Monthly and annual churn, retention after a year and average customer lifetime.
Monthly customer churn = customers who cancelled during the month ÷ customers you had at the start of it. Count only customers who existed at the start; new sign-ups that month don't change the rate.
Annual churn isn't monthly churn × 12. Losses compound: 5% a month means you keep 95% each month, which is 54% after a year - so annual churn is 46%, not 60%.
Products sold to small businesses and consumers often see 3-7% monthly churn; tools sold to larger companies on annual contracts can be under 1%. Early on, the trend matters more than the number: if churn isn't falling as you improve the product, more marketing will only fill a leaky bucket.
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