Markup Calculator
Use this free markup calculator to set a sale price from cost, or check the markup in an existing selling price.
Your result
Enter a positive cost and your target markup to see a selling price, profit and equivalent margin.
Check the math
Markup compares profit with cost. Margin compares the same profit with the selling price. Set selling price adds your target markup to cost and rounds the price to cents. Profit and percentages then use that rounded price. Find markup starts with a cost and price you already know.
Example 1
Build the per-order cost before marking it up
Suppose one order has $40.00 of product cost, $5.00 of delivery cost you pay and a known $3.00 order fee. If your pricing question includes all three, enter $48.00 as cost. At 25% markup, the selling price is $60.00 and the amount left after those costs is $12.00: a 20% margin. Using only the $40.00 product cost gives a $50.00 price, leaving $2.00 after the same $48.00 costs. Add each amount once; fixed overhead, tax and fees calculated from the eventual selling price need their own treatment.
- Included per-order cost
- $48.00
- Price at 25% markup
- $60.00
- Left after included costs
- $12.00
- Margin on that price
- 20.00%
Example 2
Set a price with 25% markup
Start with $80.00 cost. A 25.00% markup adds $20.00, giving a $100.00 selling price. The $20.00 profit is 25% of cost but only 20% of selling price.
- Selling price
- $100.00
- Profit
- $20.00
- Margin
- 20.00%
Example 3
Find markup from an existing price
An item costs $60.00 and sells for $100.00. Its $40.00 profit divided by $60.00 gives 66.67% markup. Divide that same profit by the $100.00 price and the margin is 40.00%.
- Profit
- $40.00
- Markup
- 66.67%
- Margin
- 40.00%
Example 4
What does a 40% markup mean?
A $100.00 cost with 40% markup adds $40.00, so the selling price is $140.00. Profit after that included cost is $40.00. Divide $40.00 by the $140.00 price for 28.57% margin. This is a synthetic calculation, not a recommended markup.
- Cost
- $100.00
- Selling price
- $140.00
- Profit after included cost
- $40.00
- Margin
- 28.57%
Example 5
100% markup doubles cost, not margin
A $100.00 cost with 100% markup gives a $200.00 selling price and $100.00 profit after that cost. The profit is half the price, so margin is 50.00%. It is not 100% margin. Expenses left out of cost are still left out of this result.
- Cost
- $100.00
- Selling price
- $200.00
- Profit after included cost
- $100.00
- Margin
- 50.00%
Try it on paper
Practice pricing and receipt percentages
Compare margin with markup, build one order cost, and explain a one-cent tax rounding difference. The free worksheet includes two learner pages and a separate checked answer key, with links to the calculators.
Before you calculate
Assumptions & limits
- Use cost and price for the same item, service or batch, in the same currency. Display is USD; no conversion is performed. Only the costs you enter are included.
- Money inputs and the rounded selling price are limited to 999999999.99. Set selling price requires positive cost. Find markup accepts zero cost or zero price and reports the corresponding percentage as undefined.
- Target markup accepts 0–10000.00%, with up to two decimal places. Use decimal numbers without commas, signs, currency symbols or a percent sign. This target limit does not cap reverse-calculated markup.
- Selling price is rounded to the nearest cent before profit and percentages are calculated. Percentage results use two decimal places. Midpoint ties round away from zero; rounded zero has no minus sign.
- This is a pricing calculation, not an estimate of demand or a guarantee that a price covers every business expense. Sales taxes, fees, overhead and discounts are not automatically added.
Keep in mind
Common mix-ups
25% markup is not 25% margin
Check which denominator your pricing target uses: cost for markup, selling price for margin. The worked examples above show why the percentages differ.
A target may change when rounded to cents
At $0.01 cost, a 50% target produces an unrounded $0.015 price. Rounding to $0.02 gives $0.01 profit: actual markup is 100% and margin is 50%. Both results use the price you can charge.
A positive markup may still omit expenses
If your cost excludes delivery, payment fees or overhead, the displayed profit excludes them too. Choose a cost basis appropriate to your decision.
What is a good markup percentage?
There is no universal good markup. Start with a consistent cost for the product or service, then compare the resulting price with your operating costs, expected sales and market conditions. Cost of goods sold may cover only the product itself; it does not automatically include delivery, payment fees or overhead. Different pricing strategies can produce different prices. This calculator shows cost-plus arithmetic, not customer demand or a recommended price. If you have a desired profit margin instead, use the linked Profit Margin Calculator. Use Break-Even to check the sales needed to cover fixed costs.
Sources & calculation notes
Explains building a per-product cost from relevant expenses before applying a profit target. The $48 cost example is a synthetic BiznTools calculation, not a recommended markup.
Explains why markup uses cost and gross margin percentage uses selling price. The input limits and cent-rounding rules above are choices made for this tool.
Method and input rules checked: . Engineering validation; no professional specialist review is claimed.