Sales Commission & OTE Calculator

Fifty-fifty is the standard for a closing role, and RepVue's 2026 data puts median Account Executive OTE around $200,000 with sales manager OTE around $285,000. Roles further from the close — SDRs, account managers — usually sit at 60/40 or 70/30, because they influence revenue without owning the decision to sign.

Yes, in nearly every case. Roughly 63% of reps hit full quota, so the plan spends most of its life below the line — and without an accelerator, the rep who could close one more deal in December has no reason to. An accelerator above 100% costs you money only in months where you have already won.

Read the effective commission rate the tool produces and compare it to your gross margin, not your revenue. Ten percent of revenue is unremarkable in a business running 60% margins and ruinous in one running 20%. The plan has to be affordable at the margin you actually deliver at, which is why we ask agencies to model comp and margin in the same conversation.

Because the plan is paying for closed revenue and you need it to pay for profitable revenue. If a rep earns the same on a discounted deal as a full-price one, they will discount — that is rational behaviour, not a discipline failure. Tie some of the variable to margin, or cap the discount a rep can approve without you.

On collection, or on a schedule that follows the cash, if you can make it work culturally. Paying commission up front on a twelve-month retainer means you fund the acquisition cost immediately against revenue that arrives monthly — which is exactly the cash-flow squeeze the payback calculator exists to show you.

Annually at most, and never mid-year without a very good reason. Reps make decisions on months-long horizons and a plan that moves underneath them stops being an incentive and starts being a risk they price in. Model it properly once and leave it alone.