Reverse Calculator

How Much Can You Pay to Acquire?

With a $384 LTV and a 3:1 target ratio, you can afford up to $128 to acquire each customer, retaining $256 of value. At a conservative 2:1 you should cap CAC at $192. Pay more than $384 and you lose money on every customer.

Results

Visualization

Cashbizly provides illustrative business estimates only. Results depend on your inputs and assumptions and are not accounting, tax, or legal advice. Consult a CPA or financial advisor before major decisions. Tax-year figures (mileage, QBI, SEP, etc.) are labelled by year and should be verified at IRS.gov.

How It Works

Max CAC = LTV / Target Ratio. This is the reverse of the LTV:CAC ratio and sets your acquisition budget ceiling. A 3:1 ratio is a common healthy benchmark; 1:1 means breaking even on acquisition (unsustainable), 5:1+ may mean you are under-investing in growth.

What Should You Do?

Scenario 1: raising LTV to $600 at 3:1 lifts max CAC to $200. Scenario 2: a 5:1 discipline caps CAC at $76.80 — safe but possibly leaving growth on the table. Scenario 3: if CAC already exceeds LTV, stop spending and fix retention or channel.

Frequently Asked Questions

What ratio should I target?

3:1 is common; below 1:1 is unsustainable, above 5:1 may signal under-investment. Match to your stage.

Does this include margin?

Use profit (margin-adjusted) LTV so the cap reflects real money, not revenue.

What if CAC is already too high?

Improve conversion/retention or pause channels; see our CAC and LTV tools.

Authoritative References

Investopedia — LTV:CAC — LTV:CAC benchmark interpretation.
Corporate Finance Institute — Unit Economics — CAC ceilings from LTV.