compare

Where they overlap and where they differ

AARRR and the Traction Canvas: what each covers and where they overlap Left: covered by AARRR only. Middle: covered by both. Right: covered by the Traction Canvas only.

Box by box

AARRR: coverage of the ten Traction Canvas boxes How much AARRR covers each Traction Canvas box. Full circle: a core focus. Empty: not covered. This is our own assessment; see all models compared. The short answer: AARRR Pirate Metrics measure a customer funnel: Acquisition, Activation, Retention, Referral and Revenue. The Traction Canvas is the B2B sales playbook that drives the acquisition, revenue and referral stages.

What AARRR does well

Dave McClure, founder of 500 Startups, introduced Pirate Metrics in 2007. The five stages give founders a simple way to see where customers drop out, and they became a standard for product-led and consumer startups. • It gives founders a simple, complete view of the funnel.
• It shows exactly where customers are lost.
• It is easy to track and explain.

How AARRR maps to the Traction Canvas

The Traction Canvas has ten boxes in three zones, completed in order: Learn (Boxes 1 to 5), Earn (Boxes 6 to 9) and Scale (Box 10). Here is how AARRR lines up with it. How AARRR maps onto the ten boxes of the Traction Canvas Where AARRR lands on the Traction Canvas. Faded boxes are not covered. The table below has the details. Acquisition — Traction Canvas: Box 5: Enrolling / Box 6: Trigger Events / Learn, Earn zone. How it connects: Enrolling and Trigger Events bring in the right buyers.

Revenue — Traction Canvas: Box 7: Disqualifying / Box 8: Emotional Favourite / Earn zone. How it connects: Disqualifying and Emotional Favourite turn opportunities into customers.

Referral — Traction Canvas: Box 10: Marketing Moat / Scale zone. How it connects: The Marketing Moat captures word of mouth.

The gap AARRR leaves

AARRR and the Traction Canvas on the road to $1M in ARR and a Series A How far each canvas takes a founder on the road to $1M in ARR and a Series A. Bar strength shows how much of each zone is covered, using the box-by-box ratings above. AARRR measures a funnel but doesn’t tell founders how to move buyers through it. Activation and Retention are product-led stages that mostly happen after the sale, and the Traction Canvas doesn’t cover them.

When to use AARRR, and when to use the Traction Canvas

Use AARRR when you want a dashboard of your funnel, especially for a product-led or consumer business. Use the Traction Canvas when you are a B2B founder selling directly and need to improve acquisition, revenue and referral through conversations, not just track them.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Traction Canvas a replacement for AARRR?

No. AARRR is a set of metrics, and the Traction Canvas is a sales playbook. The canvas improves several of the numbers AARRR tracks.

Does the Traction Canvas work for product-led growth?

It is designed for founder-led B2B sales. Product-led companies can still use the Learn zone, especially early on. See how the Traction Canvas compares with other startup models

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