B2B SaaS marketing spend as a share of ARR: 2026 benchmarks
- The median private B2B SaaS company spends 8% of ARR on marketing and 15% on sales, in SaaS Capital's 2026 survey of more than 1,000 companies.
- Equity-backed companies spend 100% more on marketing and 70% more on sales than bootstrapped ones. Venture-backed companies grew at a median 25% a year, against 20% for bootstrapped ones.
- Sales spend rose from 13% to 15% of ARR in a year. Marketing stayed at 8%.
- 83% of bootstrapped companies were profitable or near breakeven, against 52% of equity-backed companies.
The median private B2B SaaS company spends 8% of annual recurring revenue (ARR) on marketing and 15% on sales. Those figures come from SaaS Capital's 2026 survey of more than 1,000 private SaaS companies. Funding changes the picture: equity-backed companies spend 100% more on marketing and 70% more on sales than bootstrapped ones, and venture-backed companies grow at a median 25% a year against 20%.
All figures on this page come from SaaS Capital's Spending Benchmarks for Private B2B SaaS Companies, published June 10, 2026. It is SaaS Capital's 15th annual survey, completed in March 2026, with more than 1,000 respondents. The retention figure comes from SaaS Capital's 2025 retention research.
How much do B2B SaaS companies spend on marketing as a share of ARR?
A median of 8%, unchanged from the year before. The table gives median spend by function for all respondents.
| Function | Median, % of ARR | Change from prior year |
|---|---|---|
| R&D | 22% | Unchanged |
| Sales | 15% | Up from 13% |
| General and administrative | 15% | Up from 14% |
| Customer support and success | 9% | Up from 8% |
| Marketing | 8% | Unchanged |
| Hosting | 5% | Not stated |
| Professional services cost of goods sold | 5% | Not stated |
| DevOps | 4% | Not stated |
| Other cost of goods sold | 3% | Up from 2% |
Each figure is a median for that function on its own. Medians for different functions are not added together, because the company at the middle for sales is rarely the same company at the middle for marketing.
How does funding change spending?
Sharply. SaaS Capital compares equity-backed companies with bootstrapped ones, and the gap is largest in the go-to-market functions.
| Function | Equity-backed spend compared with bootstrapped |
|---|---|
| Marketing | 100% more |
| Customer success | 100% more |
| Sales | 70% more |
| General and administrative | 64% more |
| R&D | 56% more |
Total median spend was 96% of ARR for bootstrapped companies and 101% for equity-backed ones. In other words, the median equity-backed company spent slightly more than its recurring revenue.
Does higher spend buy faster growth?
Some, at the median. SaaS Capital reports median growth of 20% a year for bootstrapped companies and 25% for venture-backed ones. Equity-backed companies spent 100% more on marketing and 70% more on sales, and venture-backed companies grew five points faster at the median.
Profitability moved the other way. 83% of bootstrapped companies were profitable or within two points of breakeven, against 52% of equity-backed companies. The survey shows how the two groups differ. It does not show that the extra spend caused the extra growth, because the groups differ in other ways as well.
What does a $3M to $5M ARR company spend?
SaaS Capital gives a breakdown for this band in its text. Other bands appear only in a chart that could not be read, so they are not repeated here.
| Function | Median, % of ARR, $3M to $5M ARR |
|---|---|
| R&D | 24% |
| General and administrative | 15% |
| Selling | 12% |
| Customer support and success | 10% |
| Marketing | 8% |
| Hosting | 5% |
| Professional services cost of goods sold | 5% |
| Other cost of goods sold | 3.5% |
| DevOps | 3% |
Marketing holds at 8% in this band, the same as for all respondents. Selling is lower, at 12% against 15%.
What does 8% of ARR mean in dollars?
A worked example helps. This is arithmetic, not a figure from the survey. A company with $5M in ARR spending the median 8% on marketing has a marketing budget of $400,000 a year. At the $3M to $5M band median of 12% for selling, its sales budget is $600,000.
That marketing figure has to cover people, tools, content, events and paid media. What matters for RevOps is whether each dollar can be traced to pipeline. The link from ad spend to revenue is on the ad spend to revenue page.
How should a company use these benchmarks?
As context for a board conversation, not a target. A company spending well above the median on marketing needs a funnel that shows what that spend produces. A company spending well below it needs to know whether it is under-investing or simply efficient.
Three comparisons make the benchmark useful.
- Spend against growth. Compare marketing and sales spend with the growth rate, using the 20% and 25% medians as reference points.
- Spend against retention. SaaS Capital's 2025 research reports a median net revenue retention of 102% for companies with $25,000 to $50,000 in annual contract value. Strong retention makes new-customer spend go further.
- Spend against pipeline. Cost per sales-qualified lead and pipeline by channel show whether the marketing budget is working. The funnel rates are in B2B SaaS funnel conversion benchmarks.
The wider set of board metrics is on the SaaS metrics page.
What are the limits of this data?
SaaS Capital's survey is self-reported by companies that chose to respond, so it is not a random sample of private SaaS. Medians hide wide variation, and the survey does not break spending down by product category or contract size in the text read. The retention research does not state its sample size in the text. Comparisons between bootstrapped and equity-backed companies describe two groups, not the effect of funding.
FAQ
What percentage of revenue should a SaaS company spend on marketing?
SaaS Capital's 2026 survey of more than 1,000 private SaaS companies puts the median at 8% of annual recurring revenue, unchanged from the prior year. Equity-backed companies spent 100% more on marketing than bootstrapped ones. A median is a reference point for comparison, not a target every company should hit.
How much do SaaS companies spend on sales and marketing combined?
SaaS Capital reports separate medians: 15% of ARR on sales and 8% on marketing. Medians for different functions should not be added, because the middle company for sales is rarely the middle company for marketing. A company can compare its own combined figure with each median separately.
Do bootstrapped SaaS companies spend less on marketing?
Yes. In SaaS Capital's 2026 survey, equity-backed companies spent 100% more on marketing and 70% more on sales than bootstrapped ones. Bootstrapped companies grew at a median 20% a year against 25%, and 83% of them were profitable or within two points of breakeven.
Is marketing spend rising in B2B SaaS?
Not at the median. SaaS Capital's 2026 survey reports marketing unchanged at 8% of ARR. Sales spend rose from 13% to 15%, customer support and success from 8% to 9%, and general and administrative from 14% to 15%. R&D was unchanged at 22%.
How much should a $5M ARR SaaS company spend on marketing?
SaaS Capital's median for the $3M to $5M ARR band is 8% on marketing. As arithmetic, 8% of $5M is $400,000 a year. That covers all marketing, including people and tools, not only paid media. The right figure depends on growth targets and how efficiently the funnel converts.
Conclusion
The median private B2B SaaS company spends 8% of ARR on marketing and 15% on sales, according to SaaS Capital's 2026 survey of more than 1,000 companies. Equity-backed companies spend far more on both, and venture-backed companies grew five points faster at the median, though the survey does not show the spend caused it. Equity-backed companies were also much less often profitable. The benchmark is most useful next to the company's own growth, retention and pipeline figures, which show whether its spend is producing revenue.
Sources
- Spending benchmarks for private B2B SaaS companies. SaaS Capital, June 10, 2026.
- What is a Good Retention Rate for a Private SaaS Company in 2025?. SaaS Capital, September 18, 2025.
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