Enter your cost and desired margin (or markup) to instantly find the selling price that hits your profit target.
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Selling Price Calculator
Enter your cost and desired margin (or markup) to instantly find the selling price that hits your profit target.
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%
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Recommended Selling Price
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Selling Price
—
Margin
—
% of price
Markup
—
% of cost
Gross Profit
—
dollars
Cost
—
your cost
Formula Used
Selling Price = Cost ÷ (1 − Margin%)
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How to Calculate the Right Selling Price
Setting the right selling price is one of the most critical business decisions you make. Price too low and you leave money on the table — or worse, you run at a loss without realizing it. Price too high and you lose customers to competition. The right price starts with your costs and target profit margin.
This calculator works backwards from your profit goal. Enter what something costs you and what margin (or markup) you need to achieve, and the calculator tells you exactly what to charge. No guesswork.
📊 Real Business Example
An online retailer buys a product for $38 and wants a 55% gross margin to cover operating costs and still make money.
Without this calculation, many retailers would price at $60-$70 and wonder why the business doesn't pencil out after expenses.
How to Use This Calculator
Enter your cost price — what you pay for the product or to deliver the service (COGS).
Enter your desired margin % — what percentage of the selling price you want to keep as profit.
Alternatively, enter a desired markup % — the percentage to add on top of cost.
The recommended selling price and full profit breakdown appear instantly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Selling Price = Cost ÷ (1 − Margin%). Example: $50 cost with 40% margin → $50 ÷ 0.60 = $83.33. This calculator does this automatically — enter cost and desired margin to see the selling price instantly.
Selling Price = Cost × (1 + Markup%). Example: $50 cost with 60% markup → $50 × 1.60 = $80. Note: a 60% markup only gives you a 37.5% margin, not 60% — these are different metrics.
Target a margin that covers: your direct costs (COGS), your share of operating overhead allocated per product, a profit buffer, and a competitive cushion. For most retail businesses, 40-60% gross margin leaves room to cover overhead and achieve positive net margin.
Both. Start with cost-plus pricing (this calculator) to find your floor — the minimum price that makes the sale worthwhile. Then check competitive pricing to find the ceiling. Price between your floor and the market ceiling based on your positioning.
You have three options: (1) Reduce costs — renegotiate with suppliers or find alternatives, (2) Accept a lower margin temporarily and plan to reduce costs, (3) Find a different product or market where your required price is competitive.
Higher selling price = higher contribution margin per unit = lower break-even point. Reducing price has the opposite effect. Even a 10% price increase dramatically reduces how many units you need to sell to cover fixed costs. Use our Break Even Calculator to model this.
Cost-plus pricing sets price by adding a markup to cost. Value-based pricing sets price based on what customers are willing to pay for the value delivered. Cost-plus is simpler but may underprice if your product provides significant value. Value-based can capture more margin but requires market research.
Review prices whenever your costs change (supplier increases, shipping rate changes), quarterly as a discipline, and whenever your margin metrics show compression. Many businesses set prices once and forget — leaving significant profit behind as costs creep up.