Average time

Average time is an estimate some panels show for how long a service has recently taken to complete an order, calculated from past orders rather than promised for yours.

The figure is worked out by the panel from orders on that service that already finished. How it is calculated varies by panel script, including which orders are counted, whether the wait before the start is included, and whether it is adjusted for order size. A figure built from small orders says little about how long a large one will take, so read it alongside the quantity you plan to order.

The more important limit is what the average leaves out. Orders that ended partial or cancelled may not be counted at all, so a service that fails often can still show a short average time built from the orders that did finish. And because it describes the past, it lags any change upstream. If a reseller switches the provider behind a service, the average can keep describing the old supplier until enough new orders complete.

Use it to compare services on the same panel, and to notice a service slowing down when its figure rises. Do not use it to plan around a deadline, and do not compare the figure across panels, since each one calculates it differently and several may be forwarding to the same supplier anyway.

What it does not mean

Average time is not the start time and not a delivery commitment. A support request that quotes it as a promise usually gets nowhere, because the panel never offered it as one.