# Average order value

> Total order revenue divided by the number of orders in a period.

Source: https://barkingcat.ai/terms-of-trade/average-order-value/

## Terms of Trade · Edition 2: The trading pack

Definition

Total order revenue divided by the number of orders in a period. An average, with everything an average conceals: one large basket and nine small ones report the same number as ten medium ones.

Field note

AOV is the melting pot where a single pair of socks holds three laptops and a television to account.

Board question

What does the distribution look like beneath the average, and which end of it moved this quarter?

Applied through

[The Review](https://barkingcat.ai/review/) measures against order value; [Commercial Discipline](https://barkingcat.ai/the-cats-whiskers/commercial-discipline/) in the Cat’s Whiskers asks whether the basket-building spend is going where the baskets are.

Related terms
- [Conversion rate](https://barkingcat.ai/terms-of-trade/conversion-rate/)
- [Contribution margin](https://barkingcat.ai/terms-of-trade/contribution-margin/)
- [Markdown](https://barkingcat.ai/terms-of-trade/markdown/)
- [Cost to serve](https://barkingcat.ai/terms-of-trade/cost-to-serve/)

## Contact

steve@barkingcat.ai

Barking Cat Advisory Limited. Registered in England and Wales, company number 17338003.