| name | saas-metrics-dashboard |
| description | Sets up SaaS metrics dashboards tracking MRR, churn, LTV, CAC, expansion revenue, and cohort retention. Use when building or improving subscription business analytics. |
| allowed-tools | Read Write Glob |
| metadata | {"author":"matthewhitcham","version":"1.0"} |
SaaS Metrics Dashboard
When to Use This Skill
Use this skill when you need to:
- Define and track core SaaS metrics for a subscription business
- Design a metrics dashboard layout with KPIs and visualizations
- Set up cohort retention analysis and revenue tracking
- Create a reporting cadence for stakeholders or personal review
DO NOT use this skill for financial forecasting models, investor reporting decks, or marketing analytics dashboards. This is for core SaaS business health metrics.
Core Principle
TRACK THE METRICS THAT DRIVE DECISIONS — A DASHBOARD WITH 50 METRICS IS A DASHBOARD NOBODY USES. FOCUS ON THE 8-12 NUMBERS THAT TELL YOU IF YOUR BUSINESS IS HEALTHY.
Phase 1: Brief
Required Inputs
| Input | What to Ask | Default |
|---|
| Product and pricing | "What is your SaaS product and what are the plan prices?" | No default — must be provided |
| Current MRR | "What is your current monthly recurring revenue?" | Unknown — establish tracking |
| Billing model | "Monthly, annual, or both? Any usage-based component?" | Monthly subscriptions |
| Data sources | "Where does your billing data live? Stripe, Paddle, custom?" | Stripe |
| Team size | "Who reviews this dashboard? Just you, or a team?" | Solo founder |
| Current tracking | "What metrics do you currently track, if any?" | Revenue only |
GATE: Confirm the brief before defining the metrics framework.
Phase 2: Define Metrics
Tier 1: Must-Track (Daily/Weekly Review)
| Metric | Formula | Why It Matters |
|---|
| MRR | Sum of all active subscription revenue | Core health indicator |
| MRR Growth Rate | (MRR this month - MRR last month) / MRR last month | Velocity of growth |
| Churn Rate | Customers lost / Customers at start of period | Retention health |
| Net Revenue Retention | (MRR start + expansion - contraction - churn) / MRR start | Growth without new sales |
Tier 2: Strategic (Monthly Review)
| Metric | Formula | Why It Matters |
|---|
| LTV | ARPU / Monthly churn rate | Customer lifetime value |
| CAC | Total acquisition spend / New customers acquired | Cost to acquire |
| LTV:CAC Ratio | LTV / CAC | Unit economics health (target 3:1+) |
| Expansion MRR | Revenue from upgrades and add-ons | Growth from existing customers |
| ARPU | MRR / Active customers | Average revenue per user |
Tier 3: Deep Dives (Quarterly)
| Metric | Formula | Why It Matters |
|---|
| Cohort Retention | % of cohort still active at month N | True retention over time |
| Revenue Churn vs. Logo Churn | Revenue lost vs. customers lost | Reveals whether big or small accounts leave |
| Payback Period | CAC / (ARPU x Gross Margin) | Months to recoup acquisition cost |
GATE: Confirm which metrics to include before designing the layout.
Phase 3: Design the Dashboard
Layout Recommendations
Top row (KPI cards): MRR, MRR Growth Rate, Active Customers, Churn Rate
Second row (charts): MRR trend (line chart, 12 months), Revenue breakdown (stacked bar: new, expansion, contraction, churn)
Third row: Cohort retention table (heatmap), LTV:CAC trend
Bottom row: Recent activity feed (new signups, churns, upgrades)
Dashboard Specifications
For each metric, document:
- Metric name and definition
- Data source and calculation method
- Visualization type (number, chart, table)
- Update frequency (real-time, daily, monthly)
- Alert threshold (e.g., churn exceeds 5%)
Tool Recommendations
| Tool | Best For | Price Range |
|---|
| Stripe Dashboard | Basic MRR and churn | Free with Stripe |
| Baremetrics/ChartMogul | Full SaaS metrics | $50-250/month |
| Google Sheets | Custom calculations | Free |
| Notion | Manual tracking for early stage | Free-$10/month |
Phase 4: Polish
1. Reporting Cadence
## Review Schedule
- **Daily:** MRR, new signups, churns (glance at KPI cards)
- **Weekly:** MRR growth rate, trial conversions, support ticket volume
- **Monthly:** Full dashboard review, cohort analysis, LTV:CAC check
- **Quarterly:** Deep dive on retention cohorts, CAC trends, pricing evaluation trigger
2. Alert System
Define automated alerts:
- MRR drops more than 5% month-over-month
- Churn rate exceeds target threshold
- LTV:CAC ratio drops below 3:1
- No new signups for 3+ consecutive days
- Large account cancels or downgrades
3. Quality Checklist
## Dashboard Checklist
- [ ] MRR is tracked and updated daily
- [ ] Churn rate is calculated correctly (logo and revenue)
- [ ] LTV and CAC are defined with clear formulas
- [ ] Net revenue retention is tracked monthly
- [ ] Cohort retention table is set up (minimum 6-month view)
- [ ] Dashboard loads quickly and is not cluttered
- [ ] Alerts are configured for critical thresholds
- [ ] Review cadence is documented and followed
- [ ] All metrics have clear definitions (no ambiguity)
- [ ] Data source is reliable and automated (not manual entry)
Example
Product: Project management SaaS, $19/$49/$99 plans
MRR: $12,400
Customers: 340 active
KPI Card Layout:
| MRR: $12,400 (+8.2%) | Active: 340 (+12) | Churn: 3.2% | ARPU: $36.47 |
Alert example:
"Alert: Monthly churn rate hit 4.1% (target: under 3.5%). Three accounts on the $99 plan canceled this week. Review cancellation reasons in exit surveys."
Anti-Patterns
- Vanity metrics on the dashboard — total signups (all-time) tells you nothing. Track active customers and MRR.
- Manual data entry — if metrics require manual updates, they will go stale. Automate the data pipeline.
- Too many metrics — 8-12 core metrics maximum. Everything else is a report, not a dashboard.
- No definitions — if two people calculate churn differently, the metric is useless. Document every formula.
- Ignoring cohorts — aggregate churn hides whether retention is improving over time. Cohort analysis reveals the truth.
Recovery
- No billing data access: Start with a manual Google Sheet tracker. Log MRR, new customers, and churns weekly until you can automate.
- Too early for meaningful metrics: Track MRR and customer count. Add churn and LTV once you have 3+ months of data.
- Multiple pricing models: Break metrics down by plan tier. Blended averages hide tier-specific problems.
- Metrics look bad: That is the point. A dashboard that only shows good numbers is not doing its job. Identify the worst metric and focus improvement there.
