All termsGROWTH & ACQUISITION

Moat

Also known as: Competitive Moat

DEFINITION

A durable, structural advantage that competitors find hard to replicate — protecting the business over time.

In depth

Seven classic moats (Hamilton Helmer): counter-positioning, scale economies, switching costs, network effects, process power, brand, cornered resource. Most SaaS moats are switching costs (integrations, data lock-in) plus network effects.

Early-stage founders overestimate moats they don't have. Real moats take years and usually only emerge after PMF.

Related terms

Network Effects

A product property where each additional user makes the product more valuable to existing users.

Switching Costs

The effort, time, money, or risk a customer must incur to move from your product to a competitor — higher switching costs = stronger retention.

Sources

7 Powers by Hamilton Helmer

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Last reviewed 14 April 2026 by Abhi Verma.