The Economics of SaaS Pricing: An Integrated Framework of Theory and Practice

Abstract

Pricing is one of the most relevant and complex decisions for Software as a Service (SaaS) companies, directly influencing revenue, customer retention, and business model sustainability. Despite a growing body of literature on the subject, existing studies predominantly address isolated dimensions, without offering an integrated view that articulates these dimensions into an operational analytical model. This article systematizes the main SaaS pricing models through the lens of microeconomic theory and behavioral economics and proposes the Three-Dimensional SaaS Pricing Framework (FTP-SaaS), which integrates three dimensions: Market Structure, Pricing Architecture, and Behavioral Calibration. Drawing on the framework, testable theoretical propositions are derived that formalize relationships among demand heterogeneity, network externalities, cognitive biases, and financial performance. The study concludes that effective SaaS pricing requires an integrated and adaptive approach that combines microeconomic rigor, behavioral sensitivity, and the capacity for continuous revision considering observed performance metrics.