How to format model when it says in thousands or millions....

I feel kind of dumb but when modeling when it says in thousands or millions how do I translate that? So if it says in thousands and total revenue is 413,256 or when it says in millions and the revenue is 53,823 how do I translate that into my number formatting? Would the first one be just 413 and then the second one be 53,823? So that comma means its a million and without the comma its in the thousands? Really confused.

7 Comments
 

Normally, I would standardise a certain format (So everything in the model would be in millions or thousands - no intertwining). In such case, I'd insert a new column to the left to clearly state what unit it is, so it doesnt' get too confusing. For example

Revenue       '000     5,010,000   [In this case it is interpreted as 5.01 Billion]

Less: COGS '000    (1,203,000)

Alternatively, if there are way too many 0s, you could format them in Millions as such:

Revenue       USDm  5,010 [Similar to the top, this is interpreted as 5.01 Billion]

Less: COGS USDm (1,203)

 

No worries, we all start somewhere! When a financial statement says "in thousands" or "in millions," it means that the numbers are represented in those units. So, if total revenue is 413,256 and it's "in thousands," you would actually interpret that as $413,256,000. Similarly, if the revenue is 53,823 and it's "in millions," that would be $53,823,000,000.

So, in your model, you would input these numbers as 413256 (for the first example) and 53823 (for the second example) if you're keeping your model in thousands and millions respectively. The comma doesn't necessarily mean it's in millions or thousands, it's just a way to make the numbers easier to read. Always refer to the "in thousands" or "in millions" note to know how to interpret the numbers.

Remember, consistency is key in financial modeling. If you start with thousands, stick with thousands throughout your model. The same goes for millions. Happy modeling!

Sources: Abbreviation for Thousands, Millions, Billions, & Trillion?

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.
 

Wait so what happens when you want numbers both in thousands for $413,256 and $53,823. Would it be $413 for the first one and then $58,823 for the second? That is whats confusing me.

 
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