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Revenue Growth Rate Calculator
Calculate year-over-year revenue growth from two numbers, get an instant quality tier, and compare the result against typical growth ranges across 20 sectors — is this company growing faster or slower than its peers?
Auto-fill from a ticker
Inputs
YoY growth = (Current − Prior) ÷ Prior × 100
Results
Enter current and prior revenue to see YoY growth
Use the same unit for both figures. The percentage updates instantly.
Typical YoY revenue growth by sector
Broad, cycle-aware norms across 20 sectors. Read a company's growth against the band for its industry — a 12% grower is strong for a utility and ordinary for cloud software.
| Sector / Industry | Typical YoY revenue growth |
|---|---|
| Software & Cloud | 15% – 30% |
| Semiconductors | 8% – 20% |
| Internet & Media | 10% – 25% |
| IT Services | 5% – 12% |
| Biotechnology | 15% – 40% |
| Pharmaceuticals | 3% – 8% |
| Medical Devices | 6% – 12% |
| Health Care Providers | 5% – 10% |
| Banks | 3% – 8% |
| Insurance | 2% – 6% |
| Capital Markets | 4% – 10% |
| Consumer Discretionary Retail | 4% – 10% |
| Automobiles | 2% – 8% |
| Restaurants & Leisure | 5% – 12% |
| Consumer Staples | 2% – 5% |
| Energy (Oil & Gas) | -5% – 15% |
| Industrials & Machinery | 3% – 8% |
| Materials & Chemicals | 2% – 7% |
| Utilities | 1% – 4% |
| Real Estate (REITs) | 3% – 8% |
What Is the Revenue Growth Rate?
The revenue growth rate measures how fast a company's top line is expanding from one period to the next. The year-over-year (YoY) version compares the most recent period to the same period a year earlier:
| Formula | What it captures |
|---|---|
| (Current − Prior) ÷ Prior × 100 | The percentage change in revenue between two periods — the purest read on demand for a company's products |
Revenue climbing from $100M to $120M is a 20% growth rate. Because the ratio divides by the prior figure, the unit cancels — the percentage is the same whether you enter the numbers in billions or millions, as long as both use the same unit.
How to Interpret Your Growth Rate
| YoY revenue growth | Quality tier & what it means |
|---|---|
| Above 20% | Strong — top-decile expansion, revenue compounding fast |
| 10% – 20% | Healthy — solid double-digit growth, ahead of most mature peers |
| 0% – 10% | Slow — positive but modest; watch whether it is accelerating or fading |
| Below 0% | Declining — revenue shrinking versus the prior period |
These tiers are a universal shorthand — but the real test is the sector band. Scan the 20-sector benchmark table in the calculator above: a 12% grower is excellent for a utility and ordinary for cloud software.
Reading Growth in Context
Acceleration beats a single number
One quarter of growth tells you little on its own. What moves a valuation is the trend — is growth accelerating, holding, or decelerating? A company slowing from 30% to 18% can de-rate even while still posting strong absolute numbers.
Growth must be profitable
Revenue growth only creates value if it drops through to profit and cash. Pair it with margins and the sustainable growth rate to see whether the company can self-fund that expansion or needs outside capital.
Watch the base effect
A tiny prior-period base produces huge percentages that aren't durable; a large base makes even healthy growth look pedestrian. Always sanity-check the absolute dollars behind the percentage.
Price the growth
The market pays for future earnings power. Once you know the growth rate, use the P/E calculator to judge whether the multiple being paid is justified by that trajectory.
How to Use This Calculator
Pick a unit
Choose billions or millions — just use the same unit for both figures.
Enter the two revenues
Type the current-period and prior-period revenue from the income statement.
Read the tier
The YoY percentage and a Strong/Healthy/Slow/Declining label appear instantly.
Compare to the sector
Match the result against the 20-sector benchmark band for its industry.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you calculate the revenue growth rate?
YoY revenue growth = (Current − Prior) ÷ Prior × 100. Revenue rising from $100M to $120M is a 20% growth rate. Use the same unit for both figures — the percentage is identical in billions or millions.
What is a good revenue growth rate?
Above 20% is strong, 10–20% healthy, 0–10% slow, below 0% declining — but context rules. A 12% rate is excellent for a utility and ordinary for cloud software. Compare to the sector band, not a single threshold.
What is the difference between YoY growth and CAGR?
YoY compares two consecutive periods and shows acceleration or deceleration. CAGR annualizes growth across several years into one smoothed rate. Use YoY for momentum, CAGR for long-run trajectory.
Can revenue growth be negative?
Yes. When current revenue is below the prior period, the growth rate is negative and the company is contracting. A single negative quarter can be cyclical; a persistent decline is a structural warning.
Why does the unit selector not change the result?
Because the formula divides current revenue by prior revenue, the unit cancels out. $120B ÷ $100B and $120,000M ÷ $100,000M both give the same 20%. The selector only controls how the numbers are labeled.
FINISHED THE NUMBERS?
A calculator gives you one number. The report gives you the argument.
Assumptions, scenarios, and what breaks them — on any public company.
See a sample report →