# Waze Financial Model Waze is a GPS navigation app that sells location-based advertising to brands seeking to reach on-the-go drivers. - Canonical: https://finamodel.com/startups/waze - Excel download: https://finamodel.com/startup-models/waze.xlsx - Category: Enterprise/Security - Model type: 3-Statement - Founded: 2019 - Geography: United States (all metrics scoped to US) [DECK slide 1]. - Customer: B2C ## About the company Waze is a GPS navigation app that sells location-based advertising to brands seeking to reach drivers while they are on the move. Its advertiser proposition is based on driver reach, location context, and the ability to engage consumers during a journey. This is a post-acquisition advertising sales case, not a startup fundraise: Google acquired Waze in 2013. Commercial performance therefore depends on advertiser demand, active drivers, available ad inventory, engagement, and the wider Google advertising ecosystem, with the available metrics scoped to the US. The model is a media P&L built from active drivers, ad impressions, fill rate, engagement, CPM or campaign pricing, and advertiser retention. Sales costs, platform operations, and contribution margin show the economics of the advertising business unit. ## What's included - 5-year monthly revenue build with stage-appropriate growth assumptions - Full P&L, headcount plan, and operating-expense schedule - Cash-flow statement, runway, and burn-rate tracking - Valuation via exit multiple with a DCF cross-check - Returns analysis with MOIC and IRR - Unit economics including CAC, LTV, payback, and cohort retention ## Product & value proposition Waze is a community-based GPS navigation app with 30M monthly active users (US). It provides brands with access to an in-car advertising channel, positioned as the missing piece in the Google Ads ecosystem alongside Search, Display, Shopping, Maps, and Video. Key value props for advertisers: - Proprietary location intelligence: destination, proximity to store, frequency of visits (loyalty), stops and stop length, routes and travel patterns, search intent, demographics/emotional context. - Drive-based targeting: day parting, home & work targeting, weather, road tripper, destination. - Ad formats: Pins (location awareness), Zero-Speed Takeovers (messaging when driver stopped 4+ seconds), Search (high-intent navigation), Push Notification Reminders (Save For Later CTA). - OOH amplification: 3x navigation lift when a driver is exposed to both OOH billboard and Waze ad. ## Market Context from deck: Waze positions itself within the Out-of-Home (OOH) advertising market as a "Digital OOH" complement, with use cases including competitor analysis, last-mile insights, and dwell time measurement. No market size figures provided. ## Revenue model - Advertising revenue from brands buying in-app ad placements (Pins, Zero-Speed Takeovers, Search ads, Push Notifications). - Revenue is tied to Google Ads ecosystem - deck frames Waze as completing Google's ad suite. - Pricing model (CPM, CPC, CPV) not disclosed in deck. - OOH + Waze bundled sales appear to be a partnership/channel pitch to OOH buyers and advertisers. ## Traction & metrics - 30M monthly active users in the United States - 37 miles driven per day per user (US) - 41 minutes per drive on Waze (US) - 3x navigation lift when a driver is exposed to both OOH and Waze advertising - Average time someone looks at a billboard is ~3 seconds - Speed gauge shown at 55–56 MPH as dwell time reference No revenue, growth rate, customer count (advertiser-side), or retention figures in deck. ## Competition / moat Not explicitly stated. Implied moats: - Proprietary navigation data (destination, route, frequency, dwell time) not available to other ad platforms. - Part of Google ecosystem - access to Google Ads buying infrastructure. - Real-time in-car context at the moment of purchase decision ("unlike other ad platforms, Waze interacts directly with consumers while they are on-the-go"). No competitive landscape slide. ## Recommended financial model - **Archetype + why:** This is not a startup fundraising deck - it is a post-acquisition B2B advertising sales deck (Waze, acquired by Google in 2013, pitching advertisers and OOH partners). If the goal is to model Waze as an advertising business unit, the appropriate model is a **digital advertising revenue model** (impression/engagement-based P&L). If this is part of a broader exercise, the context calls for a media/advertising P&L rather than a startup operating forecast. - **Forecast horizon & granularity:** 3 years, quarterly. Advertising businesses track seasonality (Q4 holiday spend spikes); quarterly granularity is appropriate. - **Key drivers & assumptions:** - US MAU: 30M; flat to modest growth ~5% YoY (mature US market, post-acquisition saturation). - Average daily drive time per user: 41 minutes. - Ad inventory per drive: ~1–3 ad impressions per session (Pins + Takeover when stopped); conservative fill given Zero-Speed Takeover requires 4+ second stop. - CPM / eCPM: $8–$15 CPM (premium vs. standard mobile display, given location context; benchmark: geo-targeted mobile OOH-adjacent inventory); no pricing in deck. - Fill rate: 50–70% (ad-supported navigation app; not all drives monetized). - Revenue per MAU per month: derived from MAU × sessions/month × ad frequency × eCPM / 1000. - OOH partnership revenue share: ancillary; no data in deck to size. - COGS (infrastructure, maps data licensing): 20–30% of revenue (navigation data, server costs). - S&M (advertiser sales team, partner development): 25–35% of revenue. - **Scenarios (Base / Bull / Bear - which variables flex):** - Bear: MAU flat, CPM at $8, fill rate 50% → low monetization per user. - Base: MAU +5% YoY, CPM at $11, fill rate 60%. - Bull: MAU +10% YoY (new feature adoption, international expansion), CPM at $15, fill rate 70%, OOH bundled revenue adds 10–15% uplift. - **Required sheets / outputs:** - Assumptions sheet (MAU, sessions/month, CPM, fill rate, growth rates) - Revenue build (MAU → impressions → revenue) - P&L (revenue, COGS, gross profit, S&M, G&A, EBITDA) - Dashboard (MAU, revenue/MAU, CPM, gross margin, EBITDA margin) ## Frequently asked questions ### Is the Waze financial model free? Yes. The Waze model is a free Excel download with live formulas. ### Can I change the assumptions? Yes. The workbook is editable and its live formulas recalculate when assumptions change.