Definition of "bottom line"

bottom line

noun
countable and uncountable, plural bottom lines
1. (countable, uncountable, business) The final balance; the amount of money or profit left after everything has been tallied.
2. (idiomatic) The summary or result; the most important information.
  Quotations
  I need your lovin' and that's the bottom line / I need your lovin' or just a little time
  1980, Teena Marie (lyrics and music), “I Need Your Lovin’”, in Irons in the Fire
  When Gorbachev totals up the balance sheet of Soviet strengths and weaknesses, the bottom line is not encouraging. Moscow has put itself into a unique historical position: It does not have a single ally among the major powers of the world.
  1988, Richard Nixon, “The Superpowers”, in 1999: Victory Without War‎, Simon and Schuster, page 38
  The bottom line is this - England have little or no chance of beating quality international sides if they defend as shoddily and carelessly as this, if they give possession away as cheaply as this and are as easy to get at as Kosovo made it look.
  2019 September 10, Phil McNulty, “'England horribly fallible in defence' against Kosovo in Euro 2020 qualifying”, in BBC Sport‎
  But the bottom line is that passengers want to see staff at a station and be able to find them easily.
  2023 July 26, Stefanie Foster, “Rebuild trust or it's game over”, in RAIL, number 988, page 3
3. A minimum acceptable result from a negotiation.