Quota attainment benchmarks.
Fewer than half of B2B account executives hit quota in the latest benchmark data, and on some measures only about one in five sellers do.
Last updated: September 2026
48% of account executives are at quota, according to The Bridge Group’s 2026 survey of 158 B2B companies, down from 51% in 2024.1 Seller-level pipeline data is harsher: Ebsta and Pavilion report that 78% of sellers missed quota, up from 69% the year before.2
Either way, most quota-carrying reps are not hitting their number, and the trend has been down for several years.
Quota attainment at a glance.
Quota attainment by role and source.
Company surveys, rep surveys, and pipeline data each measure attainment differently. Here is what each one reports.
| Attainment | What is measured | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|
| AEs, 2026 | 48% at quota | Share of AEs at quota, reported by 158 B2B companies | The Bridge Group 20261 |
| AEs, 2024 | 51% at quota | Same measure, prior edition | The Bridge Group 20261 |
| AEs, 2022 | 66% at quota | Same measure, as summarized from the 2024 edition | Summary of The Bridge Group 20245 |
| SDRs, 2025 | 60% at quota | Share of SDRs at quota across 351 B2B companies; lowest in study history | The Bridge Group 20254 |
| Sellers, pipeline data | 78% missed | Share of sellers missing quota (69% the year before) | Ebsta × Pavilion 20252 |
| Rep survey | 84% missed | Reps who said they missed quota the prior year; 67% did not expect to hit it this year (5,500 respondents) | Salesforce 20243 |
The Bridge Group asks sales leaders what share of reps hit quota. Salesforce asks reps directly. Ebsta measures sellers in pipeline data. Different samples and definitions explain most of the gap between 22% and 52% hitting quota.
What the numbers mean.
When half or more of a team misses, the problem is rarely just the reps. The Bridge Group’s 2026 data shows the median AE quota at $960K, a 4.6× quota-to-OTE ratio, up from 4.2× in 2024.1 Quotas are rising faster than attainment. Check capacity math before you blame execution.
The distribution matters more than the average. Ebsta found just 14% of sellers generate 80% of revenue, and top performers produce 11 times more revenue per day than lower performers.2 A team average near 50% can hide a few stars carrying everyone else. Raising the middle is where most of the upside sits.
Selling time is part of the story. Salesforce’s 2024 survey found reps spend 70% of their time on non-selling tasks.3 Skills training cannot fix a calendar with no room for selling, so look at both.
Too much of your number riding on too few reps?
We study what your top performers do differently and teach the rest of the team to do it on live deals.
How to improve quota attainment.
Codify what top reps do
Your top 14% already know what works in your market. Shadow them, name the behaviors, and turn them into a shared framework the whole team uses.
The Accelerain Method 02 · CoachMake managers coaches
Attainment moves when front-line managers coach on live deals every week, not when they only inspect pipeline. Give managers a simple, repeatable coaching routine.
Sales leadership training 03 · Deal sizeSell bigger, not just more
Reps close the gap faster by growing deal size than by adding volume. Value-based selling ties price to business outcomes the buyer can defend.
Value selling trainingClient-reported results.
These figures are reported by Accelerain Training clients after rollout. They are not industry benchmarks and are shown separately from the research above.
Get more reps to quota.
Book a strategy call. We’ll look at how attainment is spread across your team, what separates your top performers, and which skills would lift the middle.
- No commitment — we scope and price it with you
- Customized concepts, in-depth training, or training plus 1:1s
- 30-minute sprint, half-day, one-day, or two-day formats
Where these numbers come from.
- The Bridge Group — AE Models, Motions & Metrics: 2026 Research Report (10th ed.) (2026)
- Ebsta × Pavilion — 2025 GTM Benchmarks Report (2025)
- Salesforce — Salesforce Report: Sales Teams Using AI 1.3x More Likely to See Revenue Increase (State of Sales, 6th Edition) (2024)
- The Bridge Group — SDR Models, Motions & Metrics: 2025 Research Report (2025)
- Charlie Cowan — 5 essential learnings from the 2024 SaaS AE Report (Bridge Group) (2024), secondary summary of The Bridge Group’s 2024 report
Common questions about quota attainment.
01What is quota attainment?
Quota attainment is the share of a sales target a rep actually closes in a period, or the share of reps who hit 100% of target. Accelerain Training recommends tracking both, since a team average can hide how many reps are really at quota.
02What percentage of sales reps hit quota?
About half or fewer. The Bridge Group’s 2026 research puts the share of account executives at quota at 48%, down from 51% in 2024. Ebsta and Pavilion’s pipeline data shows only 22% of sellers hit quota, with 78% missing.
03What is a good quota attainment rate for a sales team?
A team where more than half of reps hit quota is ahead of the market, based on The Bridge Group’s 2026 benchmark of 48%. For SDR teams, The Bridge Group’s 2025 benchmark is 60% at quota.
04Why do so many sales reps miss quota?
Rising quotas, less selling time, and uneven skills. The Bridge Group reports the quota-to-OTE ratio rose from 4.2× to 4.6× between 2024 and 2026, and Salesforce found reps spend 70% of their time on non-selling tasks.
05Is quota attainment going down?
Yes, on most measures. The Bridge Group’s share of AEs at quota fell from 51% in 2024 to 48% in 2026, and Ebsta and Pavilion report the share of sellers missing quota rose from 69% to 78%.
06How concentrated is sales performance?
Very. Ebsta and Pavilion’s 2025 GTM Benchmarks found just 14% of sellers generate 80% of revenue, and top performers generate 11 times more revenue per day than lower performers.
07How can a sales leader improve quota attainment?
Codify what top performers do and coach the middle to do it. Ebsta and Pavilion found top performers win at a 43% higher rate and close 42% faster than the rest, so closing even part of that gap moves attainment.
Ready to build a team that sells with conviction?
Book a strategy call to see how we turn the framework into repeatable behavior for your reps.