Account Manager, expansion revenue
Account manager commission plan template
A 70/30 expansion plan: $800k upsell quota, a modest accelerator, and a monthly cap set at twice the monthly variable.
70/30 split at $140k OTE — 5.25% effective rate on an $800k expansion quota, capped at $7,000/month
- Annual quota
- $800,000
- OTE / base
- $140,000 / $98,000
- Effective rate
- 5.25%
| Attainment | Payout rate | Kicker |
|---|---|---|
| 0% – 100% | 1× | — |
| 100%+ | 1.25× | — |
| Monthly cap $7,000 | ||
Drag the attainment slider, edit the tiers, and see the payout and cost curves respond.
Why the plan is shaped this way
Why the mix leans on base
Expansion revenue usually has several contributors: product usage, the CS team's work, and the customer's own growth all matter before the AM asks for the order. A 70/30 mix reflects that shared ownership. The variable exists to make the expansion number someone's clear responsibility, not to reproduce an AE plan for a different job.
Why this plan has a cap
Caps are a bad idea on new-business plans and a reasonable one here, because expansion has windfalls. When an account triples its seats after a merger, no AM activity caused it, and paying full commission on it is hard to justify. The $7,000 cap is exactly twice the monthly variable, so a genuinely strong month still pays double before the cap applies.
A modest accelerator, no kicker
1.25x above quota keeps some upside without encouraging discounts at renewal time to pull expansion forward. If your expansion motion is genuinely outbound, meaning new use cases sold from scratch into existing accounts, the mid-market AE template is probably the better fit.
What breaks this plan
- Counting renewals in the expansion quota. Keeping revenue and growing it are different jobs, and one blended number hides which of the two is actually happening.
- Setting the cap low enough that it triggers in normal months. A cap that binds at 110% attainment is just a lower commission rate.
- Leaving expansion credit between AM and CS undefined. Decide who owns the number and write it down.
These numbers are a conventional starting point, not a benchmark. Adjust them to your team; the reasoning is what carries over. Related templates: CSM commission plan template · SaaS AE commission plan template. Or read how comp plans are built in Earnest.
Set it up for a real team
The same tiers, kickers, and caps configured here run actual payouts in Earnest — free for up to 5 users, no credit card required.
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