What is this page about: Light tracks Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) through the Contracts module and the SaaS Metrics dashboard. This page explains what data each contract stores, how contract stats and the contracts list are structured, what the different contract statuses mean, how MRR and ARR are calculated on the SaaS Metrics dashboard, and how to add and configure AI summary widgets for your metrics.
On this page
- What the Contracts module tracks
- Contract stats
- Contracts list
- Contract statuses
- SaaS Metrics dashboard
- Adding AI summary widgets
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Related articles
Quick answer: Light calculates ARR two ways. On a single contract, ARR is the manually entered Contract ARR value. On the SaaS Metrics dashboard, ARR is calculated automatically as Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) × 12, using only the recurring billing lines of published contracts.
What the Contracts module tracks
The Contracts module in Light is where Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) is tracked at the individual customer level. Each contract stores the following financial data:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Contract ARR | The annualised contract value, manually entered and used as the ARR figure for that contract |
| Currency | The currency the contract is billed in |
| Contract period | The contract's start and end date, set as a single date range |
| First invoice date | The date billing begins |
| Renewal | The upcoming renewal date for the contract |
| Net terms | The contract's payment terms (e.g. Net 30) |
| Payment type | How the contract is paid: Airwallex, Bank transfer, Direct debit, or Stripe |
Contract ARR is entered manually on each contract, rather than calculated automatically.
Contract stats
Opening any active contract in Light shows three summary stats:
- Contract ARR: the manually entered contract value, labelled "Annualised contract value" on the contract page.
- Total contract value: the total contract amount, split into collected (shown in green) and residual, or not yet collected, amount (shown in orange).
- Next invoice: the date and amount of the next scheduled invoice for the contract.
Contracts list
To see every contract in one place, navigate to Revenue & Invoicing → Contracts in Light. The contracts list includes an ARR column showing the Contract ARR for each contract, and can be sorted by customer, entity, status, start/end date, renewal date, and activation/termination date.
Contract statuses
Every contract in Light has one of four statuses you'll see:
| Status | Description |
|---|---|
| Draft | The contract has been created but not yet published. |
| Active | The contract is live and generating invoices. |
| Pending termination | A termination date has been scheduled for the future. A pending termination can be cancelled, which returns the contract to Active status. |
| Terminated | The contract has ended. |
SaaS Metrics dashboard
The SaaS Metrics dashboard is where Light calculates company-wide MRR and ARR automatically, as opposed to the manually entered Contract ARR values on individual contracts.
How MRR and ARR are calculated on the SaaS Metrics dashboard:
- MRR and ARR are calculated only from the recurring billing lines of published contracts.
- Recurring amounts are normalised to a monthly value after any discounts are applied.
- ARR = MRR × 12.
- One-time billing lines are excluded from both MRR and ARR.
Beyond MRR and ARR, the SaaS Metrics dashboard also provides visualisations of contract performance and other subscription metrics. You can add charts, stats, and AI-generated summaries to build a dashboard view tailored to what you track.
Adding AI summary widgets
An AI summary widget generates a natural-language summary of the charts and stats you select on the SaaS Metrics dashboard.
To add and configure an AI summary widget:
-
Click Edit in the top-right corner of the dashboard.
-
In the action bar that appears at the bottom of the screen, click AI summary (sparkles icon).
-
An empty summary widget is added to your dashboard. Click Configure widget inside it.
-
Click any chart or stat card on the dashboard to add it to the summary. Selected items show a checkmark badge. You can select up to 10 charts per summary; stats have a separate, higher limit.
-
Choose a summary length from the dropdown in the widget header:
- Auto: Light picks the length based on your selected inputs (currently defaults to Balanced).
- Brief: a short, high-level overview.
- Balanced: a moderate level of detail.
- Detailed: a comprehensive summary.
-
Click Apply to generate the summary.
-
Click Save in the top-right corner to save your dashboard changes.
How AI summary caching works: Summaries are cached for 24 hours and shared across your company. If you and a colleague set up a widget the same way, you'll see the same cached summary. Different setups generate different summaries.
To get a fresh summary before the cache expires, hover over the widget and click Regenerate summary (circular arrow icon). This bypasses the cache and generates a new summary from current data and filters.
You can add multiple AI summary widgets to the same dashboard, for example one for revenue trends and a separate one for churn.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between Contract ARR and the ARR shown on the SaaS Metrics dashboard?
Contract ARR is a manually entered value on an individual contract. The SaaS Metrics dashboard's ARR is calculated automatically from the recurring billing lines of published contracts (MRR × 12), so the two numbers can differ.
Does the SaaS Metrics dashboard include one-time charges in ARR?
No. Only recurring lines from published contracts are used, and one-time billing lines are excluded.
Can a Draft contract show up in SaaS Metrics ARR?
No. Only published contracts contribute to the SaaS Metrics dashboard's MRR and ARR calculations.
What happens if I cancel a Pending termination?
The contract returns to Active status.
Are AI summary widgets personalised per user?
No. Cached summaries are shared across everyone at your company who configures a widget the same way, not personalised to an individual user's dashboard layout.
How many charts can I add to one AI summary?
Up to 10 charts. Stats have a separate, higher limit.
Related articles
Was this article helpful?
Thanks for the feedback!