Tomasz Tunguz Blog · 2015-11-10 · 3859d

Benchmarking Atlassian's S-1 - How 7 Key SaaS Metrics Stack Up

Tunguz analyzes Atlassian's S-1 filing to benchmark the company against 50+ publicly traded SaaS peers across seven key metrics, demonstrating exceptional sales efficiency (12-21% of revenue vs. 50-100% median), high gross margins (83.4%), and profitability—characteristics of a flywheel business model. The analysis projects Atlassian's IPO valuation at $3.6B-$5.3B depending on forward revenue multiples, positioning it as an exemplary case study in SaaS operational efficiency.

14 metrics· Cited 0× in the knowledge base ·Open source ↗

Metrics in this report

Annual Revenue per Customer (ARR/Customer Count)

5594$

average

Atlassian vs Zendesk, LogMeIn, ConstantContact, Xero

Customer Count

11000 to 48000customers

2010 to 2015

Atlassian growth

Forward Revenue Multiple

7.7, 9.0, 10.5, 11.5x

range

Top quartile to premium SaaS comparables (Workday, ServiceNow, Xero)

Free Cash Flow as % of Revenue

15-18%

range

Atlassian

Gross Margin

83.4%

Atlassian

Atlassian

Gross Margin

70.9%

median

SaaS median

High-Value Customers (>$50k ARR)

864customers

count

Atlassian

Net Income as % of Revenue

7.2, 8.8, 2.1%

year-over-year

Atlassian last 3 years

Projected 2016 Revenue

460$M

at 45% growth

Atlassian projection

R&D Spend as % of Revenue

40%

minimum

Atlassian

Sales & Marketing Spend as % of Revenue

12-21%

range

Atlassian last 3 years

Sales & Marketing Spend as % of Revenue

50-100%

median range

Median SaaS company

Sales Efficiency Ratio

2.5-3.2ratio

range

Atlassian

Sales Efficiency Ratio

0.8-1.2ratio

typical range

Typical SaaS company