Most B2B SaaS companies spend 10–12% of revenue on marketing
The median marketing spend across 275 companies sits at 10–12% of annual revenue — but that number shifts significantly based on company size, funding type, and growth rate.
7–9%
25th percentile marketing spend
10–12%
Median (50th pct) across all B2B SaaS
13–15%
75th percentile marketing spend
% of annual revenue allocated to marketing — distribution of respondents
1–3%
0%
4–6%
8%
8%
7–9%
18% ← 25th pct
18%
10–12%
27% ← 50th pct (median)
27%
13–15%
23% ← 75th pct
23%
16–18%
17%
17%
18–21%
15%
15%
>21%
3%
3%
📈
High performers spend more
Companies that exceeded revenue targets spent 13–15% while those that missed targets stayed at 10–12%.
🚀
VC firms outspend PE on marketing
VC-backed companies had a median of 13–15%, while PE-funded SaaS ran a more conservative 10–12%.
Smaller firms can spend up to 17%. Firms above $500M in revenue typically allocate just 7–9%.
Finding 02 — Sales vs. Marketing Budget Ratio
Marketing gets roughly one-third of the combined S&M budget
The median allocation puts marketing at 31–40% of the combined sales and marketing budget — but this ratio varies widely by GTM motion, customer segment, and growth profile.
% of combined S&M budget allocated to marketing only
1–10%
3%
3%
11–20%
17%
17%
21–30%
24% ← 25th pct
24%
31–40%
27% ← 50th pct
27%
41–50%
16% ← 75th pct
16%
51–60%
8%
8%
>60%
5%
5%
🏢
Enterprise sellers allocate less to marketing
Companies selling to enterprise can drop as low as 11–20% for marketing — they invest more in sales headcount for complex accounts.
📊
Low performers underinvest in marketing
Companies that missed revenue targets were more likely to spend only 11–20% on marketing relative to sales.
Finding 03 — Budget Allocation by Category
The 40-45-15 rule: people, programs, and technology
Across the sample, marketing budgets split roughly 40% to people, 45% to programs, and 15% to technology — but the mix shifts based on company stage and GTM motion.
Budgets shift from programs to people as companies scale
Smaller companies tend to outsource marketing functions. As they grow, in-house headcount takes priority over agency spend.
💻
PLG companies spend the most on tech
Product-led growth companies can allocate up to 25% on technology — reflecting heavy reliance on self-service and automation.
Finding 04 — Budget by Channel
Events dominate spend — but high-growth companies bet on paid
Events take the largest share of the marketing programs budget at a median 18%, but high-growth and high-performing companies shift spend to paid search and paid social.
% of marketing programs budget by channel (low / mid / high performers)
Events
Low
15%
Mid
18%
High
22%
Paid Search
Low
10%
Mid
14%
High
16%
Content Marketing
Low
10%
Mid
15%
High
22%
Website Optimization
Low
10%
Mid
15%
High
20%
Channel spend by GTM motion — PLG vs SLG vs Hybrid
25%
PLG → Paid Search
24%
SLG → Sales Enablement
25%
PE → Content Mktg
22%
Enterprise → Events
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Key Takeaways
What this means for marketing leaders
Five high-level conclusions from the 2025 Budgets & Spending data every CMO should consider.
1
You can't cut your way to growth
Both high-growth and high-performing companies allocated more to marketing — not just as a share of revenue, but also as a share of the combined S&M budget. The data consistently shows spend correlates with performance.
2
Brand awareness matters as much as demand gen
Companies that exceeded revenue targets spent nearly as much on brand awareness as on demand gen. Low performers over-indexed on demand while neglecting brand — a pattern consistently seen in underperforming companies.
3
Paid search and paid social are levers for high-growth companies
High-growth and high-performing companies consistently spent more on paid search and social. Low-growth, low-performing SaaS tended to over-invest in events instead.
4
Mid-market selling offers the highest growth ceiling
Despite many companies moving up-market, the highest growth rates in the data come from companies selling to mid-market. A mid-market volume strategy may be more effective than chasing enterprise deals exclusively.
5
Enterprise GTM requires more total resources
Selling to enterprise delivers outsized returns but demands more spending — especially on people (up to 55% of marketing budget) and resource-intensive channels like events.
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OA
Omar Akhtar — Founder & Principal Analyst, Benchmarker
Formerly Head of Research at Altimeter · Associate Partner at Prophet · Writer, Fortune Magazine · Co-author, Winning Through Platforms
