Gross Revenue Retention (GRR)
What is GRR?
GRR is gross revenue retention, the percentage of recurring revenue retained from existing customers over a period, counting downgrades and churn but excluding expansion revenue.
Gross revenue retention isolates losses from an existing revenue base. Because expansion cannot offset those losses, GRR is useful when an overall growth number looks healthy but customers are still cancelling or reducing their subscriptions. Start with the same accounts at both ends of the measurement window.
Also known as: Gross Revenue Retention, Gross Dollar Retention, GDR
Formula
GRR = (Starting MRR - Downgrades - Churned MRR) / Starting MRR | Variable | Meaning |
|---|---|
Starting MRR | Monthly recurring revenue at the start of the period. |
Downgrades | MRR lost to existing customers reducing their spend. |
Churned MRR | MRR lost to customers who cancelled. |
How to use it
- Fix the opening customer cohort and its recurring revenue at the start of the period.
- Measure recurring revenue lost from cancellations and downgrades within that cohort. Keep upgrades, new customers, and reactivations outside this gross retention calculation.
- Subtract those losses from the opening revenue, divide by opening revenue, and express the result as a percentage. Label whether the period is a month, quarter, or year.
Worked example
Hypothetical worked scenario
A fictional company starts a quarter with $100,000 MRR. The opening cohort loses $5,000 to cancellations and $3,000 to downgrades, while other existing accounts add $15,000 through upgrades.
GRR = ($100,000 − $5,000 − $3,000) ÷ $100,000 = 92%. The $15,000 of upgrades does not enter this calculation.
The business lost 8% of the starting recurring revenue even though upgrades could make net retention exceed 100%. The lost revenue needs its own explanation.
Calculate with your numbers
GRR = (Starting MRR - Downgrades - Churned MRR) / Starting MRR | Variable | Meaning |
|---|---|
Starting MRR | Monthly recurring revenue at the start of the period. |
Downgrades | MRR lost to existing customers reducing their spend. |
Churned MRR | MRR lost to customers who cancelled. |
Worked example
- Starting MRR
- $100,000
- Downgrades (contraction MRR)
- $3,000
- Churned MRR
- $5,000
- → Gross Revenue Retention
- 92%
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Open the GRR calculator for a focused view of the inputs.
What the result tells you
Inspect loss by account size and cancellation reason, then compare successive cohorts at the same age. If a single enterprise renewal changes the result substantially, show that concentration beside the rate. This helps distinguish a broad product problem from a small number of large contract events.
Assumptions and common mistakes
- GRR cannot exceed 100% under the definition used here. A higher result suggests expansion entered the numerator.
- Use a complete renewal window when comparing businesses with annual contracts.
- Do not mix monthly revenue losses with a starting ARR denominator. Both must use the same revenue units.
Check how your team defines GRR against these rules.
See a worked MRR reconciliation, from opening to closing MRR, with a downloadable ledger.
Compare related measures
Frequently asked questions
Can a company have strong NRR and weak GRR?
Yes. Expansion in retained accounts can outweigh substantial cancellations or downgrades. GRR keeps those underlying losses visible.
What if churn plus contraction exceeds starting revenue?
Reconcile account-level movements and the cohort scope. That input combination cannot represent the simplified gross retention model; the calculator rejects it.
Sources and methodology
The references below explain the underlying methods. Our worked scenarios use hypothetical figures; they are not company results or current market benchmarks.
- ChartMogul: Gross MRR Retention report
Retention excluding expansion and reactivation.
Found an error or a definition that differs from your reporting? Send a correction with the page URL and the method you use.