What is Rented SaaS?
Software delivered as a service through a recurring subscription, where you never own the software.
Definition
Rented SaaS refers to traditional Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) products delivered via subscription — Salesforce, HubSpot, Zendesk, Jira, Asana, and thousands of others. With rented SaaS, you pay a recurring fee to access software owned by a vendor. The software runs on their servers, your data is stored by them, and they control pricing, features, and whether the service continues. Most teams rent dozens of SaaS tools today.
Example
Your sales team rents HubSpot for $50/month per user. You rely on HubSpot for lead management, pipeline tracking, and email automation — but you don't own the software, the data lives on HubSpot's servers, and if they raise prices 50%, you have to pay or migrate.
Rented SaaS vs owned-software: What's the difference?
Software delivered as a service through a recurring subscription, where you never own the software.
Rented SaaS requires ongoing subscription payments and vendor lock-in. Owned software is yours — you own the code, the data, and the future.