CPA vs. RevShare Lifetime Value Calculator
Compare flat CPA payouts against revenue share earnings over time and find the month RevShare breaks even.
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Breakeven month
Earnings gap at month 12
Earnings gap at month 24
Earnings Projection
Per-customer LTV comparison
Common questions
What is CPA in affiliate marketing?
CPA stands for Cost Per Action. The advertiser pays the affiliate a fixed amount each time a referred visitor completes a defined action — typically a signup, free trial activation, or purchase. Payment is one-time per referral; the affiliate earns nothing from that customer's future purchases. CPA is predictable and front-loaded: you know exactly what each conversion is worth before you send the traffic.
What is RevShare in affiliate marketing?
RevShare (revenue share) pays the affiliate a percentage of every transaction the referred customer makes, for as long as that customer stays active. If the program pays 25% RevShare and a referred customer spends $30/month, you earn $7.50/month from that customer until they cancel. The total payout can far exceed a CPA amount, but it depends entirely on how long customers stay.
How do I calculate RevShare lifetime value?
RevShare LTV for a single referred customer is a geometric series. If monthly churn is c (as a decimal), monthly spend is s, and the RevShare rate is r, then the expected LTV over M months is: LTV = s × r × (1 - (1 - c)^M) / c. For example, with 25% RevShare, $30/month spend, and 8% monthly churn, LTV at month 12 is approximately $23.05. The curve flattens as fewer customers remain active.
Is CPA or RevShare better for affiliates?
It depends on three variables: the CPA amount relative to average RevShare LTV, the customer churn rate, and your time horizon. CPA is better when you need immediate cash flow, when churn is high, or when the CPA amount is comparable to or exceeds the RevShare LTV within a reasonable window. RevShare is better when churn is low, customers have high lifetime spend, and you can wait for the breakeven month. The calculator above shows you the exact crossover point for your specific numbers.
What churn rate should I use if I don't know mine?
Use industry benchmarks as a starting point. SaaS products typically see 3–8% monthly churn for SMB-focused tools and 1–3% for enterprise. Subscription content or consumer apps often run 8–15%. If the affiliate program is in a gambling, gaming, or high-volatility niche, 15–25% is common. When in doubt, run the calculator with your best-guess churn and then again with a rate 5 percentage points higher to see how sensitive your breakeven is to that assumption.