# Software Development Services — Meta ads research Category research. Brand directory deferred. Edition: October 2026. Page updated: 2026-10-11. ## Account AOV aggregate No publishable AOV benchmark. - Status: unavailable_insufficient_cohort - Scope: The exact category cohort does not support a publishable AOV aggregate. - Status reviewed: 2026-10-11T14:11:48.519456+00:00 - Period: No publishable aggregate; underlying reporting period not supplied Median and middle 50% of account-level average order values. Each account value is purchase ROAS multiplied by cost per purchase in USD. Successful classifications, including manual corrections, with positive finite spend, purchases, ROAS and cost per purchase. Accounts are counted once with equal weight. Quartiles use linear interpolation. Root cohorts include direct root classifications and their child categories; exact-child cohorts exclude parent and sibling categories. The source selects the highest-spend coverage row per account among snapshots dated within the preceding 30 days; the underlying reporting period is not supplied. This is a dated aggregate advertising-data snapshot, not business-wide AOV or a census. Source: [Madgicx Research & Labs](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#benchmark) Directory status: deferred. Final brand research and logo placement are pending. ## Software revenue metrics Definitions only; no ACV, MRR or ARPU benchmark or measured correlation is supplied. ### MRR — Monthly recurring revenue Subscription revenue normalized to one month across a business. One-time charges are excluded. MRR = sum of monthly recurring subscription amounts Source: [Stripe · Monthly recurring revenue](https://stripe.com/resources/more/what-is-monthly-recurring-revenue) ### ARPU — Average revenue per user Revenue per user over a defined period. For subscription comparisons here, the denominator is active paying subscribers and the numerator is MRR. Monthly subscription ARPU = MRR ÷ active paying subscribers Source: [Stripe · Subscription ARPU](https://support.stripe.com/questions/calculating-average-revenue-per-user-in-billing) ### ACV — Annual contract value The recurring value of one customer contract normalized to a year, excluding one-time charges. It measures contract size, not total company revenue. ACV = recurring contract value ÷ contract duration in years Source: [Stripe · Annual contract value](https://stripe.com/au/resources/more/annual-contract-value-acv-in-saas) ## Research questions ### Should product discovery and software delivery share one service offer? Thoughtworks separates strategy, design, delivery and modernization services. Name the commissioned stage and deliverable in the landing page. A discovery engagement and a full product build do not automatically have comparable fees or sales cycles. [Source](https://www.thoughtworks.com/what-we-do/product-development) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-development-scope-segmentation) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. Should product discovery and software delivery share one service offer? Thoughtworks separates strategy, design, delivery and modernization services. Name the commissioned stage and deliverable in the landing page. A discovery engagement and a full product build do not automatically have comparable fees or sales cycles. Source: https://www.thoughtworks.com/what-we-do/product-development Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-development-scope-segmentation ### Can a discovery workshop request count as a software delivery sale? Thoughtworks describes discovery as work to align scope and understanding before development. Track workshop enquiries, commissioned discovery and signed delivery work separately. Interest in a workshop does not establish the value of a full build. [Source](https://www.thoughtworks.com/en-us/insights/blog/agile-project-management/run-successful-discovery) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-development-discovery-conversion) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. Can a discovery workshop request count as a software delivery sale? Thoughtworks describes discovery as work to align scope and understanding before development. Track workshop enquiries, commissioned discovery and signed delivery work separately. Interest in a workshop does not establish the value of a full build. Source: https://www.thoughtworks.com/en-us/insights/blog/agile-project-management/run-successful-discovery Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-development-discovery-conversion ### What should a development-services value comparison make explicit? Endava describes engineering and product development services tailored to client context. Compare actual contracted scope, deliverables and charge periods. A vendor service page does not supply a typical project fee or justify annualizing an enquiry value. [Source](https://www.endava.com/industries/technology) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-development-fee-basis) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. What should a development-services value comparison make explicit? Endava describes engineering and product development services tailored to client context. Compare actual contracted scope, deliverables and charge periods. A vendor service page does not supply a typical project fee or justify annualizing an enquiry value. Source: https://www.endava.com/industries/technology Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-development-fee-basis ### What can software development creative demonstrate without an invented outcome metric? Thoughtworks lists prototype, design and delivery work. Show the actual artifact or engineering process offered and identify the service stage. Do not borrow a vendor's unrelated client-case result as a guaranteed result for every engagement. [Source](https://www.thoughtworks.com/what-we-do/product-development) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-development-creative-artifact) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. What can software development creative demonstrate without an invented outcome metric? Thoughtworks lists prototype, design and delivery work. Show the actual artifact or engineering process offered and identify the service stage. Do not borrow