SaaS Metric
Net Revenue Retention (NRR)
Definition
Net revenue retention (NRR), also called net dollar retention (NDR), measures how much recurring revenue you keep from an existing customer cohort over a period, including expansion and after subtracting contraction and churn — but excluding new customers. NRR = (starting MRR + expansion − contraction − churn) ÷ starting MRR. Above 100% means the cohort grows on its own; best-in-class B2B SaaS sits around 120%+.
Formula
NRR = ((starting MRR + expansion MRR − contraction MRR − churned MRR) ÷ starting MRR) × 100
Benchmark
NRR above 100% is good; 110%+ is strong; 120%+ is best-in-class for B2B SaaS. Below 100% means the existing base is shrinking before new sales.
How NRR works
NRR starts with a cohort of customers and their MRR at the beginning of a period, then tracks only that cohort to the end. Upgrades add expansion MRR; downgrades subtract contraction; cancellations subtract churn. Crucially, brand-new customers acquired during the period are excluded — NRR isolates how the existing base behaves.
NRR above 100% means expansion from existing customers more than offsets contraction and churn, so revenue grows even with zero new sales. That is the hallmark of a durable subscription business and a key driver of valuation multiples.
NRR vs. GRR
Gross revenue retention (GRR) uses the same cohort but ignores expansion, so it is capped at 100% and shows how much you keep before upsell. The gap between NRR and GRR is the contribution of expansion revenue. A company with 90% GRR and 120% NRR is leaning heavily on upsell to mask underlying churn.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good NRR for SaaS?
NRR above 100% is good — the existing customer base grows without new sales. 110%+ is strong and 120%+ is best-in-class for B2B SaaS. Below 100% means the base is contracting and you must acquire new customers just to stay flat.
How is NRR calculated?
NRR = (starting MRR + expansion − contraction − churn) ÷ starting MRR, measured for an existing customer cohort and excluding new customers. Multiply by 100 for a percentage.
What is the difference between NRR and GRR?
GRR (gross revenue retention) excludes expansion and is capped at 100%; it shows how much revenue you retain before upsell. NRR includes expansion and can exceed 100%. The difference between them quantifies how much expansion revenue is offsetting churn.
Related metrics
Gross Revenue Retention (GRR)
Gross revenue retention (GRR) measures the recurring revenue you keep from existing customers excluding expansion. Learn the GRR formula, benchmarks, and how it differs from NRR.
Churn Rate
Churn rate is the percentage of customers or revenue lost in a period. Learn the customer churn and revenue churn formulas, healthy SaaS benchmarks, and how to reduce it.
Expansion Revenue
Expansion revenue is additional recurring revenue from existing customers via upgrades, seats and cross-sells. Learn how it drives net negative churn and NRR above 100%.
SaaS Quick Ratio
The SaaS quick ratio measures growth efficiency: new + expansion MRR divided by churned + contraction MRR. Learn the formula, what a ratio of 4+ means, and benchmarks.
Track this automatically
Connect Stripe and RetentionLens computes NRR for you — with cohorts, trends and churn-risk scoring. Start on the free tier.
Benchmarks are general SaaS ranges and vary by segment, stage and business model. Last reviewed 2026-05-30.