Price Testing
B2B SaaS Pricing Glossary
Price testing is the practice of systematically experimenting with different price points, structures, or presentations to measure their impact on conversion, revenue, and willingness to pay. Methods range from A/B tests on pricing pages to conjoint analysis and Van Westendorp surveys.
Definition
Price testing in B2B SaaS takes several forms. The most common is A/B testing on pricing pages — showing different prices or plan structures to different visitor segments and measuring conversion rates. However, true pricing A/B tests are harder than product A/B tests because the sample sizes needed for statistical significance are large, and charging different customers different prices for the same product raises ethical and legal concerns.
More practical approaches include testing pricing page presentation (annual vs. monthly default, tier ordering, feature emphasis), running Van Westendorp or purchase simulation studies with prospects, and analyzing win/loss data across different price quotes in sales-assisted deals. The goal is to replace gut-feel pricing decisions with data.
Why It Matters for B2B SaaS
Most SaaS companies set prices once and rarely revisit them, leaving significant revenue on the table. Research from ProfitWell shows that companies who actively test and iterate on pricing grow 2-3x faster than those who set and forget. Even small pricing changes — a 1% improvement in monetization — can drive 12.7% improvement in bottom-line profit, making price testing one of the highest-leverage growth activities available.
FAQs
Can you A/B test SaaS pricing?+
Yes, but with caveats. Testing pricing page layout, default billing period, and feature presentation is straightforward. Testing actual price points is more sensitive — charging different customers different prices can damage trust. Most SaaS companies get better results from qualitative research (willingness-to-pay studies) combined with testing how prices are presented rather than the prices themselves.
How often should a SaaS company test its pricing?+
Leading SaaS companies revisit pricing quarterly and make meaningful changes at least once or twice a year. This does not mean changing prices every quarter — it means reviewing whether current pricing reflects the value you deliver and testing improvements to packaging, presentation, and positioning on an ongoing basis.
Deep Dives on Price Testing
Want pricing decisions backed by real customer data?
The PACE System starts with deep customer research — willingness-to-pay studies, Jobs-to-be-Done interviews, and purchase simulations — so your pricing is built on evidence, not guesswork.
Learn About the PACE System