What is client lifetime value?

It is everything one client pays you while they stay with you. A client paying £150 a month for six years is worth £10,800 in fees. Your margin turns that into profit, and profit is the number that decides what you can afford to spend winning a client.

How much should I spend to win a new client?

Less than the profit they bring. A common target is a third of it, so two thirds stays with you. The calculator shows that figure, and the break-even point where winning the client would cost all of the profit.

Why does it ask how many enquiries become clients?

Whether people find you through ads or your website, what comes in is enquiries, not clients. If 3 in 10 enquiries become clients, you can afford three tenths of your cost per client for each enquiry.

Are the starting figures right for my business?

They are rough starting points for each type of firm. Change each one to your own numbers and the result updates as you type.

What happens to the numbers I enter?

They stay in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent unless you choose to send your figures to us.

Free Tool

What is a new client worth? Client lifetime value calculator

Work out what one new client brings in over the years, and how much you can afford to pay to win one, through ads or a new website.

Your business

Your numbers

A client pays you

A client stays for

years

Your margin on that work

Enquiries that become clients

in every 10

Starting figures for a typical accountancy firm. Change them to yours.

One new client is worth

£10,800

in fees over 6 years, of which £5,400 is profit.

You can afford to pay

£1,800to win one client

That keeps two thirds of the profit, a common target.

for each enquiry: £540
the most before you lose money: £5,400

New clients a month

Up to £3,600 a month to win them.

Next: find out what it would take to win those clients in your town, through ads or a new website.

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What this tool checks

✓What one new client brings in over the years
✓How much of that is profit
✓The most to pay to win a client and keep two thirds of the profit
✓What that means for each enquiry
✓The monthly budget for the number of new clients you want
✓Starting figures for accountants, care agencies, nurseries, security and cleaning firms and trades

See how we've helped UK businesses get found. View case studies →

Frequently asked questions

What is client lifetime value?: It is everything one client pays you while they stay with you. A client paying £150 a month for six years is worth £10,800 in fees. Your margin turns that into profit, and profit is the number that decides what you can afford to spend winning a client.
How much should I spend to win a new client?: Less than the profit they bring. A common target is a third of it, so two thirds stays with you. The calculator shows that figure, and the break-even point where winning the client would cost all of the profit.
Why does it ask how many enquiries become clients?: Whether people find you through ads or your website, what comes in is enquiries, not clients. If 3 in 10 enquiries become clients, you can afford three tenths of your cost per client for each enquiry.
Are the starting figures right for my business?: They are rough starting points for each type of firm. Change each one to your own numbers and the result updates as you type.
What happens to the numbers I enter?: They stay in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent unless you choose to send your figures to us.

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