Work, pay & shifts
Commission Accelerators and Quota Attainment
Many commission plans describe tiers in terms of quota attainment — “10% above 100% of quota” — rather than dollars. An accelerator is the higher rate that starts once quota is reached. This guide explains attainment, converts attainment tiers into the dollar thresholds a calculator needs, and puts a number on what an accelerator adds.
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Quota attainment
Attainment = sales ÷ quota × 100. $120,000 of sales against a $100,000 quota is 120% attainment; $80,000 is 80%. Plans use attainment so the same tier structure can apply to people with different quotas.
Turning attainment tiers into dollar thresholds
Multiply each attainment threshold by the quota:
| Tier starts at | Quota $100,000 | Quota $80,000 |
|---|---|---|
| 50% of quota | $50,000 | $40,000 |
| 100% of quota | $100,000 | $80,000 |
| 150% of quota | $150,000 | $120,000 |
Enter the dollar figures as each tier’s starting amount in the Tiered Commission Calculator.
What an accelerator is worth
Take a $100,000 quota with progressive tiers of 5% to $50,000 and 7% above it. Adding an accelerator — 10% on sales above $100,000 — changes nothing until quota is reached, then adds 3% of every dollar beyond it:
| Sales | Attainment | With accelerator | Without | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $80,000 | 80% | $4,600.00 | $4,600.00 | $0.00 |
| $100,000 | 100% | $6,000.00 | $6,000.00 | $0.00 |
| $120,000 | 120% | $8,000.00 | $7,400.00 | $600.00 |
| $150,000 | 150% | $11,000.00 | $9,500.00 | $1,500.00 |
Decelerators, caps, and multipliers
- A decelerator pays a lower rate below a minimum attainment, such as 50%.
- A cap stops commission, or the accelerator, at some attainment level.
- Some plans describe the accelerator as a multiplier of the base rate — “2× above quota” on a 5% base is 10%. Convert it to a rate before entering it.
- An accelerator can be progressive (only sales above quota) or bracket (all sales once quota is reached). The difference is large; see the comparison of the two methods.
Questions to ask about your plan
- Is attainment measured on bookings, revenue, or collected cash?
- Is quota annual, quarterly, or monthly — and does attainment carry over?
- Does the accelerator apply only above quota, or to all sales once quota is hit?
- How are returns after quota is reached handled?
Accelerators and Quota FAQ
- What is a commission accelerator?
- A higher commission rate that starts once a salesperson passes a threshold, usually quota, to reward sales beyond it.
- What is a typical accelerator rate?
- There is no standard. Plans set it to make overachievement worthwhile without making the cost unpredictable; a rate between one and a half and two times the base rate is a common way to describe it.
- Does attainment above 100% roll into the next period?
- Only if the plan says so. Most plans reset attainment each period.
- How do I model quota-based tiers in a calculator?
- Multiply each attainment threshold by your quota to get dollar amounts, and enter those as the tier starting points.
- What happens if quota changes mid-year?
- That depends on the plan. Some recalculate thresholds from the new quota for the rest of the year; others keep the original thresholds for sales already booked.
Related guides
- Progressive vs Bracket TiersThe same commission tier table can pay very differently. Compare progressive (marginal) and bracket (retroactive) tiers, the cliff at each threshold, and how to tell which plan you have.
- Designing Commission TiersSet tier thresholds and rates for a sales commission plan: start from target pay, test the cost at low, expected, and high sales, and write the edge cases down before anyone is paid.
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