In all my years leading sales teams, ASC 606 has been “the” game-changing revenue recognition standard from FASB (the Financial Accounting Standards Board) and IASB (the International Accounting Standards Board).
Introduced in 2014 and effective since 2018 for public companies, ASC 606 replaced standards like ASC 605 to standardize financial reporting across industries.
This shift was especially critical for SaaS businesses, where subscription-based revenue and sales commissions created inconsistencies under older rules.
For SaaS companies, ASC 606 is great.
It offers clear rules for recognizing revenue from subscriptions and handling sales commissions tied to long-term contracts—two areas that hit close to home for your business.
Whether you’re a CFO ensuring compliance or a finance professional optimizing your processes, this pillar page has you covered.
Expect a deep dive into ASC 606’s core principles, its five-step model, SaaS-specific examples, common challenges, and tools like sales commission software to make compliance seamless.
ASC 606, also known as Accounting Standards Codification Topic 606, outlines the principles of revenue recognition in financial reporting. It is a joint standard from the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and represents a significant change in accounting for revenue from contracts with customers.
ASC 606, focusing on revenue recognition, treats sales commissions as incremental costs directly tied to securing a contract. If certain criteria are met, these costs can be capitalized as assets.
The amortization of these commissions then occurs over the period, reflecting the benefits of the initial sale. Crucially, companies must disclose their amortization methods, asset amounts from contract-related costs, and any impairment losses recognized.
This approach necessitates estimating and aligning commission recognition with revenue, with specifics varying by industry and contract nuances, ensuring compliant and transparent accounting practices.
ASC 606, the revenue recognition standard, fundamentally changes how companies account for revenue from contracts with customers. Let's break down each of the five steps with simple explanations and examples:
This involves recognizing a legal agreement between the SaaS company and its customer that outlines the terms of service provision and payment.
Performance obligations are promises to deliver goods or services to the customer. In SaaS, this can include access to software, updates, and support services.
This is the amount the company expects to get paid for fulfilling its contract. This should include fixed amounts and may also consider variables like discounts or incentives.
If there are multiple performance obligations, the transaction price must be allocated to each based on their standalone selling prices.
Revenue is recognized when the service is provided or as it's provided, depending on the nature of the obligation.
ASC 606 aims to provide a more robust framework for addressing revenue recognition matters, improve the comparability of revenue recognition practices across entities, industries, jurisdictions, and capital markets, and require enhanced disclosures.
The standard has had a significant impact on many organizations, particularly those with complex contracts or multiple performance obligations.
As the CFO of a SaaS company, it's vital to work closely with your accounting and sales teams to ensure that your company's commission accounting practices comply with ASC 606.
Let's take a hypothetical example to understand how ASC 606 impacts sales commission accounting.
Suppose your SaaS company enters into a contract with a customer for a subscription service:
Under the new standard, your company cannot recognize all $120,000 as revenue upfront. Instead, your company must recognize revenue over the 1-year subscription period as the performance obligations are satisfied.
Given that your company has determined that the performance obligation is satisfied evenly over the subscription period, you will recognize $10,000 of revenue each month for the duration of the contract.
Further, your company has a standard commission rate of 10% for the sales team.
Step 1: To account for sales commissions under ASC 606, your company must estimate and recognize the commission expense when the related revenue is recognized.
In the above example, your company will recognize
Step 2: Your company needs to capitalize on any commission costs incurred to obtain the contract and gradually liquidate them over the expected life of the contract.
Under ASC 606, the company recognizes $10,000 of revenue and $1,417 of commission expense each month for the duration of the 1-year contract.
The expense includes both the estimated commission expense related to the performance obligation and the capitalized commission cost incurred to obtain the contract.
🔔 Must read for a complete understanding of the basics of ASC 606, 'The SaaS CFO's Blueprint: ASC 606 Compliance for Sales Commissions.'
Implementing ASC 606 and ensuring compliance can be a complex and challenging process, particularly for companies that have historically used a different revenue recognition method.
Some of the difficulties that companies may encounter during ASC 606 implementation include:
One of the first steps in implementing ASC 606 is to identify all revenue streams and determine the appropriate revenue recognition method for each. This is often a challenging process for companies with complex revenue streams or for those that offer a range of products or services.
