Jumpcloud
Vendr Presents
The SaaS Trends Report
Q1 2024
Data-backed insights to help you save time and money buying software.
Scroll
to begin
Introduction
Software prices are on the rise, and at the same time, CFOs are exercising heightened scrutiny. So, what does it mean for the SaaS buying landscape when these trends converge?
As buyers and sellers find themselves at odds, negotiations are taking longer, and buying cycles are extending. We know this has made your job harder, so we created a program to help you get a better deal and buy software faster. With Vendr Verified, deals close 50% faster, accelerating the time for buyers to get the tools they need and for sellers to close deals — a win-win.
We're excited to explore these dynamics in the following pages of our SaaS Trends Report. Join us as we analyze what’s happening with new purchases, renewals, and who’s leading the coveted SaaS leaderboard.
Another key happening from this quarter? Vendr is now free. To celebrate, we're offering readers of this report a complimentary premium onboarding session when you create a new Vendr account. Just click here to get started. You can use this report to discover where others are spending on software. Then, when you’re ready to buy, we’ll help you purchase fast and fair.
And if you’re already using Vendr, I'd love your thoughts! Email me at ryan@vendr.com.
Ryan Neu
VendR founder and CEO
The SaaS Leaderboard
Q1 2024
These are the most frequently bought and renewed products on Vendr, organized by leading categories. See who’s leading and who’s rising — based on transaction volume.
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Heading
Identity and Access Management
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner : Q1 2024
Runner Up : Q1 2024
Runner Up : Q1 2024
Identity and Access Management
Cybersecurity
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up : Q1 2024
Runner Up : Q1 2024
Cybersecurity
Project Management
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Project Management
Sales Intelligence and Engagement
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Sales Intelligence and Engagement
Data Science and Analytics
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Data Science and Analytics
Customer Relationship Management
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Customer Relationship Management
Education and Learning Management System
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Education and Learning Management System
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
Data Integration
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Data Integration
Business Intelligence
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Business Intelligence
Version Control
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Version Control
Team Collaboration*
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Team Collaboration*
Job Marketplace and Recruiting
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Job Marketplace and Recruiting
Sales Analytics
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Sales Analytics
Continuous Integration/Delivery Tools
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Continuous Integration/Delivery Tools
Tax Management and Compliance*
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Tax Management and Compliance*
Mobile Device Management
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Mobile Device Management
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
E-Signature
IT Service Management
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
IT Service Management
Application Development
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Application Development
Visual Design
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Visual Design
Sales Enablement*
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Sales Enablement*
Application Performance Monitoring
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Application Performance Monitoring
Market and User Research
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Market and User Research
Winner: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Runner Up: Q1 2024
Compliance
Categories
Key Insights
1.0
This quarter, nine of the top 10 categories were the same as in our 2023 Year in Review, proving they’re essential to modern tech stacks. ERP is new to the top 10, leaping 16 spots YoY, signaling that teams are increasing focus on financial reporting and controls.
2.0
Four new categories made the SaaS Leaderboard this quarter compared to our 2023 Year in Review: Team Collaboration, Tax Management and Compliance, Sales Enablement, and Cloud Computing. These changes point to new emerging priorities. For example, Sales Enablement climbing the ranks points to businesses ramping sales forces.
3.0
For the top 25 categories, purchase volume decreased 23% YoY. With top suppliers experiencing less purchase volume, many are likely to raise or have already raised prices to fill the gap.
4.0
Compound product strategies are a growing focus for suppliers prioritizing stickiness through multiple offerings. On our SaaS Leaderboard, two suppliers have cracked the code by excelling in multiple categories. Atlassian ranks in the top three for Project Management, Data Integration, and Team Collaboration and Linkedin leads in LMS and Job Marketplace and Recruiting. These are the only two suppliers to rank for multiple categories.
More preparation means more savings
Our #1 tip for buyers to achieve savings is to start the buying process early, allowing ample time to capitalize on competitive bids. This quarter, buyers who leveraged competitive bids captured savings on 20% more deals and increased savings 86%, on average.
– Kendall Helblig, Senior SaaS Consultant
Want help buying or renewing SaaS?
Create your free Vendr account to unlock free access to pricing benchmarks, negotiation support, and procurement automation.
Most Popular Q1 Renewals
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Explore Q1’s renewal trends including leading products, dominant categories, buying cycles, and average contract values.
Top 10 Suppliers Based on Renewal Volume
These suppliers were the most indispensable this quarter.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Key insights
1.0
These top 10 suppliers have proven to deliver strong products with high customer satisfaction and low churn. If you prefer to purchase tech that's proven, these products that are renewed most consistently are the "safe bets.”
2.0
The Big 5 continue to dominate. Among these top 10, five have consistently made the top 10 for the past five quarters: Salesforce, LinkedIn, Slack, DocuSign, and ZoomInfo.
3.0
The next 4 aren’t far behind. Zoom, Okta, and GitHub have also secured spots in the top 10 for four of the last five quarters. During the same period, Google has entered the top 10 twice.
