Target CPA and CAC
Calculator.
We separate the cost of an order from the cost of a new customer.
Your assumptions
Illustrative defaults only, never Further or client figures. Currency is AUD, excluding GST. Enter 20 for 20%. Optional fields can stay blank or zero. Your inputs stay on this page.
Scenario result
Target order CPA
A$30.00
- Customer CAC ceiling
- A$70.00
- First-order pre-ad contribution
- A$50.00
- Approximate effective CAC
- N/A
A$30.00 is the most a single order can cost to win and still hit your margin. The first order itself only leaves A$50.00. Across a customer's life you can go to A$70.00, so the gap between the two is what repeat business is buying you.
Approximate effective CAC assumes a compatible blended CPA and new-customer order share. Attribution, repeat orders and timing can distort it; use actual acquired-customer counts where possible.
The maths
Order CPA allowance = 100 - 50 - (20% × 100) = 30 AUD.
CAC ceiling = 50 + (2 × 30) - 40 = 70 AUD.
Approximate effective CAC = 0 / (0 / 100).
Before you use it
CPA counts orders; CAC counts acquired customers. Repeat contribution excludes acquisition spend. Enter repeat expectations separately from the lifetime profit you want to retain.
This is a planning scenario, not a forecast or financial advice. Compare it with your actual order and customer records before changing spend.
Questions worth asking
How are order CPA and customer CAC different?
Order CPA divides spend by orders. CAC divides acquisition spend by newly acquired customers. Repeat customers can place orders, so the two measures aren't interchangeable.
Can I use the approximate effective CAC?
Use it only as a rough check with the same period and spend basis. Dividing blended order CPA by new-customer order share assumes compatible attribution and ignores timing differences.
Keep working through the numbers
Put the numbers to work.
We can look at the assumptions with you and decide what to test next.