Key Performance Indicator (KPI)
A measurable metric that indicates how well a company is performing against its most important objectives — the numbers that actually drive decisions.
The KPI sparkline grid shows trends for all your key metrics at a glance.
What is Key Performance Indicator (KPI)?
KPIs are the handful of metrics that best capture the health and progress of your business. For a startup, typical KPIs include MRR, growth rate, burn rate, runway, churn rate, and customer count.
The key word is "key" — KPIs should be limited to 5-8 metrics that truly matter. Tracking too many metrics dilutes focus. The best KPIs are actionable (you can do something about them), measurable (objective, not subjective), and aligned with your current stage and strategy.
KPIs should be reviewed weekly or monthly and shared with the team. Transparency around KPIs creates alignment — everyone knows what matters and can see how their work contributes to the numbers that count.
Why it matters
You can't improve what you don't measure, but you also can't focus if you're measuring everything. KPIs give you a dashboard for your business — a quick glance that tells you whether things are on track or need attention.
For startups, choosing the right KPIs at the right stage is critical. Pre-product-market-fit, you might track activation rate and retention. Post-PMF, you shift to growth rate and unit economics. At scale, you track burn multiple and efficiency metrics.
Example
A Series A SaaS startup tracks 6 KPIs: (1) MRR: $45,000, (2) MRR growth: 10%/month, (3) Net burn: $55,000/month, (4) Runway: 14 months, (5) Customer churn: 3.5%/month, (6) LTV:CAC: 3.2:1. These six numbers give the founder and board a complete picture of business health.
How RunwayCal helps
RunwayCal's Mission Control displays all your financial KPIs in one view — runway, burn rate, MRR, cash position, and more. The KPI sparkline grid shows trends at a glance, and weekly digest alerts flag when KPIs move outside expected ranges.
Common mistakes
- 1Tracking too many metrics and calling them all KPIs (if everything is a KPI, nothing is)
- 2Choosing vanity metrics (total signups, page views) instead of actionable metrics (activated users, revenue)
- 3Not updating KPIs as the company evolves (seed-stage KPIs are different from growth-stage KPIs)
See all your KPIs in one place
RunwayCal's Mission Control shows your financial KPIs with sparkline trends — so you always know whether the business is on track.
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