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Click a chip to prefill a common target margin %.

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How to use this calculator

  • Step 1: Choose a calculation mode depending on what you know (Cost & Price, Cost & Margin %, Cost & Markup %, or Price & Margin %).
  • Step 2: Fill in the relevant inputs. For example, in “Cost & Margin %” mode, enter your unit cost and target margin percentage.
  • Step 3: (Optional) Turn on the discount toggle and enter a % off to see how promotions change your profit and margin.
  • Step 4: Click Calculate. The tool computes the missing price or cost, profit per unit, margin %, markup %, and, if applicable, discounted values.
  • Step 5: Use the mini bar chart and gauge to quickly assess whether your margin is thin, healthy, or very high.

Formula & Equations Used

Let C be the cost per unit and P be the selling price per unit.

  • Profit per unit: Profit = P − C
  • Margin % (also called gross margin on sales): Margin % = P−C P × 100 %

    Here the denominator is price, so we are asking “What fraction of the selling price is profit?”

  • Markup % (on cost): Markup % = P−C C × 100 %

    Here the denominator is cost, so we are asking “What fraction of the cost is added as profit?”

  • Target price from cost and margin %: P = C 1−m

    where m is the margin expressed as a decimal (e.g., 30% → 0.30).

  • Price from cost and markup %: P = C × ( 1 + k )

    where k is the markup as a decimal (e.g., 50% → 0.50).

  • Discounted price and margin (if a discount d% is applied): Pd = P × ( 1 − d100 ) Margin % = Pd−C Pd × 100 %

Example Problems & Step-by-Step Solutions

Example 1 — Margin from cost and price

A textbook costs your store \$32.00 per copy. You sell it for \$48.00. What are the profit per unit, margin %, and markup %?

  1. Compute profit per unit.
    Profit = P − C = 48.00 − 32.00 = 16.00 So you earn \$16.00 per copy.
  2. Compute margin %.
    Margin % = 16.00 48.00 × 100 % ≈ 33.3 % Margin is about 33.3%.
  3. Compute markup % on cost.
    Markup % = 16.00 32.00 × 100 % = 50 % Markup on cost is 50%.

Example 2 — Find price from cost and target margin

You want a 40% margin on a calculator that costs you \$18.00. What selling price should you set, and what markup % does that correspond to?

  1. Use the margin formula to solve for price.
    We want margin m = 0.40 and cost C = 18.00. P = C 1−m = 18.00 1−0.40 = 18.00 0.60 = 30.00 So the selling price should be \$30.00.
  2. Check the margin.
    Profit = 30.00 − 18.00 = 12.00 . Margin % = 12.00 30.00 × 100 % = 40 % The target margin is met.
  3. Compute the markup %.
    Markup % = 12.00 18.00 × 100 % ≈ 66.7 % A 40% margin on price corresponds to about 66.7% markup on cost.

Margin Calculator — FAQs

What is the difference between margin and markup?

Margin is profit as a percentage of the selling price, while markup is profit as a percentage of the cost. For the same product, markup is always numerically larger than margin.

Is a 30% margin the same as a 30% markup?

No. A 30% margin means 30% of the selling price is profit. A 30% markup means 30% of the cost is added as profit. For example, if the cost is \$100 and you add a 30% markup, the price is \$130 and the margin is about 23.1%, not 30%.

What is a “good” margin?

It depends on the industry. Grocery and retail often operate on thin margins (5–20%), while software or digital products can have much higher margins. For student exercises, anything in the 20–40% range is often treated as a “healthy” margin, but real-life targets vary by business model.

Can margin ever be more than 100%?

Not in the usual cost–price sense. If cost is positive, margin % must be less than 100% because price must exceed cost but cannot be infinite. Situations that look like margins > 100% usually reflect mis-categorized costs or using margin and markup interchangeably.