About the Break-Even Calculator
Break-Even Calculator tells a small business how much it must sell before it stops losing money. Enter your fixed costs for the period, the price you charge for one unit and the variable cost of making and delivering one unit. The tool returns the break-even point in units and in revenue, along with the profit each sale contributes and the contribution margin as a percentage. Add a target profit to see the units needed to reach it, or enter the units you expect to sell to get your margin of safety and the price you would need to cover costs at that volume. A small table shows profit or loss at several sales levels. It works for products, services, events and side projects, and all sums are done in your browser.
Updated September 2026
How to use the Break-Even Calculator
- 1Enter your fixed costs for the period, such as monthly rent and salaries.
- 2Enter the selling price per unit and the variable cost per unit.
- 3Optional: add a target profit and the number of units you expect to sell.
- 4Choose a currency symbol.
- 5Read the break-even units and revenue, then check the table to see profit at other sales levels.
Why break-even matters
Before you launch a product, open a shop or take a stall at a market, it is worth knowing how much you have to sell just to stay level. Break-even analysis turns a hopeful plan into a number. If the number is far above what you could realistically sell, you can change the price, cut costs or rethink the idea before spending money. If it is comfortably below, you have a clearer view of how much safety you have.
The method is simple, which is why it is used from lemonade stands to large firms. It only needs three figures: your fixed costs, your price and your variable cost per unit.
Sorting your costs
- Fixed for the period: rent, wages, insurance, licences, subscriptions, loan repayments.
- Variable per unit: materials, packaging, delivery, payment fees, sales commission.
- Mixed: a phone bill or electricity may have a fixed charge plus a usage part; split them.
- Use the same period for fixed costs and for the units you plan to sell, such as one month.
Using the results
The break-even units and revenue tell you the minimum. The contribution margin shows how much each pound, dollar or rupee of sales helps: a high margin means fixed costs are covered quickly, while a low margin means you need large volumes. The profit table shows how quickly profit grows after break-even, which helps you set sales targets.
Use the target profit box to answer the more useful question of how much you must sell to earn a wage, and the expected units box to get a margin of safety. The price it shows is the price you would need to cover all costs at that volume, a handy check when you are unsure whether to raise prices.
Limits of the method
The model assumes one product, a constant price and a constant cost per unit. In real life discounts, bulk buying and extra staff at higher volumes change the numbers, and businesses with several products need a blended margin. Treat the result as a first estimate and refresh it when costs change.
Related tools can help with the inputs: Profit Margin Calculator finds margins and markups on each item, Percentage Calculator handles discounts and price rises, ROI Calculator measures the return on money invested and Loan Calculator shows the repayments that count as a fixed cost.
Features
- Break-even units and revenue
- Target profit mode
- Contribution per unit and contribution margin
- Margin of safety from expected sales
- Price needed to break even at your expected volume
- Profit table from zero to about twice break-even
- Clear message when price is not above cost
- Runs in your browser
Frequently asked questions
What is the break-even point?
It is the level of sales where total revenue equals total costs, so profit is zero. Below it you make a loss and above it a profit. The formula is fixed costs divided by the profit each unit contributes, which is the price minus the variable cost.
How do I calculate break-even units?
Divide fixed costs by price minus variable cost. With fixed costs of 5,000, a price of 25 and a variable cost of 10, each unit contributes 15, so you need 5,000 ÷ 15 = 333.3 units, which means 334 whole units. Revenue at that point is about 8,333.
What counts as a fixed cost and what counts as a variable cost?
Fixed costs stay the same however much you sell in the period: rent, insurance, salaries, software subscriptions and loan payments. Variable costs rise with each sale: materials, packaging, shipping, sales commission and payment fees. Some costs are mixed, and you can split them into a fixed and a variable part.
What is contribution margin?
It is the part of each sale left after paying the variable cost, shown per unit and as a percentage of the price. In the example above it is 15 per unit, or 60 percent. That money goes first to cover fixed costs and after that it becomes profit.
How do I find the units needed for a profit goal?
Add the target profit to the fixed costs before dividing. To earn 2,000 in the example, divide 7,000 by 15 to get 466.7, so 467 units. Enter the goal in the target profit box and the tool does it for you.
What is margin of safety?
It is how far your expected sales are above break-even, shown in units and as a percentage of expected sales. If you expect 800 units and break even at 334, the margin of safety is 466 units, or 58 percent. A small margin means a small fall in sales can push you into a loss.
Why does the calculator say I can never break even?
If the price is equal to or lower than the variable cost, every sale loses money or gains nothing, so selling more never covers fixed costs. Raise the price, cut the cost per unit or change the product mix.