- Business Terms
- Intercompany vs. Intracompany
- Margin Account vs. Cash Account
- Boss vs. Leader
- Semi-monthly vs. Bi-weekly
- Tactical vs. Strategic
- Part-time vs. Full-time
- Not-for-profit vs. Nonprofit
- Stakeholder vs. Shareholder
- Elastic vs. Inelastic
- Amortization vs. Depreciation
- FIFO vs. LIFO
- Inbound vs. Outbound
- Public vs. Private Sector
- Stipend vs. Salary
- Formal vs. Informal Assessment
- Proceeds vs. Profits
- Co-op vs. Internship
- Transactional vs. Transformational Leadership
- Union vs. Non-union
- Revenue vs. Sales
- Vertical vs. Horizontal Integration
- Gross Sales vs. Net Sales
- Business Casual vs. Business Professional
- Absolute vs. Comparative Advantage
- Salary vs. Wage
- Income vs. Revenue
- Consumer vs. Customer
- Implicit vs. Explicit Costs
- Letter of Interest vs. Cover Letter
- Cover Letter vs. Resume
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The business world has no shortage of industry-specific terms, and two of these are income and revenue. While they may seem interchangeable, they actually have two very different meanings, and it’s important to know the difference when you’re dealing with your business’s finances.
In this article, we’ll explain what income is, what revenue is, and the difference between the two.
Key Takeaways:
| Income | Revenue |
|---|---|
| Income is all the money that has come into the company minus expenses and liabilities. | Revenue is the money a company generates by selling goods and services. |
| Income is an important part of measuring the health of a company. | Revenue is an important part of measuring the health of a company. |
| Income is the “bottom line” of a company’s finances. | Revenue is the “top line” of a company’s finances. |
| Income indicates the company’s operating efficiency. | Revenue indicates the company’s success in selling its products and services. |
What Is Income?
Income, also referred to as net income, is the amount of money a company has earned after its expenses are subtracted. Here is some more information about income:
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Income is all the money that comes into the company minus expenses and liabilities. To calculate your business’s income, you’d take the total amount of money that you brought in during a certain time period and subtract all of your expenses from it at that same time period.
This incoming money could include:
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Sales
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Interest accrued from investments
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Income from subsidiaries
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Sale of assets
These expenses could include:
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Manufacturing expenses
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Operating expenses
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Interest paid
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Depreciation and amortization of assets
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Taxes
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Payments for unusual events
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Income is an important part of measuring the health of a company. While income doesn’t tell the whole story of a company’s financial health, it is a major part of it. Companies can have high revenues, but if their expenses are just as high or higher, they aren’t actually healthy.
Companies with high incomes typically have both high revenues and low expenses, which is the ideal balance.
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Income is the “bottom line” of a company’s finances. This may sound like a figure of speech, but it’s very literal.
On a financial report, the revenue will be listed at the top of the page, and the company will list all of its expenses and liabilities underneath that. Then, at the bottom of the page, the company will list the difference between its revenue and total expenses or its income.
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Income indicates the company’s operating efficiency. High income means there is a large amount of money coming into the company and not a lot going out of it.
This indicates that the company is highly efficient in producing its products or providing its services to its customers, as it’s making plenty of sales but isn’t paying much to create and market the products and services.
What Is Revenue?
Revenue is the amount of money that a company brings in from the sale of its goods or services. This number doesn’t account for expenses, and it’s a good indicator of how well a company is doing with finding customers to buy its products and services.
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Revenue is the money a company generates by selling goods and services. If a shop receives $15,000 from its customers during the month, its monthly revenue is $15,000. A portion of this money will have to go toward the shop’s expenses, so its income will be lower, but its revenue is still $15,000.
The shop may also see additional income from investments they’ve made or subsidiaries they’ve required, but these aren’t included in revenue.
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Revenue is an important part of measuring the health of a company. While revenue doesn’t tell the whole story of how profitable a company actually is, it is a good indicator of how much business it’s doing and how many expenses it can take on and still be profitable.
In addition, increasing revenues are a sign of company growth, which can signal the need to scale operations in order to keep it healthy.
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Revenue is the “top line” of a company’s finances. On a financial document, companies will list the revenue at the top and then add additional streams of income and subtract expenses and liabilities below it to find their net income.
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Revenue indicates the company’s success in selling its products and services. Since revenue is the amount of money coming in from sales, it’s a good marker of how well the company is doing in finding customers to buy its products.
High revenues typically mean high sales, which is important for companies and investors to keep tabs on.
Income Vs. Revenue FAQ
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Can income be higher than revenue?
No, income cannot be higher than revenue. Because income is calculated by subtracting expenses from revenue, it can’t be higher than revenue. In fact, it doesn’t even have to be a positive number since a company’s expenses can outweigh its revenue.
However, that being said, sometimes the word “income” is used to refer to all of the money that enters a company, including revenue, interest from investments, and income from subsidiaries. In this case, income can be higher than revenue – and usually should be.
To differentiate between the two types of income, the first type derived from revenue and expenses is called net income, while the second type is simply called income or total income.
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Is revenue or income more important?
Income is more important than revenue. Because income indicates whether a business is making money or not, it’s usually considered the most important of the two. After all, it doesn’t matter how much revenue you’re earning if your expenses are outpacing it.
For example, investors will look at a company’s income to see how effectively it’s operating and how much money it’s making in comparison to its revenue.
If the company’s income is too low, investors likely will be more hesitant to invest in it. If it’s high, that’s a good sign that the company has a good handle on its expenses and is operating efficiently.
- Business Terms
- Intercompany vs. Intracompany
- Margin Account vs. Cash Account
- Boss vs. Leader
- Semi-monthly vs. Bi-weekly
- Tactical vs. Strategic
- Part-time vs. Full-time
- Not-for-profit vs. Nonprofit
- Stakeholder vs. Shareholder
- Elastic vs. Inelastic
- Amortization vs. Depreciation
- FIFO vs. LIFO
- Inbound vs. Outbound
- Public vs. Private Sector
- Stipend vs. Salary
- Formal vs. Informal Assessment
- Proceeds vs. Profits
- Co-op vs. Internship
- Transactional vs. Transformational Leadership
- Union vs. Non-union
- Revenue vs. Sales
- Vertical vs. Horizontal Integration
- Gross Sales vs. Net Sales
- Business Casual vs. Business Professional
- Absolute vs. Comparative Advantage
- Salary vs. Wage
- Income vs. Revenue
- Consumer vs. Customer
- Implicit vs. Explicit Costs
- Letter of Interest vs. Cover Letter
- Cover Letter vs. Resume

