Product Pricing Calculator
This product pricing calculator works backwards from the profit margin you want to the selling price you need. Enter your unit cost, per-unit shipping, the profit margin you are targeting, and any marketplace or payment fee percentage — the calculator solves for the price that protects your margin after fees. Use it before listing a new product so every sale contributes the profit you planned for.
What one unit costs you to make or buy, before shipping and fees.
Postage, packaging and handling for one unit. Enter 0 if the buyer pays shipping.
Profit as a percentage of the selling price (not of cost — see the margin FAQ).
Fee charged as a % of the selling price, e.g. 6.5% Etsy transaction fee.
Recommended selling price
38.46
- Total unit costUnit cost plus per-unit shipping.
- 25
- Fee per saleMarketplace/payment fee at this price.
- 0
- Profit per unit
- 13.46
- Margin checkActual margin at the recommended price — should match your target.
- 35%
How it was calculated
- Total unit cost: $25.00 + $0.00 shipping = $25.00.
- Price = cost ÷ (1 − margin − fee) = $25.00 ÷ 0.6500 = $38.46.
- Check: ($38.46 − $25.00 − $0.00 fee) ÷ $38.46 = 35.0% margin.
How it works
The price solves the margin equation backwards: margin = (price − cost − fee) ÷ price, which rearranges to price = total unit cost ÷ (1 − target margin − fee rate).
Fees are treated as a percentage of the selling price because marketplaces charge on what the buyer pays — so the fee grows with the price and must be inside the equation, not added afterwards.
Per-unit shipping is added to unit cost first, so the margin is earned on the fully-loaded cost of getting one unit to the buyer.
The "margin check" row re-computes the margin from the recommended price to prove the target is hit exactly.
Worked examples
Handmade candle: $20 cost, 30% margin, no fees
Total cost = $20. Price = 20 ÷ (1 − 0.30) = $28.57. Profit = $8.57 per candle, and $8.57 ÷ $28.57 = 30% margin exactly. List at $28.57 (or round to $28.99 and re-check the margin).
Etsy-style listing: $12 cost, $3 shipping, 40% margin, 6.5% fee
Total cost = $15. Price = 15 ÷ (1 − 0.40 − 0.065) = $28.04. The 6.5% fee takes $1.82, leaving $11.21 profit — a true 40% margin on the $28.04 price.
How to measure
- Build unit cost from real numbers: pull the last three supplier invoices and average them instead of guessing.
- Weigh one packed parcel on a kitchen scale and price the postage — sellers underestimate shipping more than any other cost.
- Include the small stuff: poly mailers, tissue, stickers and labels add $0.50–$1.50 per order.
- Check your marketplace fee schedule once a quarter; fee changes silently erode margins.
- Re-run the calculator whenever a supplier raises prices — a $1 cost increase needs more than a $1 price increase to hold margin.
Assumptions & limitations
Planning estimate
- The fee is modeled as a flat percentage of the selling price; per-transaction fixed fees (e.g. $0.30) and tiered category rates are not included.
- Results assume every unit sells at the recommended price — discounts, coupons and returns will lower the realized margin.
- Taxes (sales tax, VAT, income tax) are not part of this calculation.
- This is a planning estimate for pricing decisions, not financial or tax advice.
Frequently asked questions
Price = total unit cost ÷ (1 − target margin − fee rate). For a $20 cost and 30% margin with no fees, that is 20 ÷ 0.70 = $28.57. The formula guarantees the margin is measured on the selling price, which is how retailers and accountants define it.
Use margin (profit ÷ price) for pricing decisions, because every fee you pay is also charged on the price. Markup (profit ÷ cost) is useful for quick mental math, but a 50% markup is only a 33% margin — mixing them up is the most common pricing mistake sellers make.
Fees charged on the sale price must be inside the divisor, not added at the end. A 6.5% fee with a 40% margin target means dividing by 0.535 instead of 0.60 — on a $15 cost that lifts the required price from $25.00 to $28.04.
Many small ecommerce sellers target 30–50% gross margin after direct costs, with handmade and niche products often higher. Your target must also cover overhead (software, storage, your time) that this calculator does not include, so treat the result as a floor, not a ceiling.
The math produces exact values like $28.57. In practice, round to a charm price ($28.99) and re-check: $8.99 profit on $28.99 is a 31% margin, slightly above the 30% target — rounding up is safe, rounding down needs a re-check.