Benchmark · Close Performance

Close Velocity Benchmarks:
How Fast Should Your Close Be?

Lunari Team

Lunari Research

Jan 14, 2026 · 5 min read

"How fast should our close be?" is the wrong question.

The right question is: "What is our close velocity costing us — in time, in risk, and in decision quality?"

Here are the benchmarks, the drivers, and the levers.

Industry Benchmarks by Stage

Based on our data across 200+ finance teams:

Company Stage	Median Close Duration	Context
Sub-$5M ARR	8–12 days	Manual, founder-led
$5M–$20M ARR	6–9 days	Small team, mixed tooling
$20M–$50M ARR	5–7 days	Dedicated finance team
$50M–$100M ARR	4–6 days	ERP + partial automation
$100M+ ARR	3–5 days	Full automation, dedicated close ops

"A 4-day close at $50M ARR is achievable. A 10-day close at the same stage is a structural problem — not a staffing problem."

Uncleared items from prior months that must be investigated before the close can certify.

Prepaids, accruals, and fixed assets built in spreadsheets — each requiring manual input and review.

Journal entries and reconciliations waiting in email queues for sign-off.

Waiting on subledger exports, bank confirmations, or intercompany statements.

Errors discovered late in the close that require corrections and re-review.

In order of impact:

Automate reconciliation certification — low-risk accounts should not require manual review every month
Replace spreadsheet schedules — prepaids, accruals, and fixed assets should roll forward automatically
Parallel-path the close — reconciliations and schedules should run simultaneously, not sequentially
Embed approvals in workflow — eliminate email-based approval queues
Surface blockers in real time — the Controller should see what's blocking the close at any moment

67%

Average close time reduction with Lunari

4 days

Target close duration for $20M–$50M ARR

200+

Finance teams benchmarked

Lunari Close

Lunari gives you real-time visibility into your close velocity — and the automation to improve it every month.