Salesforce vs. ServiceNow: What Do Their Revenue Trends Tell Investors?
Key Points
Salesforce generates a significantly higher volume of total revenue, but ServiceNow displays a slightly more consistent upward trajectory in its top-line results.
Both companies experienced generally steady quarter-over-quarter revenue increases, though Salesforce recorded minor sequential dips during specific periods.
Investors should watch whether the total revenue gap between the two companies continues to gradually narrow in upcoming reporting periods.
Salesforce: Steady Revenue at Scale
Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) primarily generates revenue by offering a comprehensive suite of cloud-based subscriptions that help enterprises manage customer relationships, sales pipelines, marketing campaigns, and data analytics across various departments.
While it recently acquired the customer agent company Fin for approximately $3.6 billion and initiated workforce reductions across several divisions, it reported an approximately 19% net income margin for the quarter ended April 30, 2026.
ServiceNow: Consistent Revenue Growth
ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) earns its revenue mainly by providing cloud-based enterprise software that automates technology operations, employee workflows, and customer service tasks to streamline broad business processes.
It completed the acquisition of the cyber exposure management company Armis and addressed a security vulnerability in customer instances, while generating a 12% net income margin for the quarter ended March 31, 2026.
Why Revenue Matters for Investors
Revenue serves as a gauge to help investors understand the total amount of money a business brings in before deducting any operational expenses. It reveals whether a corporation is successfully attracting customers and growing its overall business volume over time.
Quarterly Revenue for Salesforce and ServiceNow
| Quarter (Period End) | Salesforce Revenue | ServiceNow Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2024 | $9.3 billion (period ended July 2024) | $2.8 billion (period ended Sept. 2024) |
| Q4 2024 | $9.4 billion (period ended Oct. 2024) | $3.0 billion (period ended Dec. 2024) |
| Q1 2025 | $10.0 billion (period ended Jan. 2025) | $3.1 billion (period ended March 2025) |
| Q2 2025 | $9.8 billion (period ended April 2025) | $3.2 billion (period ended June 2025) |
| Q3 2025 | $10.2 billion (period ended July 2025) | $3.4 billion (period ended Sept. 2025) |
| Q4 2025 | $10.3 billion (period ended Oct. 2025) | $3.6 billion (period ended Dec. 2025) |
| Q1 2026 | $11.2 billion (period ended Jan. 2026) | $3.8 billion (period ended March 2026) |
| Q2 2026 | $11.1 billion (period ended April 2026) | Not yet reported |
Data source: Company filings. Data as of June 23, 2026.
Foolish Take
Salesforce and ServiceNow are two titans in the software-as-a-service (SaaS) sector. This segment of the stock market suffered a sell-off in 2026 as investors became concerned artificial intelligence will take business away. That has not been the case for either company as their revenue trends reveal.
Both have seen sales climb year over year across the quarters reviewed in the chart above. The data indicates these SaaS companies continue to experience customer spending in the face of rapid AI adoption. In fact, ServiceNow announced in May it had crossed $1 billion in spending on Amazon’s cloud computing infrastructure as customer demand for its AI systems increases.
As for Salesforce, CEO Marc Benioff noted the company enjoyed record revenue and record deals in its fiscal first quarter ended April 30. Sales in the quarter grew 13% year over year.
ServiceNow may have smaller sales, but it is the faster growing SaaS company between this pair. Its Q1 revenue represented a 22% year-over-year increase.
The revenue trends show business for Salesforce and ServiceNow remains healthy, and that AI looks to be a catalyst for their ongoing growth.
Should you buy stock in Salesforce right now?
Before you buy stock in Salesforce, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Salesforce wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $392,713!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,227,782!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 897% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 208% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of June 25, 2026.
Robert Izquierdo has positions in Amazon, Salesforce, and ServiceNow. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Salesforce, and ServiceNow. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Recommended Articles
Comments (0)
Click the $ button, enter the symbol, and select to link a stock, ETF, or other ticker.