Gross churn vs net growth
Gross churn measures losses from the starting base. Net growth adds new customers back in. Both matter: a business can grow net customers while still having a retention problem.
Example
With 1,000 starting customers and 45 lost customers, gross churn is 4.5%. If 80 new customers joined during the same period, ending customers are 1,035 and net customer growth is 3.5%.
Common mistakes
Use a consistent period, such as monthly or annual churn. Do not mix customers lost from the starting base with cancellations from customers acquired during the period unless that is your intended definition.
Limitations
This page measures customer churn, not revenue churn. For SaaS analysis, also track contraction, expansion, reactivation and cohort retention.
Last reviewed: 2026-05-17