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Total Market vs Total Addressable Market

Exhibit Guessestimation Market sizing
New answer on Dec 05, 2022
4 Answers
864 Views
Anonymous A asked on Dec 03, 2022

Hi, may I know if ‘total market’ and ‘total addressable market’ are different things? And if so, how do they differ? Thanks!

(edited)

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Anonymous replied on Dec 03, 2022

As I was preparing/presenting pitch decks to the investors for our startup, there were only 3 terms about the market size:

1- TAM (Total Addressable Market): The maximum size for an opportunity

2- SAM (Serviceable Addressable Market): Segments of TAM, which you are capable of serving

3- SOM (Serviceable Obtainable Market): The portion that you can capture from SAM.

Therefore, I would say, Total Market is another way of saying TAM and there should be no difference between those 2 terms in terms of meaning.

Bests,

Emre

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Udayan
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replied on Dec 03, 2022
Top rated Case & PEI coach/Multiple real offers/McKinsey EM in New York /12 years recruiting experience

Total market usually has the total potential for sales. So for example the total market for a laptop is theoretically the entire population as everyone can potentially use a laptop. 

However the  addressable market is limited to the realistic number of people that would qualify as a customer by factors such as age, ability to purchase the laptop (income), access to stores, need for a laptop etc. 

 

Total addressable is almost always lower than the total (potential) market 

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Rushabh
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replied on Dec 03, 2022
Limited Availability | BCG Expert | Middle East Expert | 100+ Mocks Delivered | IESE & NYU MBA | Ex-KPMG Dxb Consultant

Hello,

Agree with Udayan here. TAM is a subset of TM. If you google these terms, there is a further subset called Serviceable Available Market which takes it one level more granular.

All the best!

Rushabh

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Ian
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replied on Dec 05, 2022
#1 BCG coach | MBB | Tier 2 | Digital, Tech, Platinion | 100% personal success rate (8/8) | 95% candidate success rate

Hi there,

TM => TAM => SAM => SOM

The others have all already defined each on specifically :)

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