Revenue Metrics

Overview

Revenue metrics show how much money your TikTok Shop is bringing in. These are the top-line numbers that represent your sales activity before any costs or expenses are deducted. Understanding the difference between Gross Sales, Net Sales, and GMV is key to interpreting your Dashboardly reports accurately.

Metrics

Product Sales (Gross Sales)

• What it shows: The total value of all products sold at their original listed price, before any discounts are applied.
• Formula: Sum of (Original Price x Quantity) for each item sold
• Where you see it: Dashboard, Profit & Loss, Sales & Profit
• Example: You sell 10 units of a product listed at $25 each, with a $5-per-unit discount. Product Sales shows $250 (10 x $25), not $200. The $50 in discounts is tracked separately.
• Important notes: This is the merchandise-only "sticker price" total. It does not include customer-paid shipping. Discounts, shipping, fees, and costs are shown as separate components. This matches TikTok's subtotal_before_discount_amount transaction field. In some places, this metric may be labeled "Product Sales," "Revenue," or "Gross Sales" -- they refer to the same product-only value.

Discount Applied

• What it shows: The total value of seller-created discounts applied to orders.
• Formula: Sum of (Seller Discount x Quantity) for each item
• Where you see it: Profit & Loss, Sales & Profit
• Example: If you run a "Buy One Get One 50% Off" promotion on a $20 item and sell 4 units (2 at full price, 2 at $10), Discount Applied shows $20.
• Important notes: This only includes discounts you (the seller) created. Platform discounts funded by TikTok are not included here -- those appear under Platform Subsidy. If you are running a co-funded promotion, your share shows up as Co-funded Promotion Fee (an expense), while TikTok's share shows up as Platform Subsidy (income for you).

Net Sales

• What it shows: Product revenue after seller-funded discounts. Shipping is tracked separately.
• Formula: Product Sales - Discount Applied
• Where you see it: Dashboard, Profit & Loss, Sales & Profit
• Example: $5,000 Product Sales - $500 seller discounts = $4,500 Net Sales. A separate $300 in customer-paid shipping does not change this product-only Net Sales line.
• Important notes: Net Sales is the basis for calculating Gross Profit and Margin. Only seller-created discounts reduce this legacy Net Sales measure; TikTok-funded discount support is shown through the Platform Subsidy fields.

Shipping Revenue

• What it shows: The amount customers paid for shipping on their orders.
• Where you see it: Profit & Loss, Sales & Profit
• Important notes: This is what the customer was charged for shipping -- not what it cost to fulfill the shipment. Gross Sales does not include it. Product and P&L breakdowns show Customer-paid shipping and Shipping costs separately, while Net Shipping combines their impact.

GMV (Gross Merchandise Value)

• What it shows: The total checkout value of all orders, including those that were later cancelled.
• Formula: Sub Total + Shipping Fee (where Sub Total is the post-discount product price)
• Where you see it: Dashboard, Profit & Loss
• Example: A customer buys a $25 item with a $5 discount and pays $4.99 shipping. The GMV for this order is $20 + $4.99 = $24.99. Product Sales for the same order would be $25.
• Important notes:
  • GMV includes cancelled orders. This matches how TikTok Seller Center calculates GMV -- even if a customer cancels, the order still counts as gross merchandise activity. Because of this, GMV will typically be higher than your actual revenue.
  • GMV uses the post-discount sub-total (what the customer actually paid for the product), which is different from Product Sales (which uses the pre-discount original price).
  • The full GMV figure shown on the P&L also includes Platform Subsidy: GMV = GMV Base + Platform Subsidy.

Platform Subsidy

• What it shows: The amount TikTok contributed to promotions and discounts on your behalf. This amount is already included in your sales revenue (and in your TikTok settlement deposits) -- it is not separate extra income added on later.
• Where you see it: Profit & Loss (in the Net Profit calculation section)
• Example: You run a co-funded promotion where TikTok covers $3 of a $5 discount on each order. If you sell 100 orders, your Platform Subsidy is $300. You can also receive shipping fee subsidies from TikTok, which are included here.
• Important notes: Platform Subsidy is shown for transparency only. It is TikTok's contribution to your co-funded promotions, and that amount is already included in your sales revenue (and in your TikTok settlement deposits) -- so it is not added to your Net Profit a second time. Net Profit = Operating Profit - Net Ad Spend. Do not confuse this with Co-funded Promotion Fee, which is the expense you pay to participate in co-funded campaigns. Platform Subsidy is TikTok's money coming to you; Co-funded Promotion Fee is your money going out.

How These Metrics Connect

Revenue metrics flow from top to bottom:

1. Product Sales / Gross Sales is merchandise before discounts and excludes shipping
2. Subtract Discount Applied to get product-only Net Sales
3. Show Customer-paid shipping separately from fulfillment and TikTok shipping adjustments
4. Net Sales feeds product gross-profit and margin calculations
5. GMV is a separate checkout-activity measure that includes post-discount merchandise plus shipping

Here is a visual summary:

Product Sales (pre-discount)
  - Discounts
  = Net Sales  -----> feeds into Gross Profit, Margin

Customer-paid shipping
  + TikTok/carrier shipping adjustments
  = Net Shipping

GMV (separate calculation)
  = Post-discount Sub Total + Shipping Fee
  GMV includes cancelled orders
  GMV on P&L = GMV Base + Platform Subsidy

Common Questions

Why is my GMV higher than my Revenue?

GMV includes cancelled orders and uses the post-discount sub-total plus shipping. Revenue (Product Sales) only counts completed orders at the pre-discount product price. These are intentionally different metrics with different purposes. GMV is useful for understanding total marketplace activity; Revenue is useful for understanding your actual earnings.

Why does Product Sales not match what I see in TikTok Seller Center?

Product Sales in Dashboardly uses the original listed price before discounts. TikTok Seller Center may display different figures depending on which report you are viewing. Our Product Sales matches TikTok's "Gross Sales" definition (subtotal before discount amount).

What is the difference between Net Sales and Revenue (Sales)?

Net Sales = Product Sales - seller discounts. In some places, "Revenue" or "Sales" refers to Product Sales before discounts. Shipping remains separate in both cases.

Why do my numbers for recent days look slightly different than last week's?

Dashboardly uses a 3-tier data system. Recent orders start with estimated fees (Tier 3), which are based on your shop's historical fee rate. As TikTok processes the order, fees become more accurate (Tier 2.5), and after final settlement (typically 7-14 days), the numbers are exact (Tier 2). Revenue figures like Product Sales and Shipping Revenue are accurate from the start -- it is primarily fee and cost data that refines over time. See Data Delays for more details.

Where does Platform Subsidy show up?

Platform Subsidy appears in the Net Profit section on the Profit & Loss page, where it is shown for transparency but not added to Net Profit again -- that amount is already inside your sales revenue (and your TikTok settlement deposits). The formula is: Net Profit = Operating Profit - Net Ad Spend.

Can Platform Subsidy make my Net Profit higher than my Operating Profit?

No. Platform Subsidy is shown for transparency only. It is TikTok's contribution to your co-funded promotions, and that amount is already included in your sales revenue (and in your TikTok settlement deposits) -- so it is not added to Net Profit a second time. Net Profit = Operating Profit - Net Ad Spend. With zero ad spend, your Net Profit equals your Operating Profit; it is never higher because of subsidy.