Marketplaces rise and fall on the volume of transactions running through them. But just tracking transactions won’t tell you how healthy your business is. To really know what’s working, you have to see the value moving through your platform, and what you keep from that value. That’s where gross merchandise value and take rate come in.
These two metrics are the foundation for understanding marketplace finances. Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) is the total value of goods or services sold on your platform. Take rate is the percentage you collect as revenue. Together, they show if your business is sustainable or just busy.
If you’re on a finance team at a marketplace, nailing these numbers is a must. They drive your revenue forecasts, shape your unit economics, and help investors size up your business. But getting them right takes a little more care than most people expect.
Defining gross merchandise value (GMV) and take rate
Gross merchandise value (GMV) is the total value of everything sold through your marketplace over a set time. It's calculated before you deduct fees, expenses, returns, or cancellations. You can think of it as the raw economic activity flowing across your platform.
Take rate is the percentage of each transaction your marketplace keeps as revenue. It’s your commission for connecting buyers and sellers. If you push $1 million in GMV and book $150,000 as revenue, your take rate is 15%.
Each metric gives you a different view of your business. GMV spotlights your scale and the value you create. Take rate measures how well you turn that value into revenue. You can have high GMV and still struggle if your take rate doesn’t cover costs. On the flip side, a strong take rate with weak GMV could mean you’re just squeezing your existing base instead of growing.
The GMV formula
Calculating standard GMV is simple. You multiply the sales price by the quantity sold, then sum it up.
GMV = Sales Price of Good x Number of Goods Sold
Say you sell 50 pairs of shoes at $100 each. Add 20 jackets at $150 each. That totals $8,000 GMV.
You'll likely want more detail. Net GMV subtracts returns, cancellations, and chargebacks. This gives you a true picture of actual transaction volume.
Net GMV = Gross GMV - (Returns + Cancellations + Chargebacks)
If customers return $500 worth of goods from that $8,000 in sales, your net GMV comes out to $7,500.
You should tracking both metrics. Gross GMV tells you how hot your marketplace is. Net GMV shows what actually stuck, answering different questions. Gross GMV works great for understanding demand and market size. Net GMV helps you nail revenue forecasting and see how happy your customers are.
The take rate formula
Calculating the basic take rate is straightforward. You divide net revenue by Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) and multiply the result by 100 to get a percentage.
Take rate = (Net revenue / GMV) x 100
If you earn $150,000 in revenue from $1 million GMV, your take rate sits at 15%.
Most marketplaces rely on more than just transaction fees. You likely charge seller commissions, buyer service fees, or generate revenue from ads and subscriptions. A blended take rate covers it all by comparing total platform revenue to GMV.
To go deeper, calculate the contribution margin per transaction. Subtract variable costs like payment processing from revenue, then divide the result by GMV. This highlights your true unit economics after accounting for direct business costs.
Understanding the importance of GMV and take rate
GMV and take rate connect to every other key metric in your business. Net revenue equals GMV times take rate. These numbers are must-haves for revenue forecasting and planning.
They also show how liquid your marketplace is. If GMV is growing and your take rate is steady, you’re connecting buyers and sellers at scale. If GMV falls or take rate drops, it could signal you’re losing ground with supply, demand, or facing more competition.
Sellers watch your take rate closely. If it’s too high, you might lose supply. If it’s too low, you won’t generate the revenue you need to grow. The right rate balances your business needs with the value you provide sellers. You grant them trust, discovery, and smooth transactions in exchange for what you need to keep moving forward.
Investors care about both metrics. GMV growth highlights market demand and execution. Take rate shows how well you monetize. Marketplaces with high GMV and low margins often struggle to prove their value. Strong businesses combine healthy GMV growth with a sustainable take rate.
You want to see take rate holding steady, or climbing as you grow GMV. This is what happens when your platform gets stronger, delivers more, and earns the right to charge for better matching, trust, or convenience. If take rate falls while GMV grows, you could be buying growth with discounts, not building for the long haul.
