 1. The large uncertainty in land use and land cover change, LULCC, emissions is due to several factors, including limited data on land cover change, simplified model simulations, and different definitions of net LULCC flux across models. 2. Our analysis reveals that published studies are based on at least 9 different definitions of the net LULCC flux, which leads to a range of estimates and makes it difficult to compare results across models. 3. We propose a conceptual framework to compare different types of models and simulation setups used to derive land use fluxes and show that terminological differences between studies can explain significant differences in published net LULCC flux estimates. Our analysis also highlights the need for consistent definitions of net LULCC flux and residual sink to reduce uncertainty and avoid double counting of fluxes. This article was authored by J. Pongrots, C. H. Reich, R. A. Houghton, and others. We are article.tv, links in the description below.