a vendor's unrelated client-case result as a guaranteed result for every engagement. Source: https://www.thoughtworks.com/what-we-do/product-development Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-development-creative-artifact ### Is an AOV benchmark available for this category? No publishable AOV benchmark is available. The exact category cohort does not support a publishable AOV aggregate. Parent and sibling benchmarks are not substituted. [Source](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#benchmark) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-benchmark-status) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. Is an AOV benchmark available for this category? No publishable AOV benchmark is available. The exact category cohort does not support a publishable AOV aggregate. Parent and sibling benchmarks are not substituted. Source: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#benchmark Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-benchmark-status ### What is MRR for a software business? Subscription revenue normalized to one month across a business. One-time charges are excluded. MRR = sum of monthly recurring subscription amounts Definitions only; no ACV, MRR or ARPU benchmark or measured correlation is supplied. [Source](https://stripe.com/resources/more/what-is-monthly-recurring-revenue) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-mrr) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. What is MRR for a software business? Subscription revenue normalized to one month across a business. One-time charges are excluded. MRR = sum of monthly recurring subscription amounts Definitions only; no ACV, MRR or ARPU benchmark or measured correlation is supplied. Source: https://stripe.com/resources/more/what-is-monthly-recurring-revenue Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-mrr ### What is ARPU for a software business? Revenue per user over a defined period. For subscription comparisons here, the denominator is active paying subscribers and the numerator is MRR. Monthly subscription ARPU = MRR ÷ active paying subscribers Definitions only; no ACV, MRR or ARPU benchmark or measured correlation is supplied. [Source](https://support.stripe.com/questions/calculating-average-revenue-per-user-in-billing) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-arpu) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. What is ARPU for a software business? Revenue per user over a defined period. For subscription comparisons here, the denominator is active paying subscribers and the numerator is MRR. Monthly subscription ARPU = MRR ÷ active paying subscribers Definitions only; no ACV, MRR or ARPU benchmark or measured correlation is supplied. Source: https://support.stripe.com/questions/calculating-average-revenue-per-user-in-billing Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-arpu ### What is ACV for a software business? The recurring value of one customer contract normalized to a year, excluding one-time charges. It measures contract size, not total company revenue. ACV = recurring contract value ÷ contract duration in years Definitions only; no ACV, MRR or ARPU benchmark or measured correlation is supplied. [Source](https://stripe.com/au/resources/more/annual-contract-value-acv-in-saas) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-acv) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. What is ACV for a software business? The recurring value of one customer contract normalized to a year, excluding one-time charges. It measures contract size, not total company revenue. ACV = recurring contract value ÷ contract duration in years Definitions only; no ACV, MRR or ARPU benchmark or measured correlation is supplied. Source: https://stripe.com/au/resources/more/annual-contract-value-acv-in-saas Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-acv ### Does purchase AOV measure MRR, ARPU or ACV? These describe contract and recurring revenue economics. No purchase AOV benchmark is supplied for this category. Definitions only; no ACV, MRR or ARPU benchmark or measured correlation is supplied. [Source](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#software-metrics) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-aov-and-recurring-revenue) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. Does purchase AOV measure MRR, ARPU or ACV? These describe contract and recurring revenue economics. No purchase AOV benchmark is supplied for this category. Definitions only; no ACV, MRR or ARPU benchmark or measured correlation is supplied. Source: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#software-metrics Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-aov-and-recurring-revenue ### Can I download this industry research? The exports section provides this edition in Markdown and JSON, along with a research index. This private draft is not licensed for public redistribution. [Source](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#reuse) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-download-research) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. Can I download this industry research? The exports section provides this edition in Markdown and JSON, along with a research index. This private draft is not licensed for public redistribution. Source: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#reuse Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-download-research ### How should I cite a finding from this page? When reuse is permitted, credit Madgicx Research & Labs and link to the exact source. Keep its snapshot date and scope. This private draft is not licensed for public redistribution. [Source](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#reuse) · [Answer permalink](https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-cite-research) Citation: Madgicx Research & Labs. Software Development Services. How should I cite a finding from this page? When reuse is permitted, credit Madgicx Research & Labs and link to the exact source. Keep its snapshot date and scope. This private draft is not licensed for public redistribution. Source: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#reuse Answer: https://madgicx.com/labs/industries/software-technology-platforms/software-development-services#answer-cite-research