What is Revenue?
The total money a business takes in before any expenses — the 'top line.'
Revenue is all the money coming in from sales, before you subtract a single expense. If you sell 100 hats at $20, your revenue is $2,000. It's called the 'top line' because it sits at the top of the income statement.
Revenue is exciting and misleading. Big revenue with bigger expenses is just an expensive hobby. 'We did a million in revenue' is a great tweet and a terrible business plan on its own.
The number that actually matters is what's left after expenses — profit.
Related terms
Definitions from the Business Dog Glossary — educational, occasionally satirical, never financial advice.