CAC on the CAC board if spend stack is unclear.
CHURN → LIFESPAN LADDER
Ladder shows discounted CLV at each churn mark with your ARPU, margin, and discount.
Updates as you type. Share writes board state; typing does not rewrite the address bar. Leave CAC blank if you only want lifetime contribution twins.
Discounted CLV
$835.6
Net $535.6 · simple $1,400
Discounted CLV present-values expected monthly contribution with churn survival and your discount rate. The simple twin ignores discounting so you can see the haircut; net of CAC subtracts what you paid to win the customer.
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