Key variations and calculations
Marketplace models define GMV and take rate differently. E-commerce sites usually count the full product value in their GMV. Service platforms often focus on just the service fee or include the total transaction value based on their specific business logic.
Your blended take rate relies heavily on location. Operating in multiple countries with distinct fee structures shifts your financials. Expanding into lower-margin markets pulls your overall take rate down, even if rates within each market remain stable.
Promotions directly influence GMV. Discounts make GMV look larger without providing the same revenue lift. It’s effective to separate organic GMV from incentivized GMV to see which growth actually lasts. You'll measure sustainable progress rather than subsidized spikes.
Both buyer and seller fees drive take rate, but they work differently.
- Buyer fees are visible and impact conversion rates.
- Seller fees are less obvious but affect seller profitability.
Marketplaces often use a mix of both to support growth and protect returns.
Core components to consider
Get clear on what counts as a "transaction." Will you count canceled orders as GMV? What about orders that get refunded later? Make sure your definition lines up with how you recognize revenue and watch your key metrics.
Returns and cancellations get treated differently depending on the business. Some teams report gross GMV and track returns separately. Others go straight to net GMV. If you’ve got high return rates, net GMV tells you more. If returns are rare, both answers look similar, but be consistent.
Promos and discounts reduce your real take rate. If you charge a 15% seller fee but fund a 5% buyer discount, your true take rate is closer to 10%. Track these numbers separately so you know your real margins and growth costs.
Payment processing cuts into what you keep. A 15% gross take rate could drop to 12% after payment fees. Some teams show gross, others go net. Pick one and stick to it, and always make sure stakeholders are clear which number they’re seeing.
If you mix marketplace and first-party sales, separate them. First-party sales mean full revenue but tie up inventory. Marketplace sales mean you collect the take rate, without carrying stock. Mixing GMV for both can muddy your true model and margin story.
Industry benchmarks and best practices
- E-commerce specialty marketplaces average around 18.9% take rate. Median is 10.8%. Some niches go from 2.5% up to 80%, based on services or value.
- Service marketplaces often see higher take rates than product marketplaces, around 15-30%. These platforms add value with vetting, scheduling, payment protections, and more. Companies like Uber usually charge 20-25% for matching, dispatch, and payments.
- High-value B2B marketplaces work with 3-10% take rates. The deals are bigger, so even small percentages deliver big revenue. Lower rates help adoption for enterprise buyers.
- Food delivery platforms show how take rates shift, even in one category. DoorDash’s ending take rate for 2023 was about 12.9%, but total monetization including consumer fees can hit 36%. Buyer and seller side rates can look different from each other.
- Managed marketplaces offering fulfillment services earn higher take rates, since they deliver more. If you handle logistics, quality checks, or support, you can charge more than a simple matching site. Amazon’s marketplace take is often 8-15%, shifting by category due to competition from its own retail sales.
- Take rate and average order size tend to move in opposite directions. High-ticket items make big revenue with smaller percentage cuts. Low-ticket categories need higher rates to cover fixed costs. This impacts which categories you go after, and how you price.
Top pitfalls to avoid
Distinguish revenue from GMV
GMV represents total transaction value, while revenue is the cash you actually keep. If you process $10 million GMV at a 10% take rate, you net $1 million in revenue. That difference changes how you handle planning, staffing, and board updates. Keep these clearly defined to manage expectations.
Differentiate gross and net GMV
Gross GMV helps you size overall demand, but net GMV is the best tool to forecast growth and track customer satisfaction. If $5 million GMV sees 20% returns, your net GMV sits at $4 million. Use net numbers to keep your results grounded in reality.
Break down your take rates
Transaction fees usually offer dependability. Setup fees or ads often look lumpy by comparison. Break out your blended take rate to see which revenue streams work the hardest for your business. It helps you spotlight where the real value lives in your model.
