Free Tool

Annotated Document Walkthrough

See a royalty check stub and a division order the way they actually arrive — then tap any field for a plain-English explanation, or take a guided tour that walks you through each line in order. Every document here is a fictional sample.

…or tap any field on the document below to see what it means.

Sample Operating LLC

Royalty Payment Detail — ILLUSTRATION ONLY

Select a field to begin

Tap any line on the sample royalty check stub — or start the guided tour — to see a plain-English explanation here.

A sample royalty check stub. Every value below is fictional and for illustration only. No data is stored or sent anywhere.

Every field on a royalty check stub

A sample royalty check stub. Every value below is fictional and for illustration only.

Owner / Payee (Demo Minerals LLC): The name the operator pays. On your real stub this is you (or your trust or entity), tied to an owner number the operator assigns.
Owner Number (DEMO-00042): The operator's internal ID for your account. Quote it whenever you call about a check or a missing payment — it's how they find you fast.
Property / Well (Sample 1-H (Demo Unit)): The well or unit the payment is for. If you own in several wells, each gets its own line so you can match income to the right property.
Production Period (Prod Month 04/2026): The month the oil or gas was actually produced — not when you're paid. Checks usually arrive two to four months after the production month.
Product (Oil (BBL)): What was sold: oil is measured in barrels (BBL); gas in thousand cubic feet (MCF). Oil and gas from the same well show on separate lines.
Volume (5,000.00 BBL): Total production sold from the well in the period. Your share isn't the whole volume — your decimal interest is applied next.
Price ($75.00 / BBL): The price the operator received per unit. This can differ from the headline market price because of quality, location, and contract terms.
Decimal Interest (0.00195313): Your exact ownership share of the well's revenue, carried to eight decimals. Volume × price × this decimal gives your gross value. See “Decimal interest” in the glossary.
Gross Value ($732.42): Your share of the sale before any deductions: 5,000 × $75.00 × 0.00195313. This is the top of your check, not the bottom line.
Severance Tax (− $33.69): A state tax on production, charged as a percentage of value. The rate varies by state and by product (oil vs. gas). See “Severance tax” in the glossary.
Post-Production Deductions (− $18.00): Costs to move and treat the product after the wellhead — gathering, compression, processing, transportation. Whether they hit your check depends on your lease. See “Post-production costs” in the glossary.
Net Amount ($680.73): What actually lands in your account: gross value minus tax minus deductions. The gap between gross and net is the usual reason a check feels small.

Every field on a division order

A sample division order. Every value below is fictional and for illustration only.

Owner / Interest Owner (Demo Minerals LLC): Whose interest the division order confirms. Signing it verifies your decimal and where to send your checks — it does not change your lease.
Owner Number (DEMO-00042): The operator's account ID for you, the same number that appears on every check stub that follows.
Effective Date (05/01/2026): When this decimal starts applying. Production before this date is typically held or trued-up, often through a suspense account.
Operator (Sample Operating LLC (demo)): The company that runs the well and cuts your checks. It's the name to contact about payments, decimals, and statements.
Well / Unit (Sample 1-H (Demo Unit)): The specific well or pooled unit this order covers. One tract can fall into several units, each with its own division order.
Legal Description (Sec 14-T5N-R3W, 640.00 ac): The land the unit covers, written in survey terms (section-township-range here). It defines exactly which acreage feeds the well.
Net Mineral Acres (10.000): How many mineral acres you actually own under the unit. This is the numerator that drives your decimal. See “Net mineral acres (NMA)” in the glossary.
Unit Acres (640.00): The total size of the drilling or pooled unit. Your net mineral acres divided by this is your share of the unit.
Royalty Rate (1/8 (0.125)): The lease royalty fraction. It scales your acreage share down to your royalty share of revenue.
Interest Type (RI (Royalty Interest)): What kind of interest you hold. A royalty interest shares in revenue without paying drilling or operating costs. See “Royalty interest” in the glossary.
Decimal Interest (0.00195313): Your final ownership share, computed as (net mineral acres ÷ unit acres) × royalty rate = (10 ÷ 640) × 0.125. Always check this against your own math before signing. See “Decimal interest” in the glossary.

How a division order and a check stub fit together

These two documents are the start and the end of the same story. The division order comes first: it confirms your decimal interest in a specific well so the operator knows exactly what share to pay. The check stub comes after production, applying that same decimal to the volume sold and the price received, then subtracting taxes and any lease-allowed deductions to reach your net payment.

The decimal is the link

The single most important number on both documents is your decimal. On the division order it's derived from your net mineral acres, the unit size, and your royalty rate. On every check stub for that well, the same decimal reappears. To compute it yourself, use the Division Order Calculator; to project a future check from volume and price, use the Royalty Income Estimator; and to walk an existing payment from gross to net, use the Royalty Check Stub Decoder.

Where to read more

For deeper background, see what a division order is, how to read your royalty check stub, and why a royalty check goes down.

Frequently asked questions

How do I read a royalty check stub and a division order?

Both are built from the same pieces — an owner number, a well or unit, your decimal interest, and the math that turns production into a payment. The division order confirms your decimal; the stub applies it to volume and price, then subtracts taxes and deductions to reach your net.

What is the decimal interest on these documents?

It's your exact share of the well's revenue, usually carried to eight decimals: net mineral acres ÷ unit acres × royalty rate. The same decimal appears on your division order and on every stub for that well.

Are the documents in this walkthrough real?

No. Every name, operator, well, and number is fictional and for illustration only. This is a general educational tool; nothing is stored or transmitted. Always verify against your own documents and lease.

This walkthrough is an educational reference using simplified sample documents. Real stubs and division orders can include multiple wells and products, prior-period adjustments, and owner-specific tax withholding. Always verify against your actual documents and lease.

Want help reading and reconciling your real documents across wells and months? See Pro.