What is average order value?
Average order value (AOV) is the average amount a customer spends in a single order. It's one of the few e-commerce metrics that's both simple to calculate and directly tied to revenue, which is why it sits on almost every store dashboard next to conversion rate and traffic. AOV answers a single question: when someone buys, how much do they spend?
The reason AOV matters so much is leverage. You can grow revenue three ways — more traffic, a higher conversion rate, or a higher average order value. Traffic is expensive and conversion rate moves slowly. AOV is often the cheapest lever to pull, because the shopper has already decided to buy. A 20% lift in AOV flows almost entirely to the bottom line, since you're not paying again to acquire that customer.
The average order value formula
The formula is deliberately simple:
AOV = Total revenue ÷ Number of orders
Two rules keep the number honest. First, use revenue, not profit — AOV measures order size, not margin. Second, make sure both numbers cover the exact same period. If your revenue is for the month, your order count has to be for the same month. Mixing windows is the most common way founders end up with an AOV that looks great but means nothing.
One more nuance: decide up front whether “orders” includes refunded or cancelled orders. For a clean read, most stores use completed, non-refunded orders and net revenue. As long as you're consistent month to month, the trend line stays trustworthy.
A worked example
Say your store did $5,000 in revenue last month across 125 orders. Your AOV is:
$5,000 ÷ 125 = $40.00
Now suppose you want to push your AOV to a target of $50 while keeping the same number of orders. At 125 orders, $50 each, you'd do $6,250 in revenue — an extra $1,250, or a 25.0% uplift, with zero additional traffic. That's the whole point of the calculator above: it shows you, in real dollars, what a higher average order is actually worth to your business.
AOV benchmarks: what's normal?
There's no single “good” AOV — it swings hard by industry, price point, and region. Some anchors from recent data:
- Global e-commerce AOV sits around $150 heading into 2025-2026, according to Dynamic Yield's benchmark data.
- The spread by category is enormous: Dynamic Yield reports Luxury & Jewelry near $389 at the top and Pet Care around $64 at the bottom, with Home and Furniture clustering in the mid-$200s.
- Region matters too — EMEA averages roughly $213 vs. ~$166 in the Americas, and desktop orders (~$260) tend to run larger than mobile (~$165).
For many mainstream stores, AOV lands somewhere in the $50–$100 range. But the most useful comparison isn't against a global average — it's against your own AOV last quarter. Up and to the right is the only benchmark that always matters.
How to raise your average order value
Because AOV improvements compound on traffic you've already paid for, the ROI on these tactics is unusually high. The proven levers, roughly in order of impact:
- Free-shipping thresholds. Set the threshold 15–30% above your current AOV. According to free-shipping research, a large share of shoppers will add items to qualify — lifts of 15–30% in AOV are common.
- Bundles and kits. Group complementary products at a small discount versus buying separately. Bundles raise the floor of each order and move slow inventory at the same time.
- Upsells and cross-sells. Offer the next size up, a premium version, or a natural add-on at the cart and on the product page. A relevant, well-timed offer feels like service, not a hard sell.
- Volume and tiered pricing. “Buy 2, save 10%” rewards bigger baskets and is easy to test.
- A visible cart progress bar. Showing “$12 away from free shipping” gives shoppers a concrete goal — stores that pair the bar with recommendations see some of the largest lifts.
Pick one lever, run it for a few weeks, and re-check your AOV in the calculator above. The gap between your current and target AOV is the money sitting on the table right now.
Frequently asked questions
What is average order value (AOV)?
Average order value is the average amount a customer spends in a single order. It's one of the most important e-commerce metrics because it tells you how much revenue each order generates, independent of how many orders you get. You calculate it by dividing total revenue by the number of orders over the same period.
How do I calculate average order value?
Divide your total revenue by your total number of orders for the same time period. For example, $5,000 in revenue across 125 orders gives an AOV of $40. Use revenue (not profit) and count completed orders, and make sure both numbers cover the exact same window.
What is a good average order value?
It depends heavily on your industry. Global e-commerce AOV sits around $150, but luxury and jewelry brands average close to $389 while pet care averages near $64. Many mainstream stores land in the $50–$100 range. Rather than chasing a universal number, compare against your own niche and track whether your AOV is trending up over time.
Should I use revenue or profit to calculate AOV?
Use revenue. AOV is a top-line metric that measures order size, not profitability. If you want to understand the profit per order, calculate AOV first, then apply your gross margin separately. Keeping the two metrics distinct makes each one easier to act on.
How can I increase my average order value?
The most reliable levers are a free-shipping threshold set 15–30% above your current AOV, product bundles, post-add-to-cart upsells and cross-sells, volume or tiered discounts, and a visible cart progress bar that nudges shoppers toward the next reward. Free shipping thresholds alone commonly lift AOV by 15–30%.
How often should I measure average order value?
Check it monthly for trend lines and after every major promotion or merchandising change to see its impact. Avoid reading too much into a single day or a tiny sample, since a few large or small orders can swing the average. Longer windows give you a more stable, decision-ready number.
Keep going: size up the full picture with the profit margin calculator, pressure-test the order math with the break-even calculator, or see how many visitors turn into orders with the conversion rate calculator. You can also read the definitions behind the numbers in our average order value glossary entry and conversion rate glossary.