Account Executive, mid-market SaaS
SaaS AE commission plan template
A 50/50 mid-market AE plan: $1M quota, accelerators at 100% and 150%, and a kicker for hitting quota. This is the plan the calculator loads by default.
50/50 split at $150k OTE — $75k base, $75k variable, 7.5% effective rate on a $1M quota
- Annual quota
- $1,000,000
- OTE / base
- $150,000 / $75,000
- Effective rate
- 7.50%
| Attainment | Payout rate | Kicker |
|---|---|---|
| 0% – 100% | 1× | — |
| 100% – 150% | 1.5× | 10% at 100% |
| 150%+ | 2× | — |
Drag the attainment slider, edit the tiers, and see the payout and cost curves respond.
Why the plan is shaped this way
Why 50/50
An even split is the standard starting point for mid-market AEs because the rep runs the deal from first call to close, so a large share of their pay can reasonably depend on the outcome. More base makes the quota matter less; more variable makes every slow quarter a personal cash-flow problem for the rep. Move off 50/50 only if your own retention or hiring data gives you a reason.
Why the accelerator starts at 100%
Revenue above quota costs the company less to win, since base salary and overhead are already covered by the first million. That makes it affordable to share more of the upside, and it keeps reps selling after they hit their number. Here the rate is 1.5x from 100% to 150% of quota and 2x beyond that.
What the kicker is for
The 10% kicker pays a one-time bonus for crossing 100%. Without it, a rep at 96% near month-end has a mild incentive to hold their next deal for the following month, because the accelerator pays the same either way. A lump sum for finishing the month at quota removes that incentive.
No cap
Capping an AE plan tells your best performer to stop selling once they reach the limit. If a very large month worries finance, put numbers on it first: at 200% attainment this plan pays $17,813 on $166,667 of revenue, a 14.4% cost of sale.
What breaks this plan
- Setting the quota higher than the pipeline supports. If reps can't realistically reach 100%, the accelerator and kicker never come into play and the plan is effectively just a lower commission rate.
- Paying monthly on annual contracts without a clawback policy. This template assumes bookings stick; you need a written rule for what happens when a customer cancels in month two.
- Paying the kicker twice when a rep's attainment crosses 100% more than once in the same period. It should pay once per period.
These numbers are a conventional starting point, not a benchmark. Adjust them to your team; the reasoning is what carries over. Related templates: Enterprise AE commission plan template · Account manager 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.
Start for free