What is the Commission Structure for SaaS Sales Teams?

The commission structure for SaaS sales teams is the set of rules that determines the variable pay reps earn on top of a base salary. In The Bridge Group’s 2026 survey of 158 B2B companies, median on-target earnings for account executives (base plus variable pay at quota) were $200K. The commission structure could be different but often includes:

• Percentage of revenue: AEs could earn a percentage of the revenue generated; for example, at a 10% rate, a $50,000 annual contract pays $5,000.
• Bonuses for exceeding targets: Bonuses may be given when targets are exceeded, or accelerators can raise the commission rate on revenue above quota.
• Recurring commissions: Commissions could be received as a reward when customers renew subscriptions.

Most SaaS sales teams are basically designed to drive recurring revenue through online subscriptions. A typical structure includes:

• Sales Development Representatives (SDRs): These are the base for the identification and qualification of potential leads.
• Account Executives (AEs): Once the qualification of a lead is qualified, AEs potentially take over, building relationships that guide them through the sales process and closing deals.
• Customer Success Managers (CSMs): After closing a deal, customer success managers get involved. Their responsibilities include maintaining customer satisfaction levels, resolving identified concerns, and overseeing renewal processes.
• Sales Managers: The sales manager is responsible for overseeing the sales process, managing team performance, and setting growth strategies.

A well-integrated SaaS sales compensation plan should align with the target market, goals, and sales cycle length of a business or brand. The experience level of the sales rep and the complexity of the products should be taken into consideration as well.

Compensation structures often correspond with sales rep engagement, talent recruitment, and the alignment of employee efforts toward an objective.

Revenue generation for a SaaS salesperson may vary greatly depending on:

• The salesperson’s role: SDRs tend to have lower quotas than AEs.
• The company’s size and target market: Enterprise deals tend to naturally generate more revenue than business on smaller sales.
• The product’s price point: Highly priced products could lead to higher revenue.

As a benchmark, SaaS companies in The Bridge Group’s 2026 AE research reported a median AE quota of $875K, and median AE on-target earnings across all 158 B2B companies surveyed reached $200K.

Some challenges include:

• Balancing short-term and long-term goals: An excessive emphasis on acquiring new customers may lead to insufficient attention to retaining existing ones.
• Team collaboration: Compensation plans should reflect the need for SDRs and AEs to work together seamlessly.
• Market fluctuations: Compensation plans should reflect flexibility since economic changes potentially affect sales.