Glossary

Payments

Gross revenue

Gross revenue is total income from sales before deducting fees, refunds, chargebacks or discounts. Payment platforms report gross amounts on Form 1099-K, which is why platform reporting rarely matches the net figure a business sees in its bank account.

In plain terms: Everything customers paid, before anything was taken out.

Why it matters

Booking only net deposits understates both revenue and expenses, and leaves your books unable to reconcile to the 1099-K the platform files with the IRS. Record gross revenue and each deduction separately.

Read the full guideBookkeeping

Related terms