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Setting a price by applying a markup — a percentage added on top of cost — is one of the simplest and most common pricing approaches, but it's easy to confuse the resulting margin with the markup percentage itself. A 50% markup on a $60 cost gives a $90 price, but that's only a 33.3% margin, not 50% — the same profit expressed as two different percentages depending on whether it's divided by cost or by price.
This calculator takes your cost and desired markup percentage and gives you the selling price, the profit amount, and — importantly — the resulting margin percentage, so you can see both numbers for the same pricing decision.
How it works
Enter your cost price and the markup percentage you want to apply. The tool multiplies the cost by (1 + markup percentage) to get the selling price, then shows the profit amount and the resulting margin percentage — which is always a smaller number than the markup percentage for the same profit.
- Enter your cost price.
- Enter your desired markup percentage.
- Review the selling price, profit, and resulting margin.
Examples
Applying a standard markup
A $60 cost with a 50% markup gives a $90 selling price and a $30 profit — but only a 33.3% margin, since margin is calculated against the selling price, not the cost.
Comparing markup to margin at higher percentages
A 100% markup on a $60 cost gives a $120 price — exactly double the cost — but that's still only a 50% margin, illustrating how far apart the two numbers can be at higher percentages.
Who should use it
- Setting a selling price from a known cost and target markup percentage.
- Checking what margin a particular markup percentage actually produces.
- Comparing pricing decisions across products with different costs.
Industry applications
- Retail and wholesale pricing
- E-commerce product pricing
- Manufacturing and distribution
Advantages
- Calculates selling price, profit, and resulting margin in one step.
- Makes the markup-vs-margin distinction concrete with real numbers.
- No signup required.
Limitations
- Doesn't account for taxes, fees, or other costs beyond the base cost price entered.
- A single markup percentage may not reflect variable-cost businesses with more complex pricing needs.
- Doesn't suggest what markup percentage to use — that depends on your specific business and industry.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Assuming a markup percentage and a margin percentage are the same number for the same profit.
- Setting prices using a markup percentage without checking what margin that actually produces.
- Applying the same markup percentage across products with very different costs without checking if the resulting price still makes sense.
Best practices
- Always check the resulting margin percentage alongside your markup, especially when comparing pricing across products.
- Use consistent markup conventions across your product catalog to keep pricing predictable.
- Revisit markup percentages periodically as costs change, rather than leaving them fixed indefinitely.
Tips
- If you're used to thinking in margin, calculate both numbers before finalizing a price — the gap between markup and margin grows at higher percentages.
- Recalculate prices whenever costs change materially, rather than letting markup percentages go stale.