What is Revenue per Rep?

The definition of revenue per rep is a sales productivity metric that calculates the average amount of revenue generated by each individual sales representative over a specific time period. It’s a powerful way to evaluate the efficiency, consistency, and overall contribution of each quota-carrying rep on your sales team.

Unlike total revenue, which shows team-wide performance, revenue per rep zeroes in on individual productivity. This allows sales leaders to identify top performers, detect underperformance early, and benchmark team health against industry standards or internal targets.

Importantly, this metric doesn’t focus on activity volume, but on real business outcomes. It is a direct measure of how effectively your sales organization is turning effort into revenue. Whether you’re building your team, investing in enablement, or optimizing performance, revenue per rep is one of the best metrics to guide smart, data-driven decisions.

How to Calculate Revenue per Rep (With Formula)

Revenue per Rep is simple to calculate but rich in strategic insight. The formula is:

Revenue per Rep = Total Revenue ÷ Number of Sales Reps

Let’s walk through an example. Suppose your sales team generated $2 million in revenue last quarter and included 10 full-time quota-carrying reps:

$2,000,000 ÷ 10 = $200,000 per rep

When calculating revenue per rep, make sure to:

• Count only full-time, active reps (excluding reps in ramp or support roles).
• Choose a consistent timeframe (monthly, quarterly, or annually).
• Segment by region, product line, or sales role if needed.

This calculation gives you a clean view of productivity that’s not tied to subjective inputs or quota variability. It helps answer important questions like:

• Are we getting enough ROI per rep?
• Which teams or segments are underperforming?
• Is rep productivity trending up or down over time?

Revenue per rep is especially valuable for headcount planning. If you’re projecting future revenue, understanding how much each new rep is expected to contribute helps create accurate hiring models and budget forecasts.

Why Revenue per Rep Matters in Sales Productivity

Revenue per rep is one of the most actionable metrics for evaluating sales performance. Why? Because it focuses on outcomes, not effort. While metrics like calls made or meetings booked show how busy reps are, only revenue per rep reveals how much business they’re actually closing.

This makes it invaluable for:

• Spotting top and bottom performers quickly and objectively
• Justifying investment in new hires, tools, or enablement programs
• Tracking the ROI of training, onboarding, or marketing support
• Forecasting team output with confidence during planning cycles

It also highlights where there’s untapped potential. If your average revenue per rep is stagnant or declining, it’s a signal to re-evaluate your pipeline quality, sales process, or resource allocation.

Why it works:
Revenue per rep is versatile and context-rich. Unlike quota attainment, revenue per rep provides a grounded view of actual performance. It’s a great diagnostic tool that helps CROs and RevOps leaders understand not just what’s happening, but why.

Revenue per Rep vs. Quota Attainment: What’s the Difference?

Though related, revenue per rep and quota attainment serve very different purposes in sales analysis.

• Revenue per rep is an absolute metric. It tells you the actual revenue generated by each rep, regardless of what their target was.
• Quota attainment is a relative metric. It shows what percentage of their assigned goal a rep has achieved.

Revenue per Rep Formula:

Total Revenue ÷ Number of Sales Reps

Quota Attainment Formula:

(Actual Revenue ÷ Assigned Quota) × 100

If a rep generates $250,000 in a quarter against a $500,000 quota, their quota attainment is 50%. That may seem low, but if the team average revenue per rep is only $150,000, they’re actually overperforming in terms of productivity.

In this case:

• Revenue per rep tells you they’re contributing above average.
• Quota attainment shows they’re behind goal, but that could reflect unrealistic expectations or territory issues.

Together, these two metrics provide balance:

• Use revenue per rep to measure baseline productivity.
• Use quota attainment to evaluate progress toward goals.

Smart sales leaders track both. Revenue per rep gives insight into scale and actual output, while quota attainment helps align performance with planning and compensation frameworks.