YoY (Year-over-Year)
Comparing a metric to the same period a year earlier, filtering out seasonal noise to see real growth or decline.
In practice
It's the standard way to judge whether growth is real or just seasonal, since comparing this November to last October would be misleading for a business with predictable holiday spikes - the same-period comparison filters that noise out.
A retailer's November revenue this year is $120,000, versus $100,000 last November - a 20% YoY increase.
Why it matters
YoY comparison is what separates real growth from seasonal noise - without it, a strong holiday month can look like sustained momentum when it's actually just a predictable annual spike.
Worth knowing
- Most meaningful for businesses with clear seasonal patterns, where month-over-month is misleading.
- Should be paired with absolute numbers - the same percentage means different things at different scales.
- Useful for board or investor reporting, since it filters out short-term volatility.
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