Average order value (AOV) is the average amount a customer spends per order over a set period. You calculate it by dividing total revenue by the number of orders in that period. It is one of the most common ways to measure how much each transaction is worth, and it sits alongside conversion rate and traffic as a core driver of revenue.
How it works
The formula is simple: total revenue divided by total number of orders. If your store made 50,000 dollars across 200 orders in a month, your AOV is 250 dollars. Most merchants track it monthly or quarterly so seasonal swings and promotions do not distort a single reading. Decide up front whether you count gross or net revenue (before or after discounts, shipping, and refunds) and stay consistent, because mixing methods makes trends unreadable.
Why it matters
Raising AOV grows revenue without needing more traffic, which is usually cheaper than acquiring new customers. It also shapes decisions on free-shipping thresholds, volume discounts, and bundling. In B2B, order sizes tend to be larger than a typical self-serve cart, so a wholesale or trade channel often pulls overall AOV up. Watching B2B and DTC AOV separately gives you a clearer picture than one blended number.
Example in B2B quoting
A DTC checkout cart might average 90 dollars, while a negotiated B2B quote for the same catalog runs several thousand. Quoting lets you propose case quantities, tiered pricing, and add-ons before the buyer pays, all of which lift the value of each accepted order. When a quote converts to a paid Shopify order, that larger amount flows into your AOV like any other sale. If you want to see how quoting fits the wider vocabulary, browse the B2B quoting glossary or review plans and pricing.