ASC 606 brings a sea change in the broader revenue recognition landscape. It demands a holistic reevaluation of how revenue is reported, which is critical for maintaining compliance and financial accuracy.
🔔 Must read for a more detailed understanding of these changes and to explore the broader implications of ASC 606 on SaaS revenue recognition, "How ASC 606 Affects SaaS Revenue Recognition."
ASC 606 can impact a company's financial statements in various ways, including the timing, amount of revenue, and cost recognition. Companies will need to precisely evaluate the impact of ASC 606 on their financial statements and ensure that they are presenting accurate and transparent financial information.
ASC 606 might require changes to a company's internal controls, particularly in the areas of contract management and revenue recognition. Companies will need to evaluate their internal control environment and make any necessary updates to ensure that they are compliant with the new standard.
Companies will need to provide education and training to employees involved in the revenue recognition process to ensure that they understand the requirements of ASC 606 and can comply with the new standard.
Organizations may need to make changes to their systems and processes to support compliance with ASC 606, such as updating financial reporting systems, modifying contract management processes, and implementing new controls.
Implementing ASC 606 can be a complex and challenging process that requires careful planning and execution. The route towards proper compliance encounters difficulties in identifying all revenue streams, assessing the impact on financial statements, addressing internal controls, educating employees, and ensuring system readiness.
Now that you have a good idea of what ASC-606 101 is, what the 5-step model is, and what problems most SaaS leaders face, let’s look at changes to SaaS contracts under ASC 606.
SaaS leaders often juggle evolving customer needs, leading to contract modifications. With ASC 606 in the mix, understanding how to treat these changes is crucial for accurate revenue recognition and delivering value.
Under ASC 606, modifications can be:
When changing a software contract, it's crucial to ascertain whether the changes are equivalent to buying a new product or an add-on service, to better understand how the contract price gets affected. It's always a good idea to talk to a expert to make sure everything's done right.
Once you have identified the best way to record your revenue, it all comes down to reporting it in the best manner possible. Let us understand this better with examples.
Understanding the intricacies of ASC 606 is crucial for SaaS leaders. Ensuring compliance not only safeguards against potential financial discrepancies but also fortifies trust with stakeholders. This section will guide you through creating audit-ready reports, tailored for the SaaS industry.
Every report is a story of your company's financial journey. Here's what each component signifies and how it ties back to ASC 606.
This report tracks when and how much revenue the company records from its sales. It includes details like when a deal was made, who the customer is, and how much money is involved.
This table showcases how revenue is recognized over time, factoring in deferred revenue.
This report shows the costs of paying sales commissions and spreads these costs over time. It lists which salesperson got paid, for which deal, and how these payments are accounted for over months or years.
Dive into the treatment of sales commissions and their amortization.
This report outlines what services or products the company still needs to deliver in the future and how these will affect its earnings. It includes information on each deal, how much money is still to be earned, and what's left to do.
A snapshot of obligations yet to be fulfilled and their impact on future revenue.
Details any changes made to sales agreements and how these changes affect the company’s earnings. It shows the original deal, any changes made, and how these changes impact the company's revenue.
Grasp the challenges of handling contract changes and their influence on revenue recognition.
The Waterfall report offers a transaction-level view of amortization. It provides a detailed breakdown of how an initial amount is amortized over time, showing the amount amortized each period, the cumulative amortized amount, and the remaining balance after each period.
Imagine a SaaS company capitalizes a sales commission of $12,000 for a 12-month contract. The Waterfall report would show how this commission is amortized monthly.
The consolidated report provides a high-level overview of amortization across different contracts or assets. Instead of transaction-level details, it summarizes total amounts, amounts amortized in the current period, and remaining balances.
Imagine that the same SaaS company has three different contracts with capitalized commissions. The consolidated report would summarize the amortization for all these contracts.
The report lists each contract and provide key figures:
Ready to put these reporting principles into practice?
We've created a free ASC 606 Sales Commission Amortization Reporting Template to help you get started immediately.
This comprehensive Excel template will save you hours in sales commission management by:
Simply enter your commission details—including payment dates, payee names, opportunity names, and contract durations—and let the template do the heavy lifting for you.
