What is MRR (Monthly Recurring Revenue)?
MRR, short for Monthly Recurring Revenue, is the predictable revenue a subscription business expects to bring in each month from its active subscriptions, expressed as a single monthly figure. It is one of the most watched metrics for any app that sells subscriptions, because it turns a mix of monthly and annual plans into one number you can track over time.
How MRR is calculated
To find MRR, you normalize every active subscription to its monthly value and add them up. A subscriber on a 10 dollar monthly plan contributes 10 dollars. A subscriber on a 120 dollar annual plan contributes 10 dollars as well, because the year is spread across twelve months. The sum across all active subscribers is your MRR. Analysts usually break the change in MRR into parts: new MRR from fresh subscribers, expansion MRR from upgrades, contraction MRR from downgrades, and churned MRR lost when subscribers cancel. Watching those components shows not just whether revenue grew, but why.
MRR versus ARR and actual cash
MRR is closely related to ARR, Annual Recurring Revenue, which is just MRR multiplied by twelve. Both are normalized run rates rather than records of cash in the bank. MRR does not, by itself, account for the platform's cut or refunds, which matters for iOS because Apple takes a commission on App Store sales, so the net you keep is lower than gross MRR. Treating MRR as a forecasting and growth signal, rather than as collected cash, keeps the metric honest.
Why MRR matters and how AppFlight fits
Because subscriptions renew, MRR gives a clearer picture of a healthy app than a single month's downloads or one-time sales. It makes growth, churn, and the effect of pricing changes visible, which is why subscription tools report it prominently. AppFlight builds native Swift and SwiftUI apps and includes a command center for analytics and revenue, and when an app uses an integration like RevenueCat, subscription metrics such as MRR can surface there so you can see how the business is trending.
FAQ
How is MRR calculated?
You normalize every active subscription to a monthly value and add them up. A 120 dollar annual plan contributes 10 dollars of MRR. The total is the sum across all active subscribers, which smooths out annual and monthly plans into one comparable monthly number.
What is the difference between MRR and ARR?
ARR, Annual Recurring Revenue, is simply MRR multiplied by twelve. Both describe normalized recurring revenue; MRR is the monthly view and ARR is the yearly view. Teams with mostly monthly plans tend to watch MRR, and those with annual plans often quote ARR.
Is MRR the same as the money I receive?
No. MRR is a normalized run rate, not cash collected. It also does not subtract platform commission or refunds on its own. For an iOS app, Apple takes a commission, so net revenue is lower than gross MRR.