4.0
This marks the first top 10 appearance for 1Password, which now leads its competitors with a transaction volume more than triple of any other supplier in its category. This achievement is largely due to high customer satisfaction. Vendr recognized this and, as a result, invited 1Password to join Vendr Verified, meaning you can now buy 1Password faster with added benefits.
Top Categories Renewed
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
These are the categories that buyers renew most, showing what types of software teams rely on most to help their businesses grow.
Key insights
1.0
Many categories climbed 10+ spots this quarter, thanks to market conditions and AI innovation. For example, Tax Management climbing 10+ spots is likely a result of increasing state filing requirements and complexity, coupled with the increase in remote work. Meanwhile, categories such as Content Management and Sales Acceleration reflect an increase in AI-based features.
2.0
Identity and Access Management continues to dominate renewals. Not only did it secure the top spot, but it also achieved 55% more purchases than the second-place category, proving teams see the category as a non-negotiable to remain secure.
3.0
Our top 25 renewed categories show stable investments in teams’ tech stacks. If you didn’t buy or renew these categories in Q1, we recommend looking into them in Q2 to stay ahead and remain competitive.
Renewal ACV Remains Flat YoY
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Average Contract Value (ACV) represents the average price per software contract. Tracking ACV helps us identify shifts in pricing and purchasing strategies.
Key insights
1.0
Renewal ACV remains flat YoY at $33k. However, that doesn’t mean prices aren’t changing. Many software suppliers are raising prices, and as a result, companies are downsizing agreements to meet budget constraints.
Renewal Buying Cycles Are Getting Longer
In Q1, renewing software took buyers 30% longer than it did in 2023, when the average was 53 days. This is most likely due to additional scrutiny from the CFO’s office, which is adding significant time to the renewal process.
Mastering renewals amid rising costs and shrinking budgets
Renewals are taking more time and effort to complete because suppliers are adding price uplifts and many customers need to decrease licenses to meet budget constraints. With these two things in opposition, strategic negotiation is required.
– Taylor Arnold, Senior SaaS Consultant
Not sure how your next renewal is stacking up?
We’ll help you determine if you’re getting a fair deal. Create your free Vendr account for a contract analysis and access to pricing benchmarks.
Trending Net New Purchases
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Explore Q1’s new purchasing trends including leading companies, dominant categories, buying cycles, and average contract values.
Top 10 Suppliers Based on Net New Purchases
These software were the most indispensable this quarter.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Key insights
1.0
While renewals indicate which products are consistently popular, new purchases reveal where buyers are investing for the first time or switching providers to these market leaders. Dominance is shown when companies can top both charts. This quarter, four products did that: Salesforce, LinkedIn, Google, and 1Password.
2.0
The top new purchase list indicates where there’s momentum. For example, this quarter Linksquares tripled its QoQ transaction volume on Vendr after announcing new AI features in January. Linksquares, KnowBe4, Workday, and Wiz entered the top 10 for the first time, with all but Wiz climbing 10+ spots to reach this ranking.
3.0
Linkedin is the only supplier to top the net new purchase list for a year straight, reflecting the strength of its compound product strategy and leadership in multiple categories.
Top Categories Purchased Net New
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
These are the categories that buyers are rushing toward, signaling how the modern tech stack is evolving.
Key insights
1.0
Among the top 25 categories, Incident Management made the biggest climb this quarter, doubling its new purchase volume. Interestingly, this category doesn’t have a current leader; six suppliers tied for first place this quarter, showing there is room for a leader to emerge. In addition to Incident Management, Contract Management, CRM, Communication, and Collaboration Suites also climbed 10+ spots to land in the Top 25.
2.0
YoY, the top 25 categories saw a 6% decrease in new purchase volume. This indicates that making new purchases has become more challenging, as CFOs tighten spending restrictions.
3.0
In the top new purchased products list, just two suppliers remain the same YoY (6Sense and Linkedin). Meanwhile, 56% of top purchased categories remained the same. This shows while some categories are sticky, buyers are open to trying new products and evolving their tech stacks.
Net New ACV Remains Flat YoY
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Average Contract Value (ACV) represents the average price per software contract. Tracking ACV helps us identify shifts in pricing and purchasing strategies.
Key insights
1.0
ACV increased 35% QoQ — the most significant jump we’ve seen in the past year. It’s important to remember that when ACV increases, another metric typically worsens. For example, close rates may decrease or churn may increase. This quarter, we saw the impact of increased ACV affecting the buying cycle, which grew 17% longer.
Net New Sales Cycles Grew 17% Longer in Q1
Net new purchases took 17% longer in Q1 than they did in 2023, when the average was 41 days. Similar to renewal buying cycles extending, this is likely due to growing scrutiny from CFOs.
Despite incentives, buyers prefer single-year deals
This quarter, the primary trend for new purchases was conducting analyses to identify alternative solutions at lower costs. Despite suppliers offering discounts for multi-year terms, single-year contracts reigned supreme. This is a reflection of businesses’ desire to uphold flexibility, enabling them to reassess alternatives.
