# The 70/20/10 Rule for Marketing Budgets: What It Means and When to Ignore It

> The 70/20/10 rule puts 70% of the marketing budget into proven channels, 20% into promising adjacent bets and 10% into experiments. A worked example on a $1.6M budget, when the split works, when it fails, and the 3-3-3 rule.

Written by [Aleksandra Korczynska](https://us.linkedin.com/in/aleksandra-korczynska-b6ab8485) — CMO with 10+ years experience managing marketing budgets at B2B SaaS companies.

- Canonical HTML version: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule
- Part of: [How to Create a Marketing Budget: The Complete Planning Guide](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide), chapter 5 of 12
- Last updated: Sep 2026
- ~7 min read

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The 70/20/10 rule allocates 70% of the marketing budget to channels and programs with a proven CPA, 20% to promising bets adjacent to what already works, and 10% to experiments with no track record. It is a portfolio heuristic for balancing safe and speculative spend, not a benchmark for how much to spend. This chapter shows the split on a real budget, where it holds, where it breaks, and how to build it into the budget structure so it can be tracked.

## Contents

1. [What the 70/20/10 rule says](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#what-the-rule-says)
2. [A worked example on a $1.6M budget](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#worked-example)
3. [When the rule works](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#when-it-works)
4. [When to ignore it](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#when-to-ignore-it)
5. [The 3-3-3 rule, 80/20 and other splits](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#other-splits)
6. [How to apply it in your budget structure](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#how-to-apply-it)

---

## What the 70/20/10 rule says

Source: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#what-the-rule-says

| Share | Bucket | What goes in it | What you know about it |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 70% | Proven | Channels and programs that hit target CPA last year: paid search on branded and core terms, the events that produced pipeline, the content program that ranks | Conversion volume, CPA and scalability limits from last year's data |
| 20% | Adjacent | Extensions of what works: a proven channel in a new market, a new format on a platform that already converts, a second conference in a vertical that worked | A credible CPA estimate, because the mechanism is known |
| 10% | Experimental | Channels, platforms or tactics with no internal track record | A hypothesis and an evaluation date, nothing more |

The split was popularized by Coca-Cola's 2011 "Content 2020" strategy (70% low-risk content, 20% innovative, 10% high-risk) and mirrors the 70/20/10 model Google used for engineering time. Neither was a budgeting study; the ratio spread because it gives a defensible answer to the question every CEO asks at some point: how much of this is a bet?

## A worked example on a $1.6M budget

Source: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#worked-example

Apply it to acquisition spend, not to the whole budget. Headcount and tools are not bets; they are the cost of running the program. The example company from the [budgeting methods chapter](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budgeting-methods.md) has a $1.6M budget of which $850k is acquisition spend (paid media, promotion, contractors).

70/20/10 applied to $850k of acquisition spend inside a $1.6M budget. Headcount ($620k) and tools ($130k) sit outside the split.

| Bucket | Amount | Example line items | Evaluation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Proven (70%) | $595,000 | Paid search $260k, LinkedIn ABM $120k, two flagship conferences $90k, content and SEO program $125k | Monthly against target CPA |
| Adjacent (20%) | $170,000 | Paid search in the DACH market $80k, LinkedIn video on the working audience $40k, a vertical conference $50k | Quarterly; CPA within 1.5× the proven channel's |
| Experimental (10%) | $85,000 | Podcast sponsorships $35k, a partner co-marketing program $30k, community sponsorship $20k | One quarter each; stop or promote to adjacent |

> **Tip:** Write the evaluation rule into the line item before the money is spent. "Podcast sponsorships: 3 months, 40 MQLs at under $900 CPA or stop" is a bet. "Podcast sponsorships: $35k" is a hope.

## When the rule works

Source: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#when-it-works

- **The 70% is genuinely proven.** If last year's channels are still above target CPA, the 30% of speculative spend is affordable because the base is carrying the target.
- **Growth is the mandate.** Companies with an exploratory approach (see the growth and risk approaches on the hub) can run 60/25/15 because new channels compound; the split is a floor for experimentation, not a cap.
- **Each bet has a timeline.** The rule only works as a portfolio if losing bets are stopped inside a quarter and the budget moves back to the proven bucket.
- **It is tracked.** Without a new-versus-existing tag on line items, the split is a slide, not a budget.

## When to ignore it

Source: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#when-to-ignore-it

- **In a cut year.** When the total is reduced, the experimental bucket goes first and 80/15/5 is closer to what survives finance review. Defend the adjacent bucket instead; it has the better expected return.
- **In an early-stage company.** When nothing is proven yet, 70% of the budget cannot go to proven channels. The honest split is closer to 40/40/20 with faster evaluation cycles, until two channels reach target CPA.
- **Across the whole budget.** Applying 70/20/10 to headcount and tools produces nonsense ("10% of the salary budget is experimental"). Apply it to acquisition spend only.
- **When the 70% is not actually working.** A proven channel whose CPA has doubled is no longer proven. Re-classify it before allocating; otherwise the rule locks in yesterday's mix.

> **Warning:** The most common failure is using 70/20/10 as an argument for keeping every existing program. The 70% bucket is for programs that hit target CPA, not for programs that exist.

