Sales commission calculator
This calculator works out sales commission on a plan with accelerators. Enter quota, revenue closed, the base rate, the accelerated rate above quota and base salary, and it returns commission earned, the effective rate across all revenue, and on-target earnings at plan. The effective rate is the number worth comparing when you are weighing two plans against each other.
Typically 1.3× to 2× the base rate.
Commission earned
$20,400
- Quota attainment
- 85.0%
- Base rate on first $255,000
- $20,400
- Accelerated on $0
- $0
- Effective rate
- 8.00%
- On-target earnings at plan
- $94,000
Accelerators apply only to revenue above quota. The effective rate is total commission divided by total revenue closed, which is the number worth comparing across plans.
Frequently asked questions
How do commission accelerators work?+
An accelerator raises the commission rate on revenue above quota. Revenue up to quota pays the base rate; everything beyond it pays the higher accelerated rate. Accelerators typically sit between 1.3 and 2 times the base rate, and they exist to make over-performance worth chasing rather than optional.
What is an effective commission rate?+
Total commission divided by total revenue closed. It is the single most useful number for comparing plans, because a plan with a low base rate and a steep accelerator can pay better than a flat higher rate — or worse, depending on where attainment actually lands.
Should commission be on a leaderboard?+
Earnings should not be. Ranking reps on commission makes pay public, which usually damages more than it motivates, and on a long cycle it produces a board that barely moves. Rank the activity and outcomes that drive commission instead, and let pay stay private.
How does quota attainment relate to OTE?+
On-target earnings assume 100% attainment: base salary plus the variable component that quota-level performance pays. Attainment above or below that moves actual earnings away from OTE, which is why the distribution of attainment across a team matters more than the average.
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