TTV: Why Total Transaction Value matters for FP&A

TTV is the sum of all transaction activity — paid orders, service fees, add-ons, and refunds — within a given period.

It’s the clearest measure of money flowing through your business before costs, discounts, or revenue recognition kick in.

Top 5 TTV FAQs for Finance teams

1. What is TTV in finance?

TTV stands for Total Transaction Value — the complete value of all transactions processed during a set period. This includes:

• All sales transactions (both one-time and recurring)
• Service fees and add-ons
• Refunds and returns (as negative values)

It reflects actual cash movement in and out of your accounts before accounting for costs, discounts, or revenue recognition rules.

2. How do you calculate TTV?

Just add everything:

TTV = sum of all transactions (sales + one-time purchases – refunds)

For example, if your business processed:

• $50,000 in subscription payments
• $15,000 in one-time purchases
• $5,000 in refunds

Your TTV would be $60,000 ($50,000 + $15,000 - $5,000).

Runway pulls this data automatically from your payment gateways, CRM, and finance systems — no manual updates required.

3. TTV vs. GMV vs. Revenue — what’s the difference?

These metrics often get mixed up. Here’s a clear breakdown:

• TTV (Total Transaction Value): All money processed through your platform, including fees and taxes.
• GMV (Gross Merchandise Value): The total sales value of goods or services sold through your platform, excluding fees and taxes.
• Revenue: The portion of transactions your company actually recognizes as income after accounting for refunds, discounts, and revenue recognition rules.

According to FasterCapital, "In the dynamic world of e-commerce and online marketplaces, two metrics stand out for their critical role in assessing the health and growth of a business: Total Transaction Value (TTV) and Gross Merchandise Value (GMV)."

AccountingInsights explains that "Understanding the distinction between Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) and revenue is crucial for businesses, investors, and financial analysts. These metrics assess a company's performance but represent different aspects of its operations."

For example, an e-commerce marketplace might process $1 million in orders (TTV), with $900,000 in actual product value (GMV), but only recognize $100,000 in platform fees as revenue.

4. Why TTV matters for cash flow and runway

TTV shows when cash moves in and out, helping you forecast runway and spot seasonality:

• Rising TTV = more cash coming in
• Falling TTV = signals to conserve cash

J.P. Morgan notes that for startups, "To survive, startups need a realistic cash runway. Runway calculations are unique for each startup, but key considerations are common to all startups... This is the total amount of cash the startup has on hand, including cash in bank accounts and any other liquid assets that can be converted to cash within a reasonable period of time."

With Runway’s scenario tools, you can model different TTV paths and instantly see their impact on cash runway and resources.

5. How can finance teams grow their TTV?

To grow your TTV:

• Increase average transaction size through upsells and cross-sells
• Reduce transaction friction to boost completion rates
• Test pricing strategies to find optimal price points
• Launch new revenue streams or payment options

Runway supports teams with:

• Dashboards that highlight TTV drivers and trends
• Automated alerts when TTV deviates from forecasts
• Cohort analysis to identify high-TTV customer segments

Companies like Indie.io use Runway's tools to track and optimize their metrics.

TTV shows how much cash is moving through your business — before margins and costs. With Runway, it’s real-time, visible, and actionable. You’re not guessing your cash flow — you’re steering it.

If you’re ready to go beyond “did the money come in?” and start modeling when, why, and how — Runway’s live TTV dashboards and scenario tools give you that power.

Book your demo now to see it in action.