What is Monthly Active Users (MAU)?

Monthly Active Users (MAU) is a metric that measures the total number of unique users who have performed a meaningful action within a product or service during a 30-day period. It is a common measure of a product's overall reach and engagement.

For Startups: For consumer apps, social media platforms, and other ad-supported or freemium businesses, MAU is a primary indicator of scale and network effect. A consistently growing MAU is a strong signal of product-market fit and user adoption.

For SaaS: While still relevant, B2B SaaS companies often focus more on metrics like paid seats or active accounts, as these are more directly tied to revenue. However, for product-led growth (PLG) companies, MAU can be a crucial top-of-funnel metric.

Calculation: Count the number of unique users who performed a key action (e.g., logged in, created content) in the last 30 days.

Example: A social media app has 1 million unique users log in and interact with content in a given month. Its MAU for that month is 1 million.