[GTM glossary](/glossary.md) Qualified lead

Sales Development & Prospecting

# Qualified lead

In short

A qualified lead is a contact or company that has been checked against agreed criteria, such as fit, need, budget, authority, and timing, and found worth pursuing by sales. It is a lead with a real chance of becoming a customer, not just someone who showed interest.

"Qualified" is a general label. Teams usually split it into stages such as marketing qualified lead (MQL) and sales qualified lead (SQL), each with its own definition.

## What makes a lead qualified

The criteria are set by your team, but they typically cover two questions: does this company fit, and is there a reason to talk now?

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## Common qualification criteria

* **Fit:** Matches your ideal customer profile by industry, size, and region.
* **Need:** Has a problem your product solves.
* **Authority:** The contact can decide or influence the decision.
* **Budget:** Funds exist or can be obtained.
* **Timing:** There is a project or deadline that creates urgency.

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## Qualified lead stages

* **Marketing qualified lead:** Meets fit and engagement thresholds set by marketing.
* **Sales accepted lead:** Reviewed and accepted by sales for follow-up.
* **Sales qualified lead:** Confirmed through conversation as a real opportunity.
* **Product qualified lead:** Qualified by usage of a free trial or product.

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## How to define it for your team

Write the criteria down with sales and marketing together, using the traits of past won deals. Say your wins are mostly operations leaders at firms of 200 to 1,000 staff who asked about integrations. Your definition might require that profile plus a demo request or two high-intent visits. Review it every quarter against conversion data.

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## Common mistakes

* **Vague definition:** If marketing and sales disagree, leads stall at handoff.
* **Qualifying on activity alone:** A download is interest, not necessarily fit.
* **Overly strict rules:** Too many requirements leave good prospects in nurture.
* **Never updating:** Criteria drift away from real buyers.

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## Qualified lead FAQs

**What is a qualified lead?**

A qualified lead is a prospect that has been evaluated against agreed criteria such as fit, need, authority, budget, and timing, and judged a realistic potential customer. Sales teams prioritize these over unvetted contacts.

**How do you qualify a lead?**

Compare the lead to your ideal customer profile, check for a genuine need and decision-making authority, and confirm timing and budget through research or a short conversation. Many teams use a framework such as BANT to keep the questions consistent.

**What is the difference between a lead and a qualified lead?**

A lead is anyone who has shown interest or been identified as a possible buyer. A qualified lead has been assessed and meets defined criteria that suggest a real chance of purchase, so it merits direct sales effort.

**Who decides what a qualified lead is?**

Sales and marketing should agree on the definition together, based on the traits of past won deals. Writing it down and reviewing it regularly prevents disputes at handoff and keeps the criteria tied to actual buyers.

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## More related phrases

* [Tele-qualified lead](/glossary/tele-qualified-lead.md)
* [Inbound lead qualification](/glossary/inbound-lead-qualification.md)
* [Sales lead](/glossary/sales-lead.md)

## Similar phrases

* [Lead qualification](/glossary/lead-qualification.md)  
Lead qualification is the step where you decide whether a lead fits and is ready enough for sales to pursue, so reps focus on the right prospects.
* [Sales qualified lead (SQL)](/glossary/sales-qualified-lead.md)  
A sales qualified lead (SQL) is a prospect that sales has vetted and confirmed has genuine need, authority, and timing, ready for an active sales process.
* [Marketing qualified lead (MQL)](/glossary/marketing-qualified-lead.md)  
A marketing qualified lead (MQL) is a lead that marketing judges ready for sales follow-up based on fit with the target profile and engagement behavior.
* [Product qualified lead (PQL)](/glossary/product-qualified-lead.md)  
A product qualified lead (PQL) is a user who has shown buying intent through real product usage, such as hitting a usage limit or using key features.
* [Sales accepted lead (SAL)](/glossary/sales-accepted-lead.md)  
A sales accepted lead (SAL) is a marketing-qualified lead that the sales team has reviewed and agreed to work, marking the handoff from marketing to sales.