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Is your pipeline big enough for your goal?

Enter your revenue goal, the total value of the deals you have open, your win rate and a typical deal size. The calculator returns your coverage, the pipeline required and the number of opportunities that would close the gap.

The revenue you need to close in the period.

Open opportunities that could close in the same period.

The share of pipeline value you close. 0 to 100.

What one closed deal is usually worth.

The starting numbers are an example. Replace them with yours. The result updates as you type, and nothing you type leaves this page or is saved.

Your pipeline covers the goal 2 times, and at a 30% win rate you need $240,000 more.

Coverage
2x
Pipeline divided by goal
Pipeline needed
$600,000
3.33x the goal
Gap
$240,000
Still to find
Opportunities needed
12
New opportunities of the typical size
Goal, pipeline and pipeline needed
Revenue goal
$180,000
Open pipeline
$360,000
Pipeline needed
$600,000

How it is worked out

coverage = open pipeline divided by revenue goal

pipeline needed = 100 times revenue goal divided by win percentage

gap = pipeline needed minus open pipeline, never below zero

opportunities needed = gap divided by typical deal size, rounded up

Pipeline coverage is a multiple. A result of 2.50x means the open pipeline is worth two and a half times the goal. It is rounded to two decimals.

The pipeline you need follows from your win rate by value, the share of pipeline value that ends up closed. At a 25% win rate you need four times the goal; at 50% you need two times. The gap is how much of that is still missing, and the last figure turns the gap into a count of deals of your typical size, rounded up to a whole deal.

Measure all four numbers the same way, for example contract value for each, and for the same period. Count only open opportunities that could close inside that period.

Worked by hand

The same sum with the starting example, one step at a time. Check your own numbers against it.

  1. Coverage: $360,000 of pipeline divided by a $180,000 goal is 2 times.
  2. Pipeline needed: 100 times $180,000 divided by a 30% win rate is $600,000, which is 3.33x the goal.
  3. Gap: $600,000 needed minus $360,000 in the pipeline leaves $240,000 still to find.
  4. Opportunities: $240,000 divided by a typical deal of $20,000, rounded up to a whole deal, is 12 opportunities.

How to read the result

  • A result of 1.00x means the pipeline equals the target, so every opportunity would have to close. Almost no team plans that way.
  • The multiple you need follows from how often you win. Take one and divide it by the fraction of qualified opportunities you close: if you close about one in four, you need about 4x. That is an example of the arithmetic, not a benchmark.
  • Coverage below the multiple your win rate implies means the target needs more pipeline, a longer horizon or a lower number. Coverage above it means the target looks reachable on the numbers you entered.
  • A gap of zero means your pipeline already meets the need at that win rate, so no new opportunities are required. A win rate of 100% means every dollar of pipeline closes, which is rarely how it goes.
  • The goal has to be above zero. With no goal there is nothing to cover, so the calculator asks for one. The win rate must be above zero and no more than 100, and the deal size above zero.

Questions

What counts as pipeline?
Open opportunities that could close within the same period as the target, valued the same way as the target. Leave out deals that are already closed or have stalled.
What multiple should I aim for?
It follows from how often you win. Take one and divide it by the fraction of qualified opportunities you close. A one in four win rate points to about 4x. We publish no industry average.
Why does the target have to be above zero?
Coverage divides pipeline by the target. A target of zero has no answer, so the calculator asks for a number above zero.
Which win rate should I enter?
What fraction of pipeline value you closed in earlier periods, measured the same way as the pipeline. Use your own history. If you have none yet, enter a rough estimate and treat the answer as a range to test.
Why is the win rate by value and not by count?
The goal and the pipeline are both amounts of money, so the rate that connects them has to be one too. A team that wins many small deals and loses big ones has a count rate that overstates its value rate.
How is the number of opportunities worked out?
The gap divided by your typical deal size, rounded up to a whole opportunity. If the gap is exactly zero, no new opportunities are needed. Without a deal size above zero the calculator cannot give a count.
Does this send my numbers anywhere?
No. The calculation runs in your browser, nothing is sent over the network, and nothing is saved when you leave the page.