Partner Federation Glossary — last updated September 2026
CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost) is the total cost to acquire one paying client — total acquisition spend divided by the number of clients that convert. For partners, it’s the number that decides whether a payout is actually profitable, not just whether it pays out at all.
Formula: CAC = Total acquisition spend ÷ Number of paying clients acquired
Why It Matters for Partners
A CPA rate means nothing on its own — it only tells you something once you compare it against CAC. The CPA Affiliates worked example shows this directly: a $400 CPA payout against $900 in ad spend for one qualified client is a loss on that conversion, not a win. Partners who track CAC properly are the ones who know their real breakeven point instead of guessing from the headline payout rate. Compared against LTV, it also becomes the standard health check for whether a revenue share stream is worth the acquisition spend over time.