Churn Rate
Churn Rate is the percentage of customers or revenue lost within a defined period, typically monthly or annually. It is calculated by dividing the number of customers lost during the period by the total customers at the start of that period. For B2B SaaS companies, gross revenue churn and net revenue churn are both tracked: gross churn measures absolute customer losses, while net churn accounts for expansion revenue from existing accounts. CRM systems generate the data inputs for churn rate calculations, contract renewal dates, account health scores, license counts, making the CRM a critical tool for both measuring churn and operationalizing the retention strategies designed to reduce it.
Churn rate is the percentage of customers (or revenue) lost over a period, the inverse of retention. For subscription and SaaS businesses it is one of the most watched metrics, because high churn quietly cancels out new sales. Tracking churn in the CRM and tying it to account health, usage, and support history lets teams spot at-risk accounts early and intervene before the renewal.
Frequently Asked Questions
The percentage of customers or recurring revenue lost over a given period. It is the opposite of retention rate.