What changed

SaaS Capital published its 2025 B2B SaaS Retention Benchmarks, its 14th annual survey, in September 2025. More than 1,000 private B2B software companies responded in the first quarter of 2025, and retention was measured from December 2023 to December 2024.

  • The medians. Net revenue retention (NRR) was 101% and gross revenue retention (GRR) was 91%.
  • What each measures. NRR includes upsells, cross-sells and price increases. GRR leaves them out, so it cannot exceed 100%.
  • Larger contracts, higher gross retention. Companies with annual contract values above $250,000 had a median GRR of 95%. Below $250,000 it was about 91%.

What it could put at risk

Revenue

At a GRR of 91%, a business with £20m of recurring revenue would lose about £1.8m a year from its existing customers before any upsell, cross-sell or price rise. An NRR above 100% can sit alongside that loss, because additions from customers who stay can cover it.

Cost

Revenue that leaves usually has to be replaced, and replacing it takes sales and marketing effort.

Cash

A forecast that assumes renewals is exposed if some are missed. Lenders and buyers commonly look closely at recurring revenue.

Continuity

A few large upsells can offset many small losses, so a single average can hide which customers are leaving and why.

Our view

We think most boards should see both numbers. NRR shows whether revenue from existing customers is growing. GRR shows how much of it is kept.

We would then split both by customer size, product and the year the customer joined. The problem is often concentrated in one segment, and the fix differs by segment.

Last, we would read the churn log. For each customer that left, ask when the first sign appeared, who owned the account and what was done.

This reflects one survey of private B2B software companies, grouped by contract value. It is not a forecast and may not apply to other sectors.

Three questions for the board

  1. What are our gross and net retention for each of the last three years, and how do they compare with companies with similar contract sizes?
  2. Which customers left last year, when did we first see it coming, and who owned each account?
  3. Who is accountable for retention, and what are they measured on?

Sources

SaaS Capital: 2025 B2B SaaS Retention Benchmarks (September 2025)

Sources accessed on 13 October 2026.

Photo: Jakub Żerdzicki on Unsplash.

Important information. This article is general information for business readers. It is not legal, financial, accounting or investment advice, and it does not take account of your circumstances. Figures and quotations come from the sources listed, which we have not independently audited, and are given as at the date of publication. Illustrations use assumed figures and are not forecasts, client results or guarantees. References to other organisations do not mean they endorse Elea Partners or have any relationship with it.