Free Markup, Margin & Discount Calculator
Set sale prices from cost, work out profit margin from a known price, or apply a discount — three pricing calculators in one. Instant, free, and works in your browser.
Cost + markup % → sale price
Enter values above to see the result.
Markup ↔ Margin quick reference
Three Pricing Tools, One Page
The core math behind every retail, wholesale, and freelance pricing decision — in a single fast calculator.
Markup Mode
Start with cost and your target markup % to get the sale price. Ideal for setting retail prices from wholesale cost, or quoting freelance projects from labour cost.
Margin Mode
Start with cost and sale price to discover your actual profit margin %. Use this to check whether a deal hits your minimum margin or to compare profitability across products.
Discount Mode
Take any list price and apply a discount % to see the final price and savings. Great for sales planning, Black Friday pricing, or quick mental math while shopping.
Instant Results
No submit button. Results update live as you type, so you can drag-test multiple price points and find the one that matches your strategy.
Multiple Currencies
Pick from USD, GBP, EUR, AED, BRL, AUD, CAD, SGD, JPY, and INR. Output formatting matches the currency you choose.
100% Private
Every calculation runs locally in your browser. None of your cost data, pricing strategy, or margins are sent anywhere or logged.
Who Uses It?
Anyone who sells things, prices services, or runs the numbers on a deal.
Retailers
Set shelf prices that hit your margin target while staying competitive. Test multiple markup levels in seconds.
E-commerce Sellers
Price products for Amazon, Shopify, or Etsy with the right margin after fees, shipping, and ad spend.
Freelancers
Mark up your hourly cost to set a sustainable client rate. Apply a launch discount without eroding profit.
Business Owners
Spot-check whether suppliers' price changes still leave you profitable, and benchmark margin across SKUs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between markup and margin?
Markup is profit expressed as a percentage of cost. Margin is the same profit expressed as a percentage of sale price. So if you buy something for $100 and sell it for $150, your markup is 50% (a $50 profit on a $100 cost) but your margin is 33% ($50 on a $150 sale). They describe the same transaction from different angles — and confusing them is one of the most common pricing mistakes.
Should I use markup or margin when pricing my products?
Use markup when you know your cost and want to set a price (“cost-plus pricing”). Use margin when you have a target profitability — say, “every product must hit at least 40% margin”. Most retailers track both: markup to calculate price, margin to evaluate performance. Standard retail markup is 50%, fashion 100%+, restaurants 200–300% on drinks. Margins, in contrast, are usually quoted in single or low double digits.
How do I calculate a discount percentage?
Take the discount amount and divide by the original price, then multiply by 100. So if a $200 item is on sale for $150, the discount is $50, and $50 ÷ $200 = 0.25 = 25% off. To apply a known % discount to a price, multiply the price by (100 − discount%) / 100. So $200 at 25% off = $200 × 0.75 = $150. This calculator does both directions automatically.
What is a good profit margin for a small business?
It depends heavily on the industry. Grocery stores operate on 1–3% net margin, retail clothing 4–13%, software companies 15–35%, restaurants 3–9%. Gross margins (before overhead) are higher — typically 20–60% for goods and 40–80% for services. The right benchmark is your industry average, not a universal “good” number. Margins below 5% leave very little room for cost increases or one-off problems.
How do I price for marketplaces like Amazon or Etsy?
Marketplace pricing must account for platform fees (typically 8–15%), payment processing (~3%), shipping cost, packaging, and your ad spend. A simple approach: calculate your fully-loaded cost per unit (including marketplace fees as a % of sale price) and then apply your target margin to that loaded cost. If your target margin is 30% and your loaded cost is $14, the sale price should be $14 ÷ (1 − 0.30) = $20.
Can I chain discounts? (20% off + 10% off)
Stacked discounts are multiplicative, not additive. A 20% discount followed by a 10% discount is not 30% off. $100 with 20% off = $80, then 10% off $80 = $72 — equivalent to 28% off the original. Always apply each discount in sequence to the running price, not the original. For estimating, multiply the remaining percentages: 0.80 × 0.90 = 0.72, so 28% off in total.
Does this include sales tax or VAT?
No — these calculations are pre-tax. The cost and sale price you enter should be net of any sales tax or VAT, since tax is collected and remitted separately and is not part of your margin. For VAT or sales tax calculations, use our separate VAT & Sales Tax Calculator.
Does this work offline?
Yes — once the page loads, you can disconnect entirely. All calculations run in your browser using simple JavaScript math. Nothing is uploaded or saved.
A Practical Guide to Pricing
Pricing is the single most leveraged decision in any business. A 1% improvement in price typically improves profit by 8–11% — more than any equivalent improvement in volume or cost. Yet many small businesses set prices by guesswork or by copying competitors. Understanding markup, margin, and discount math is the foundation for thinking clearly about price.
The Markup Formula
Markup = (Selling Price − Cost) ÷ Cost × 100. It tells you how much you've added on top of cost as a percentage of that cost. A 50% markup on a $100 item sells for $150. A 100% markup (or “keystone” in retail) sells at twice cost — $200. Industries with low volume and high handling cost (jewellery, furniture) often use 100%+ markups. High-volume, low-margin industries (groceries, basic consumer goods) live in 5–25% markup territory.
The Margin Formula
Margin = (Selling Price − Cost) ÷ Selling Price × 100. It tells you what percentage of each sale ends up as profit before overhead. Because the denominator is sale price (not cost), the margin is always lower than the markup for the same transaction. The relationship is: margin = markup ÷ (1 + markup). A 50% markup = 33% margin. A 100% markup = 50% margin. A 200% markup = 67% margin.
Gross Margin vs Net Margin
Gross margin is the figure this calculator computes — profit on a single transaction before deducting overhead. Net margin is what remains after rent, salaries, marketing, and other fixed costs are subtracted across all sales. A retailer with 40% gross margin might end up with 6% net margin once everything else is paid. When investors and analysts talk about margin, they usually mean net margin; when operators pricing individual SKUs talk about margin, they usually mean gross.
Choosing the Right Markup
There's no universally correct markup — it depends on your industry norms, fixed cost base, and competitive positioning. A general framework: your markup must cover (a) your share of overhead, (b) returns and shrinkage, (c) marketing cost, and (d) your target net margin. If overhead alone consumes 20% of revenue, returns 5%, marketing 10%, and you target a 10% net margin, your gross margin must be at least 45% — equivalent to ~82% markup on cost.
Strategic Discounting
Discounts are often more expensive than they look. A 20% discount on a 40% margin product cuts your margin from 40% to 25% — that's a 38% reduction in profit per unit, not a 20% reduction. To break even on profit, you need to sell 60% more units. This is why “always-on” discounting destroys profitability faster than most operators realise: the customer perceives a small price drop, but the seller loses a much larger share of margin.
Smarter discount strategies are time-bound (flash sales), bundled (buy-one-get-one half-off), or tier-based (volume discounts that lock in higher-quantity purchases). These preserve perceived value while limiting the margin damage.
Common Pricing Mistakes
Confusing markup and margin. “I marked it up 30%” sounds healthy until you realise that's only a 23% margin — and a single 25% off promo wipes the entire margin out.
Pricing below true cost. Forgetting to load packaging, shipping, payment processing fees, and your own time into “cost” produces pretty-looking margins that disappear in real cash flow.
Anchoring to competitor prices. Your competitor may have a different cost base, scale, or strategic intent (selling at a loss to capture market share). Copying their price copies their assumptions, not their economics.
Stacking discounts incorrectly. Treating “20% off plus 10% loyalty” as 30% off when it's really 28% off leads to slow margin erosion as discounts compound.