## The 3-3-3 rule, 80/20 and other splits

Source: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#other-splits

| Rule | What it says | How to treat it |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 3-3-3 rule | The most common version: test three channels, with three messages, for three months before judging results. Other versions exist; there is no single definition | A testing cadence for the 20% and 10% buckets, not a budget split. The guide's own cadence is one new initiative per quarter, evaluated inside the quarter |
| 80/20 (Pareto) | Roughly 80% of conversions come from 20% of channels | An argument for concentrating spend and for the 70% bucket being few channels, not many |
| 80/20 split | 80% proven, 20% new | The conservative version of 70/20/10; where most budgets land in a flat year |
| 60/40 brand vs performance | 60% long-term brand building, 40% short-term activation (Binet and Field) | A different axis (time horizon, not risk). B2B SaaS budgets under $5M rarely reach 60% brand; treat it as a direction for mature companies |
| 50/30/20 | A personal-finance rule (needs, wants, savings) | Not a marketing rule, despite appearing in the same search results |

## How to apply it in your budget structure

Source: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#how-to-apply-it

- Tag every acquisition line item with the **item continuity** property (existing or new) and a **business goal**, as described in the [categories chapter](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budget-categories.md). Proven is existing at target CPA; adjacent and experimental are both new, distinguished by whether a CPA estimate exists.
- Add the split to the "new vs existing initiatives" chart in your [approval deck](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budget-approval.md). Finance reads a high new-initiative share as risk; the 70/20/10 framing turns it into a managed portfolio.
- Report spend by bucket monthly next to [budget vs actual](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budget-vs-actual.md). If the new share drifts above plan without a matching conversion contribution, pause the weakest experiment before adding another.
- At each quarter end, promote or stop: an experiment that hit its rule moves to adjacent, an adjacent bet at target CPA moves to proven, and the freed budget funds the next test.

---

## Frequently asked questions

Source: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule#faq

### What is the 70/20/10 rule for a marketing budget?

Spend 70% of the budget on proven channels and programs with a known CPA, 20% on promising bets adjacent to what already works, and 10% on experiments with no track record. On a $1.6M budget that is $1.12M proven, $320k adjacent and $160k experimental. Apply it to acquisition spend, not to headcount or tools.

### Where does the 70/20/10 rule come from?

The split was popularized by Coca-Cola’s 2011 “Content 2020” strategy (70% low-risk content, 20% innovative, 10% high-risk) and echoes the 70/20/10 innovation model Google used for engineering time. Neither was a budgeting benchmark; marketing teams adopted the ratio because it gives a defensible answer to “how much should we experiment?”.

### Is the 70/20/10 rule right for B2B SaaS?

As a starting point, yes, provided the 70% really is proven at target CPA. Growth-stage SaaS companies often justify 60/25/15 because new channels compound; companies under cost pressure drift to 80/15/5. The number that matters more than the split is the evaluation timeline on every item in the 30%: no more than one quarter.

### What is the 3-3-3 rule for marketing?

There is no single definition. The most common version says test three channels, with three messages, for three months before judging results. Treat it as a testing cadence for the 20% and 10% buckets, not as a way to split the budget. The guide’s own cadence is one new initiative per quarter, evaluated inside that quarter.

### What is the 80/20 rule in a marketing budget?

Two different things share the name. The Pareto observation that roughly 80% of conversions come from 20% of channels is an argument for concentrating spend. The 80/20 budget split (80% proven, 20% new) is the conservative version of 70/20/10 and is where most budgets land in a year with a flat or reduced total.

### How do I track the 70/20/10 split during the year?

Tag every acquisition line item with a continuity property (existing or new) and a business goal, then report spend by that tag monthly alongside budget vs actual. If the “new” share drifts above plan without a matching conversion contribution, that is the signal to pause the weakest experiment rather than add another one.

---

## Chapters

- Guide hub: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide.md (HTML: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide)
- Previous chapter: [Budgeting Methods](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budgeting-methods.md)
- Next chapter: [Planning Process and Timeline](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/planning-process-and-timeline.md)

All chapters:

1. [Benchmark Your Company](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/benchmark-your-company.md)
2. [Stakeholder Alignment](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/stakeholder-alignment.md)
3. [Finance Team Rules](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/finance-team-rules.md)
4. [Budgeting Methods](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budgeting-methods.md)
5. [The 70/20/10 Rule](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/70-20-10-rule.md) (this chapter)
6. [Planning Process and Timeline](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/planning-process-and-timeline.md)
7. [KPIs and CPA Targets](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budget-kpis-and-cpa-targets.md)
8. [Budget Categories and Allocation](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budget-categories.md)
9. [Marketing Budget Examples](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/marketing-budget-example.md)
10. [Budget Approval](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budget-approval.md)
11. [Budget vs Actual Tracking](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budget-vs-actual.md)
12. [Budget Cuts and Reallocation](https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide/budget-cuts-and-reallocation.md)

---

## Links

- Marketing budget planning guide (HTML): https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-planning-guide
- Marketing budget calculator: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-calculator
- Marketing budget templates: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-budget-template
- Marketing budget benchmarks by industry: https://www.etropo.com/blog/marketing-budgeting/average-marketing-budget-by-industry
- Marketing salaries: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-salaries.md
- Marketing tool prices: https://www.etropo.com/marketing-tool-prices
- Pricing: https://www.etropo.com/pricing.md
- Documentation: https://docs.etropo.com
- Website: https://www.etropo.com