Compensation plan
Matrix MLM Software
A matrix fixes both width and depth, which makes the payout ceiling arithmetic rather than a forecast. The engine computes that ceiling from your grid and rates before launch, so the number in your budget is the number the plan can actually reach.
What you get
Outcomes operators report after moving onto the platform.
The ceiling is arithmetic, not a guess
Width and depth give a hard maximum position count and therefore a hard maximum payout per matrix. The platform states both before you sign off on the grid.
Spillover you can trace
Every automatic placement records the rule that produced it and the slot it filled, so a distributor asking why someone landed under them gets a real answer.
Compression without rewriting history
Inactive positions are compressed for payout calculation only. The stored genealogy is never mutated, so last year's run still reproduces exactly.
Plan structure
The placement shape this plan produces, drawn from its real width and depth rules.
Each position holds a fixed number of frontline slots — three in a 3×3 — and pays down a fixed number of levels. Enrolments beyond the width spill to the next open slot, scanned breadth-first.
How the plan actually pays
A matrix is defined by two numbers and constrained by both.
Width is how many frontline positions each person can hold. Depth is how many levels down the plan pays. A 3×9 means three wide, nine deep. Everything else about a matrix follows from those two numbers.
Because both are fixed, the maximum number of paid positions under any one distributor is a closed-form sum:
| Grid | Level 1 | Full matrix | Positions on the last level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3×3 | 3 | 39 | 27 |
| 3×6 | 3 | 1,092 | 729 |
| 3×9 | 3 | 29,523 | 19,683 |
| 2×12 | 2 | 8,190 | 4,096 |
That table is the reason matrix plans are easier to budget than any other family. You can multiply the last column by your level-9 rate and know the worst case exactly.
Where the real cost sits
The full-matrix number is a ceiling, not a forecast. Almost no matrix fills. What actually drives cost is the shape of a partly filled matrix, and that shape is set by your compression rule far more than by your rates.
Run the same organisation through both settings and the difference is routinely 10% to 20% of total payout. Model it with compression on, because that is the setting most companies end up choosing after distributors ask why an inactive sponsor is blocking their level.
Configuration decisions to make before launch
- Width and depth. Depth is the expensive dimension. Add a level only if you can state what behaviour it is buying.
- Spillover rule. Breadth-first fills the shallowest slot and is the default. Depth-first concentrates volume and rewards early joiners. Sponsor-nominated adds an operational step and a holding window.
- Compression, or not. Dynamic compression for payout calculation is now the common choice. Decide before launch, because switching later changes what everyone earns and needs disclosing.
- Progressive qualification. A rising personal-sponsorship requirement per level is the standard defence against people joining purely to receive spillover.
- Re-entry. Decide whether a filled matrix earns a second position, and whether reporting rolls positions up per person.
- Overflow destination. Volume beyond the last paid level either stops or funds a pool. Silently reassigning it is not an option — placement must stay auditable.
Each of these is a versioned rule in the engine, so a change next year does not alter what last year paid.
Modelling it before you commit
Put your grid and per-level rates into the plan calculator and read the payout ratio against your gross margin. If the ratio only works at full matrix occupancy, the plan does not work — a real organisation is a sparse matrix, and the ratio you should be underwriting is the sparse one.
Commission mechanics
How money moves through this plan, rule by rule.
| Grid notation | Width × depth. A 3×9 pays nine levels on a three-wide frontline; a 2×12 is narrow and deepWidth drives spillover volume, depth drives total liability. |
|---|---|
| Maximum positions | Computed as the sum of width^level for each paid level — a 3×9 tops out at 29,523 positions per matrix |
| Commission basis | Per-level percentage of level volume, or a fixed amount per filled position, configurable per level and per rank |
| Spillover | Breadth-first by default, so the shallowest open slot fills first. Depth-first and sponsor-nominated placement are alternatives |
| Overflow beyond the last level | Discarded, or paid into a leadership pool. Never silently reassigned — placement has to be auditable |
| Re-entry | Optional. A distributor whose matrix fills can be given a second position, either at the top of a new matrix or under their own |
| Qualification per level | Progressive: personal volume plus a rising number of personally sponsored actives to unlock each deeper level |
| Compression | Dynamic compression closes gaps left by inactive positions when calculating level payouts, without altering the stored tree |
At a glance
| Best suited to | Companies that want predictable liability and a simple story distributors can explain in one sentence |
|---|---|
| Typical payout ratio | 30% to 40% of sales volume across all levels, tightening as depth increases |
| Main design risk | Spillover expectation. If distributors join believing the matrix will fill for them, retention collapses when it does not |
| Common grids | 3×9 for balanced plans, 2×12 for narrow-and-deep, 5×5 for wide entry with shallow payout |
| Run frequency | Monthly is standard, since level volume is a period aggregate rather than an event |
Questions operators ask before they switch
Straight answers on plan mechanics, migration risk and compliance. If yours is not here, ask us directly.
How do I choose the width and depth?
Is spillover a selling point or a liability?
What happens when a matrix fills completely?
How does compression change what gets paid?
Ready to Transform Your Direct Selling Business?
Send us your plan rules and we will run a live commission cycle against them, on your numbers, before you commit to anything.
- Configured in a sandbox before the call, usually within two business days
- No slide deck and no card — you watch your own plan pay out
- Your plan document stays confidential and is deleted on request
Prefer email? Write to us at sales@mlmsoftwarepro.com