Ecommerce Metrics: Definitions, Formulas and Benchmarks

What your store actually sold after discounts and refunds come off gross sales. Shipping and tax are usually kept out, so net sales reflects the products themselves.

Net Sales = Gross sales − Discounts − Refunds

The average amount a customer spends per order. Raising AOV grows revenue without needing a single extra visitor.

AOV = Net sales ÷ Number of orders

How many items the average order contains. It shows whether bundles, cross-sells and multi-buy offers are actually working.

Units per Order = Units sold ÷ Number of orders

How much revenue each visit to your store brings in. It combines conversion rate and average order value into one number.

RPV = Net sales ÷ Sessions (= conversion rate as a fraction × AOV)

The total a customer is worth to your store over the whole relationship. It sets how much you can afford to spend to win and keep them.

CLV = AOV × Purchase frequency × Customer lifespan

Groups customers by how recently they bought, how often they buy and how much they spend - so you know who to reward, who to win back and who to stop chasing.

Score each customer on Recency, Frequency and Monetary value; group the scores into segments

The share of customers who have ordered more than once. It shows whether your store builds a customer base or keeps paying to replace one.

Repeat Purchase Rate = Customers with 2+ orders ÷ Total customers × 100

How many orders the average customer places in a period. Together with AOV it is the backbone of lifetime value.

Purchase Frequency = Orders ÷ Unique customers

The typical gap between one order and the next. It tells you when to remind customers - and when a quiet customer has really gone.

Time Between Purchases = Median days between consecutive orders per customer

The share of customers who keep buying from you over time. For a store without subscriptions, it is measured by whether they order again.

Retention Rate = Customers who ordered again ÷ Customers in the starting period × 100

The share of store visits that end in an order. Small changes compound: going from 1.5% to 2% is a third more orders from the same traffic.

Conversion Rate = Orders ÷ Sessions × 100

The share of shopping carts that never become orders. Most carts are abandoned, so even a small recovery is meaningful revenue.

Cart Abandonment Rate = (1 − Completed orders ÷ Carts created) × 100

What it costs, on average, to win one new customer. It only means something next to what that customer is worth.

CAC = Marketing and sales spend ÷ New customers

Revenue earned for every unit of currency spent on ads. A ROAS that looks profitable can still lose money once margins are counted.

ROAS = Revenue from ads ÷ Ad spend

The share of each sale left after paying for the goods sold. It decides how much you can spend on marketing, shipping and everything else.

Gross Margin = (Net sales − COGS) ÷ Net sales × 100

What each order really earns after the costs that come with it - goods, shipping, payment fees and the marketing that won it.

Contribution Margin = Net sales − Variable costs (COGS, shipping, fees, marketing)

The share of sales that comes back as refunds. Every refund costs the sale plus shipping, handling and often the item itself.

Refund Rate = Refunded amount ÷ Gross sales × 100

How much of your gross sales you give away in discounts. Steady growth in this number usually means customers have learned to wait for a sale.

Discount Rate = Discounts ÷ Gross sales × 100

How many times you sell through your average stock in a period. Low turnover means cash sitting on shelves.

Inventory Turnover = COGS ÷ Average inventory value

The share of stock you received that has actually sold. It tells you when to reorder, discount or stop buying a product.

Sell-Through Rate = Units sold ÷ Units received × 100