Software Licensing Benchmarks Report
Customer case study data collected since 2017 shows where licensing savings and avoided costs have been recorded—by industry, size, vendor and region.
Medians from 47 savings records across 35 customers. Dollar equivalents where stated; other currencies unconfirmed. 11 records cover multiple projects or years. Categories under 5 customers are marked small sample.
Executive Summary
Since 2017 we have recorded savings and avoided costs in our customer case studies. This report calculates medians from that data across industries, company sizes, regions, vendors and services. Medians are used so a few large outcomes don't skew the picture.
$3.0M
median savings per record (47 records, 35 customers)
53x
median savings ÷ project cost (46 records; time periods vary)
$40K
median project cost
Amounts are shown as recorded in the case study sheet. Where case studies state yen, euro or Swiss francs, the sheet already uses their published dollar equivalents; those equivalents are approximate, not current exchange-rate conversions. The sheet has no currency column, so currency is unconfirmed for records without an explicit source statement. Savings and project-cost currency alignment remains unverified for those records, which also qualifies the ROI figures.
Key Findings
1. Consumer & Retail Shows the Highest Median—on a Small Sample
Consumer & Retail records show a median of $9.6M (2 customers, 3 records · small sample), followed by Financial Services at $6.1M (2 customers, 3 records · small sample). Technology, with the most customers, shows $3.8M (9 customers, 11 records).
2. EMEA and North America Medians
EMEA records show a median of $3.8M (11 customers, 15 records); North America shows $3.0M (21 customers, 29 records). Dollar equivalents are used where stated in the case studies; currencies for other records remain unconfirmed.
3. Earlier Reviews Leave More Options
A Compliance & Optimization Review before an audit letter arrives gives time to correct deployments and prepare evidence. Once an audit starts, options depend on what has already been disclosed.
4. Size Is Not a Straight Line
Enterprise records show a median of $4.5M (4 customers, 6 records · small sample) and Large $3.5M (14 customers, 20 records). Small organizations ($2.4M) recorded a higher median than Mid-Sized ($1.6M).
Company Size Analysis
Median savings by company size, calculated from the case study log. Savings do not rise evenly with size, and several groups have small samples.
How LicenseFortress defines company size
Every tier below maps to a specific headcount, revenue, and annual enterprise software spend bracket, so you can find the band that matches your organization instead of guessing at labels.
| Tier | Employees | Annual revenue | Annual software spend | Typical licensing profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small | Under 500 employees | Under $50 million annual revenue | Under $1 million in annual enterprise software spend | One or two major publishers, no dedicated software asset management role, and licensing usually handled inside IT or finance. |
| Mid-Sized | 500–2,499 employees | $50 million–$1 billion annual revenue | $1 million–$5 million in annual enterprise software spend | Enterprise-grade complexity — Oracle, Microsoft, VMware, SAP, or Adobe agreements — without a dedicated licensing team to manage it. |
| Large | 2,500–9,999 employees | $1 billion–$10 billion annual revenue | $5 million–$25 million in annual enterprise software spend | Multiple negotiated agreements, active renewal cycles, virtualization and cloud migration in play, and a small central SAM or procurement function. |
| Enterprise | 10,000 or more employees | Over $10 billion annual revenue | $25 million or more in annual enterprise software spend | Multi-vendor, multi-region estates with ULAs or ELAs, M&A activity, and simultaneous audit and renewal exposure across business units. |
| Government/Public Sector | Any headcount — federal, state, local, education, and public health | Budget-funded rather than revenue-driven | Varies by appropriation and contract vehicle | Public procurement rules, contract vehicles, and audit-response obligations that differ from commercial licensing terms. |
These brackets are LicenseFortress segmentation definitions used for benchmarking and reporting. They are indicators, not eligibility requirements — organizations that sit between bands are common, and engagements are scoped to the estate rather than the headcount.
Median Savings by Company Size
Enterprise
$4.5M
4 customers, 6 records · small sample
Large
$3.5M
14 customers, 20 records
Government/Public Sector
$2.6M
3 customers, 4 records · small sample
Small
$2.4M
4 customers, 4 records · small sample
Mid-Sized
$1.6M
10 customers, 13 records
Vendor Landscape
Median savings by vendor from the case study log. Vendors with fewer than two recorded customers are not shown.
Microsoft
Microsoft licensing and audits
Median savings
$2.3M
2 customers, 2 records · small sample
Oracle
Database and middleware licensing
Median savings
$3.8M
30 customers, 36 records
Oracle Java
Java SE subscription
Median savings
$1.5M
10 customers, 10 records
Service Insights
Median savings by service from the case study log. A record can include more than one service.
ArxPlatform Protection
ArxProtect protection plans
Median Savings
$1.7M
Sample
3 customers, 3 records · small sample
Audit Defense
Expert representation during vendor audits
Median Savings
$5.2M
Sample
11 customers, 13 records
Compliance & Optimization Review (COR)
Foundational assessment establishing compliance baseline and optimization roadmap
Median Savings
$2.5M
Sample
19 customers, 20 records
SAM Managed Service
Ongoing compliance monitoring and environment optimization (ArxSecure)
Median Savings
$1.4M
Sample
10 customers, 12 records
Starting Point Matters
Most organizations begin with a Compliance & Optimization Review (COR) to establish their baseline. This foundational assessment reveals the full picture—often leading to Audit Defense or ongoing managed services based on findings.
Regional Trends
Median savings by region from the case study log. North America has the most recorded customers.
APAC
Median savings
$685K
2 customers, 2 records · small sample
EMEA
Median savings
$3.8M
11 customers, 15 records
North America
Median savings
$3.0M
21 customers, 29 records
Your Benchmarking Tool
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