The Price Calculator finds a selling price from cost and a desired margin, or a sale price after a discount off a list price. Enter cost and target margin, or list price and discount percent, and the Price Calculator returns the price that meets the rule entered, with the margin or discount amount shown beside the result.
Pricing has two common jobs: set a price that protects a profit share of sales, and mark a list price down for a promotion. The Price Calculator handles both so cost-plus decisions and sale-price decisions stay on one page without mixing the formulas.
*These results are estimates for information only, not financial, tax, or pricing advice.*
Calculate a selling price
The Price Calculator computes a selling price that leaves a chosen share of the price as profit after covering cost. Selling price is the amount charged to the buyer; cost is what the seller paid or spent to deliver the item or service.
Cost-plus pricing starts from cost and builds upward until the desired margin sits on top. The Price Calculator uses the margin form of that relationship so the result is a price, not a guess. Cost of $80 with a 20% desired margin produces a selling price of $100, because $20 of that $100 is profit and $80 covers cost. At that price the margin is exactly 20% and the dollar profit is $20.
The Price Calculator keeps margin and price aligned, so changing the target margin immediately changes the required selling price.
Set a price from cost and margin
The Price Calculator sets price from cost and desired margin with price = cost / (1 - desired margin). That formula guarantees the margin percentage applies to the selling price as the base, not to cost alone, which keeps the target aligned with sales language.
Worked steps for the $80 cost and 20% margin case: 1 - 0.20 = 0.80; $80 / 0.80 = $100. Markup language is different: price = cost x (1 + markup). A 25% markup on $80 is $80 x 1.25 = $100, which is a 20% margin on the selling price. The Price Calculator prefers the margin form when the target is stated as a share of sales; use markup only when the target is stated as a share of cost.
Mixing margin and markup targets is a common pricing error. A "20% markup" and a "20% margin" produce different prices on the same cost, so the label on the target must match the formula used.
Calculate a sale price after a discount
The Price Calculator calculates a sale price by applying a discount percent to a list price. Sale price is what the buyer pays after the reduction, and the discount amount is the dollars taken off the list before tax is considered.
The formula is sale price = list price x (1 - discount%). A $100 list price at 25% off becomes $75, and the discount amount is $25. The Price Calculator shows both the discounted price and the dollars saved so a "25% off" claim can be checked against the till receipt. Stacked discounts need sequential application; two successive 10% discounts off $100 leave $81, not $80, because the second cut applies to the already-reduced price.
For pure discount arithmetic without a cost basis, the Discount Calculator on QuickCalculators covers percentage-off and amount-off cases in more detail.
A merchant who needs a $75 register price and still wants a 20% margin can also work backward: cost must be no more than $75 x (1 - 0.20) = $60. The Price Calculator's forward cost-plus path and this reverse check should agree. If the only available cost is $70, a $75 sale price yields only ($75 - $70) / $75 = 6.7% margin, far below the 20% target, which is why sale discounts and margin targets must be planned together rather than stacked blindly.
Read list price, cost, and margin together
The Price Calculator reads list price, cost, and margin together when a promotion sits on top of a cost-plus list price. Keeping all three inputs in view shows whether a discount still leaves an acceptable margin or turns the sale into a planned loss.
Starting from $80 cost and a 20% margin sets list at $100. A 25% off sale then yields $75 at the register and ($75 - $80) / $75 = a negative margin. That outcome is fine for a clearance decision, but it should be intentional. The Price Calculator makes the post-discount margin visible when cost is still in the inputs.
Map pricing rules to the channel. Wholesale quotes often speak markup on cost; retail dashboards often speak margin on selling price. Translating a "keystone" 100% markup ($80 cost to $160 list) into margin language gives ($160 - $80) / $160 = 50% margin. The Price Calculator keeps those translations concrete so a shared target is not lost in vocabulary.
Frequently asked questions
How is selling price calculated from cost and margin?
Selling price is calculated as cost divided by (1 - desired margin). The Price Calculator applies that formula directly. Cost $80 and a 20% margin require a $100 selling price.
What is the difference between margin and markup when setting price?
Margin is profit as a share of selling price; markup is profit as a share of cost. The Price Calculator uses the margin form for cost-plus pricing. A 25% markup and a 20% margin can both land on a $100 price from $80 cost, but the percentages are not interchangeable labels.
How is a sale price after a discount calculated?
A sale price is calculated as list price times (1 - discount%). The Price Calculator returns that amount. A $100 list at 25% off yields a $75 sale price.
Does a higher margin always mean a higher price?
A higher desired margin raises the required selling price for a fixed cost, because more of the price must be profit. The Price Calculator shows that link: raising the margin from 20% to 25% on $80 cost lifts price from $100 to about $106.67.
Can the Price Calculator use markup instead of margin?
Cost-plus can be written with markup: price = cost x (1 + markup). The Price Calculator focuses on the margin form when the business target is stated as a share of sales. Convert carefully if the target was quoted as markup.
How does this relate to the Profit Calculator?
The Price Calculator sets the price before the sale. The Profit Calculator measures profit after revenue and cost are known. Use both when planning a price and then checking the result against actual sales.
What happens to margin after a discount off list?
Margin after a discount uses the sale price as the new revenue base: (sale price - cost) / sale price. The Price Calculator can expose that post-discount margin when cost remains entered. A $100 list built for 20% margin on $80 cost becomes a loss at $75 after 25% off.
Should tax be included in the selling price?
Sales tax handling depends on jurisdiction and whether prices are tax-inclusive. The Price Calculator focuses on the merchant's pre-tax price from cost and margin unless tax is built into the inputs on purpose. Confirm local tax display rules separately.
Summary
The Price Calculator builds a selling price from cost and desired margin with price = cost / (1 - margin), so $80 cost at a 20% margin becomes $100, leaving $20 profit. Sale-price mode multiplies list price by (1 - discount%), turning a $100 list at 25% off into $75 with $25 taken off.
The same promotion can erase the planned margin when cost stays $80, which is why list, cost, and discount belong in one view. Margin and markup are different bases, and treating a markup target as a margin target mis-sets the price. These results are estimates for information only, not pricing advice.