Watch organic growth
Promotions might double your GMV for a month, but that growth often fades when the discount ends. Track organic GMV separately from incentivized stats. You need to know your base is growing without the help of a coupon code.
Split metrics by location or category
Expanding to new regions can pull numbers up or down. A change in geography or category shifts your take rate even when pricing stays still. Split your metrics by location or offer for better visibility. It gives you the clarity to explain why your numbers move.
Contextualize your comparisons
Managed marketplaces usually command higher take rates than simple matching platforms. B2B models with massive deal sizes often post lower percentage rates. Always consider the business model and service level before you compare numbers.
Include payment costs in your planning
Payment fees subtract points from your take rate. Calculate these costs into your net take rate and contribution margin. This habit keeps your unit economics accurate and helps you plan with confidence.
How to calculate gross merchandise value and take rate in Runway
To track Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) and take rates effectively, you need to start with raw data. Connect your payment processor or CRM, such as Stripe or Salesforce, to Runway. This builds an integration-powered database with one row per transaction. Make sure your database includes columns for the transaction date, order ID, customer, and a numeric amount. To handle roll-ups correctly over your timeline, set the amount column to show as timeseries.
Define GMV per order
If your integration’s amount column already represents the full order value, you can treat it as GMV directly. Otherwise, add a number driver column called GMV and apply a column-level default formula. This ensures every row inherits the correct value, for example: GMV = Gross_Amount. You can still override the formula on specific rows if you need to make manual adjustments.
Set your take rate
Next, determine how much of that GMV you capture. You have two main options here.
- Flat take rate: If you take a standard percentage, add a
Take_Rate_Pctnumber driver column to your transactions database. Set a default formula using standard arithmetic operators, such asTake_Rate_Pct = 0.10. - Variable take rate: If rates vary by merchant or deal type, use a separate mapping database. Create a
Take_Rate_Pctdriver there for each segment, similar to how you map commissions. In your transactions database, reference that driver so each transaction automatically pulls the correct rate. This works just like a lookup.
Calculate platform revenue
Calculate your cut for every order by adding a Platform_Revenue number driver column in the transactions database. Use a simple multiplication formula: Platform_Revenue = GMV * Take_Rate_Pct. Make sure to view this column as a timeseries so fees contribute to the correct month.
Aggregate totals and blended rates
Bring your transaction-level data into a model or driver table to see the big picture. Create a GMV_Total driver and use the sum() function to aggregate the GMV column from your database. Do the same for Platform_Revenue_Total. This mirrors the standard approach for revenue recognition.
To find your effective monthly rate, create a Take_Rate_Blended driver. Divide your total platform revenue by the total GMV. It's smart to wrap this in an ifError() function (available in our functions library) to prevent errors during months with zero volume.
Handle actuals and forecasts
You can separate history from the future by defining different formulas for the same driver. Set actuals formulas that strictly reference your integration data, then use forecast formulas for your projected volumes. Runway automatically applies the actuals up to your last close date and switches to your forecast formulas afterward. This keeps your historical GMV grounded in real data while giving you the flexibility to model future scenarios.
Stop fighting with spreadsheets
You didn't get into finance to verify cell references at midnight. But manually tracking GMV often ends up there anyway. Spreadsheets are fragile. One broken link ruins your whole model, specifically when you need to answer a question fast. You spend your energy fixing errors instead of finding insights.
Runway clears the path. It pulls live data directly from your systems, so you never have to copy-paste again. Your formulas check themselves. Your team collaborates in real time rather than emailing files back and forth. It handles the complicated logic of a marketplace business without the grunt work.
This is about getting your time back. We give scrappy finance teams the power to run scenarios and test pricing on the fly. You gain control over your data. You stop firefighting and start leading.
Build a better roadmap
Marketplaces are complex, but your planning doesn't have to be. When you master your GMV and take rate, you make powerful decisions. You see exactly which levers pull your business forward.
Give your team the clarity they deserve. Get started with Runway and see how simple marketplace planning can actually be.