The average dollar value of a single order: total revenue divided by number of orders. AOV is one of the few levers that improves your unit economics without touching ad spend, because lifting it spreads fixed shipping and transaction costs across more revenue. Bundles, thresholds for free shipping, and well-built upsells move it more reliably than raising prices. One caution: store AOV blends new and returning customers, so never use it as a per-customer input - customer-level maths like the three gates runs on first order value and repeat order value separately.
Benchmark. There is no cross-category benchmark, the right comparison is your own AOV over time. Watch it alongside contribution margin, because discount-driven AOV gains can quietly erode profit.