net income

American  

noun

1. the excess of revenues and gains of a business over expenses and losses during a given period of time.

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Etymology

Origin of net income

First recorded in 1760–70

Compare meaning

How does net-income compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• gross income vs. net income

Example Sentences

Net income was $360 million, well below the $419 million Wall Street was expecting.

From Barron's • May 5, 2026

Net income was $7.4 billion, surpassing a FactSet estimate of $6.1 billion.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 30, 2026

Net income in the quarter rose to $53  million, or 45 cents a share, from $44  million a year earlier, while adjusted earnings climbed to $1.81 a share, far above Wall Street expectations.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 30, 2026

Net income was $5.28 billion, up nearly 83%.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

Annual rents 40,419 1 5¼ Expenditure 7,608 4 5½ Net income 32,810 16 11¾ Year ending at Michaelmas, 1878.

From Norfolk Annals A Chronological Record of Remarkable Events in the Nineteeth Century, Vol. 2 by Mackie, Charles