Download Free ASC-606 Sales Commission Amortization Reporting Template Now
ASC 606 sales commission accounting isn't merely about compliance - it's about precision, strategy, and performance management.
Throughout my career leading sales teams, I've observed that the organizations that outperform their competitors aren't necessarily those with the most generous compensation plans - they're the ones with the most transparent, strategically aligned, and well-executed commission structures.
The transition to ASC 606 offers an inflection point. You can continue with fragmented systems, manual spreadsheets, and reactive approaches - or you can elevate sales compensation to the strategic function it deserves to be.
The most effective sales leaders I've known view commission accounting not as a necessary evil but as a performance lever. They understand that commission is about more than the money - it's about continuous feedback, behavior modification, and performance improvement.
In 2025, there's simply no justification for treating a 15-20% revenue allocation without the same rigor you apply to other strategic investments. The tools exist. The framework is clear. The opportunity is present.
The question isn't whether you'll comply with ASC 606 - it's whether you'll use this moment to transform how you approach sales compensation altogether.
Those who do will find themselves with more predictable revenue, more motivated sales teams, and a distinct competitive advantage in the marketplace.
Visdum's sales commission software is a vital tool for SaaS companies to ensure compliance with ASC 606. It enhances the accuracy and efficiency of tracking and reporting commission expenses. Below, we explore various ways in which this software facilitates compliance:
Investing in technologies like sales commission software for better ASC 606 compliance boosts transparency, accuracy, and real-time reporting.
Sales commission software not only simplifies the commission calculation process but also ensures accurate commission expenses and provides essential data for ASC 606 compliance. This tool is instrumental for companies in adhering to ASC 606 standards through automated tracking and precise commission calculations.
Understanding the right tools can make all the difference. Our extensive guide on ASC 606 compliance tools is designed to help you identify and leverage the best solutions for your business needs.
Transform your approach to ASC 606 compliance with Visdum, tailored for SaaS sales commission accounting. Experience the ease of automation and accuracy that come with our intuitive features and seamless integrations.
With Visdum, you're not just complying with ASC 606; you're setting a new standard in efficiency and accuracy for your financial operations.
Make the smart choice today.
ASC 606 enables recognizing select sales commissions as assets on the balance sheet if directly tied to securing a customer contract, then gradually expensing them over the contract's duration for accurate revenue recognition.
Sales commissions are recorded as expenses when they're incurred and directly tied to getting a contract with a customer. If they're significant and benefit over time, they might be spread out gradually rather than all at once.
Yes, sales commissions can be capitalized under certain circumstances, according to ASC 606. If specific conditions are met, sales commissions that are directly attributable to obtaining a contract with a customer can be recognized as an asset on the balance sheet rather than expensed immediately.
Not necessarily. Sales commissions can be classified as either period costs or capitalized as part of the cost to obtain a contract. If the commissions are directly tied to securing a contract with a customer, they're often treated as a cost to obtain that contract and recognized over the period benefiting from the contract.
Commissions are generally classified as selling expenses, separate from COGS. They're expensed on the income statement, reflecting the costs of sales activities rather than direct production expenses.
Sales commissions are typically considered a selling expense. They're directly linked to the sales force's efforts in securing contracts and generating revenue. Therefore, they fall under selling expenses rather than administrative expenses.
ASC 606 governs revenue recognition from customer contracts, while ASC 842 focuses on lease accounting. ASC 606 standardizes how companies record revenue, whereas ASC 842 requires organizations to recognize most leases on their balance sheets.
The ASC 606 revenue recognition checklist includes identifying customer contracts, determining performance obligations, establishing transaction prices, allocating prices to obligations, and recognizing revenue when obligations are satisfied. This ensures compliant revenue reporting across all transactions.
The 5 steps of ASC 606 are: 1) Identify the contract with the customer, 2) Identify performance obligations, 3) Determine the transaction price, 4) Allocate the transaction price to performance obligations, and 5) Recognize revenue when obligations are satisfied.
ASC 606 is a revenue recognition standard implemented by FASB and IASB that creates a unified framework for recording revenue from customer contracts across industries. It replaced previous standards like ASC 605 to improve consistency in financial reporting.
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