– Mustaq Ahmed, Senior SaaS Consultant
Save big on your next new software purchase with Vendr.
Vendr offers free help for every net new negotiation at zero cost. With an average savings of $14,452 per transaction, it’s our ultimate no-brainer. Create a free account to start saving today.
Introducing Vendr Verified:
The New Way to Buy Software
Vendr Verified Protects Your Software Purchases
The SaaS landscape is rapidly changing. But some headlines remain the same: prices are rising, and it’s taking longer to buy software.
We know this has made your job harder, so we created a program to help you get a better deal and buy software faster.
Vendr Verified is the only buyer protection program that helps you buy and renew the best products at the best prices, without the games.
We know this has made your job harder, so we created a program to help you get a better deal and buy software faster.
Vendr Verified is the only buyer protection program that helps you buy and renew the best products at the best prices, without the games.
When you buy through Vendr Verified, you’re buying from sellers that we’ve given our stamp of approval for their commitment to pricing integrity and fast transactions.
We’re so confident in these purchases, that you receive our Great Price and Satisfaction Guarantees as an added benefit.
We’re so confident in these purchases, that you receive our Great Price and Satisfaction Guarantees as an added benefit.
Top 10 Vendr Verified Net New Purchases
Share to LinkedIn
Share to X
Copy link
Link copied
Share
Buyers are relying on us to purchase from these popular companies.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Key insights
1.0
Only companies in the top 1% of SaaS are invited to join the Vendr Verified program. In the top 10, Netsuite, 6Sense, and Rudderstack recently joined Vendr Verified, meaning you can now buy them faster than ever before.
2.0
Vendr Verified products also appeared on the overall top 10 for net new and renewals. When you’re buying Vendr Verified products, make sure you unlock your Vendr Verified benefits before purchasing.
Vendr Verified Purchases Close 50% Faster
In Q1, Vendr Verified purchases closed 50% faster compared to the average buying cycle for a new purchase, which was 48 days.
How Vendr Verified helps lower Customer Acquisition Cost
This quarter, Clouded Judgement released new data: CAC Payback Period† is up 65% over the last three years.
This means it’s taking 65% longer for companies to break even after acquiring a customer. CAC Payback Period† combined with high churn, slowed growth, and increasing sales and marketing costs is not sustainable for many companies.
This means it’s taking 65% longer for companies to break even after acquiring a customer. CAC Payback Period† combined with high churn, slowed growth, and increasing sales and marketing costs is not sustainable for many companies.
What does this mean? Software sellers are becoming significantly less efficient. Meanwhile, there are countless sales tools designed to help companies sell more efficiently.
But simply adding more sales tools is not the answer. Fixing CAC requires a new distribution channel. That's what Vendr Verified is for – to make sure you buy the right things for your business, quickly, easily, and at a fair price.
But simply adding more sales tools is not the answer. Fixing CAC requires a new distribution channel. That's what Vendr Verified is for – to make sure you buy the right things for your business, quickly, easily, and at a fair price.
† Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is the sales and marketing cost spent to earn a new customer.
† CAC Payback period is the time it takes to recover the costs of acquiring a new customer.
Instilling confidence in every software purchase
We've seen software buyers reluctant to move fast in the past because they don't have all the insights to know they're getting a good deal. With the Vendr Verified benefits, they're protected from both the pricing and satisfaction perspectives.
– Alli Cheaney, Principal SaaS Consultant
Our Favorite Free Products
In celebration of Vendr being free, we asked some of our leaders: What’s your favorite free product? Here’s what they said:
Brex enables us to set budgets and monitor corporate spend while giving business leaders the financial flexibility to pivot when needed. Brex's free capabilities allow us to create a foundation for internal controls with the option to add features as the business scales.
– Elizabeth Ingham, Controller
Libby is an absolute treasure of a free product! I am able to request my favorite books from my local library to be delivered directly to my Kindle. It saves me time and removes all barriers to me getting direct access to knowledge through reading.
– Lizzy Rosen, VP, Customer Success
FireShot is my favorite free product — so much so that I use it multiple times per day! It helps me take screenshots of the product directly in my browser so I can easily share them as we're developing and debugging software issues.
– Rachel Decker, Director of Product
TablePlus is an exceptional database management tool that simplifies the process of working with databases. Its intuitive and user-friendly interface makes it easy to navigate and manage multiple databases simultaneously.
– Matt Hodgson, CTO
Final Thought
Vendr has collaborated with thousands of suppliers and customers to process more than 35,000 software transactions, which forms the basis of this report.
We hope the insights in this report help you save money and time on your upcoming software purchases. But here’s the thing: while these insights are a great start, they’re not enough to streamline your entire purchasing process. That’s why we made Vendr free — so you have everything you need to buy software fast and fair.
What excites us most about our free offering is that as more people join our platform and we process more deals, our data becomes even more powerful. Want help with your next purchase? Sign up here or email me at ryan@vendr.com.
Ryan Neu
VendR founder and CEO