Basis Point — Glossary

The longer version

A basis point is one hundredth of a percentage point, or 0.01%. One hundred basis points make one percentage point. The unit is used for interest rates, margins and spreads, where changes are small and plain percentages would be confusing.

The unit prevents a common mix-up. A margin that goes from 52% to 53% has risen by one percentage point, or 100 basis points. It has not risen by 1%, and it has risen by about 1.9% in relative terms. Writing percent for both kinds of change causes errors.

Jio Platforms' EBITDA margin expanded by 150 basis points to 53.3% in the quarter to June 2026. At Microsoft, the gross margin fell one percentage point, which is 100 basis points, to 68% in the first quarter of fiscal 2027, while operating margin rose one point to 50%, according to Investing.com and BigGo.

Use basis points for small moves in rates and margins, say whether a change is absolute or relative, and convert before comparing.

Where we use “Basis Point”

Gadgets & DevicesApple and the Memory Crunch: Smaller Phone Makers Lose Units, Apple Loses Margin
IDC measured Apple's third-quarter smartphone shipments down 4.0% while Xiaomi, OPPO and vivo fell 29% to 35%. The memory crunch is taxing volume at smaller makers and gross margin at Apple.
Nov 1, 2026Key term

The longer version

Where we use “Basis Point”

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