Sales Quota Rep Payback Calculator
A new AE costs $250K-$500K loaded (salary, commission, benefits, ramp). Calculate when they become net-profitable based on quota size, ramp period, and attainment ramp curve.
| OTE / Fully-Loaded Cost | — |
| Annual Quota | — |
| Gross Margin | — |
| Ramp Time | — |
| Steady-State Attainment | — |
| Commission Rate | — |
| Annual ARR (steady state) | — |
| Months to Break-Even | — |
| Year 1 Profit | — |
| Cumulative 36-Month Profit | — |
Rep Payback Math
A typical SaaS AE costs $250K-$500K loaded (base + commission + benefits + tools + onboarding + ramp). They generate revenue through closed deals. Net profit = gross margin on closed deals minus loaded cost. Payback = months to recover loaded cost.
Industry benchmark: rep should generate 3-5x OTE in net new ARR at full productivity. A $350K OTE rep with $1.5M quota at 85% attainment ($1.275M ARR) generates 3.6x — healthy. Below 3x = inefficient; above 5x = under-paid (rep will leave).
Ramp Time Reality
Most AEs take 4-9 months to reach full productivity. Months 1-2: training, no quota credit. Months 3-4: 25-50% of quota. Months 5-6: 50-75%. Months 7+: full productivity. Plan budget for negative cash flow during ramp.
Ramp time affects break-even significantly. A 6-month ramp doubles to 12-month break-even vs no ramp. Sales enablement quality is the biggest lever — strong enablement cuts ramp from 9 to 4 months.
Attainment Distribution
Healthy SaaS sales team has 50-70% of reps hitting quota. Some over (110%+ on top performers), most below 100%. Average attainment 75-85% across the team. If average is below 60%, quotas are too high or product-market fit weak.
When hiring, model conservative attainment (75-85%, not 100%). Reality of monthly variability means quarterly attainment fluctuates. Plan cash flow assuming 75% attainment, celebrate 100%+.
When to Hire vs Pause
Hire when: existing reps are at 90%+ attainment (you're leaving deals on the table), pipeline coverage 4-5x (each existing rep has more pipeline than they can work). Pause when: attainment below 70% (reps struggling), pipeline coverage under 3x (not enough lead volume).
Don't hire your way out of a marketing problem. If reps lack pipeline, fix the funnel first. See our pipeline coverage calculator.