Bookings vs Revenue

Bookings are the total value of contracts signed in a period, while revenue is what is actually recognized as earned in that period. Bookings lead revenue because a multi-year contract is booked at signing but recognized over time, so a bookings slowdown signals future revenue weakness before it shows in the income statement. Watching the gap between the two is a standard early-warning technique for SaaS deceleration. See SaaSpocalypse 101.