Markup Calculator
Turn a cost into a selling price — and see the margin that markup actually delivers, which is always less than the markup number itself. Works both directions: price from a markup, or find the markup hiding inside a price you already charge.
Price from a markup
Markup and margin are not the same number
Markup and margin describe the same dollars from two different directions. Markup measures profit against what you paid: cost $80, price $120 → $40 profit ÷ $80 cost = 50% markup. Margin measures the same $40 against what the customer paid: $40 ÷ $120 = 33.3% margin. Same transaction, two very different percentages — and since the price is always bigger than the cost, the margin is always the smaller number.
This matters because businesses tend to set prices in markup but judge health in margin. The owner who applies a "50% markup" and believes he's earning 50 cents per dollar of sales is actually earning 33 — and if his overhead eats 25 points, the business he thinks throws off 25% net is really scraping by at 8%. The calculator prints both numbers side by side on every answer so the gap is never invisible.
Which one should you think in? Markup is the natural tool at the counter — it's how you get from an invoice cost to a shelf price in one move. Margin is the natural tool in the office — it's what your P&L, your targets, and your margin math speak. Fluency in the conversion is the skill; the table below makes it automatic.
Markup → margin conversion table
Bookmark this. Every markup delivers a smaller margin, and the gap grows as the numbers climb:
| If you mark up by | Your margin is | $100 cost sells for |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | 9.1% | $110 |
| 15% | 13.0% | $115 |
| 20% | 16.7% | $120 |
| 25% | 20.0% | $125 |
| 30% | 23.1% | $130 |
| 40% | 28.6% | $140 |
| 50% | 33.3% | $150 |
| 75% | 42.9% | $175 |
| 100% | 50.0% | $200 |
| 150% | 60.0% | $250 |
| 200% | 66.7% | $300 |
The formulas, if you'd rather carry them in your head: margin = markup ÷ (1 + markup), and going the other way, markup = margin ÷ (1 − margin).
What a materials markup actually pays for
Marking up parts and materials isn't padding — it's payment for real work and real risk that would otherwise come out of your labor rate. The markup covers the time spent sourcing and ordering, the trip to the supplier, the cost of carrying stock on your shelf and in your truck, the parts that arrive wrong or get damaged, and the warranty exposure when a part you installed fails. A shop that passes materials through at cost is doing all of that for free.
That's also why markups differ so much by trade. A contractor buying commodity lumber against a quoted job might run 25–50%; a repair trade stocking hundreds of parts, eating restock fees, and warrantying its installs often needs 50–100% just to make the parts side of the business break even. The right markup for you is the one that covers your handling costs and risk — the reverse tool above will tell you what you're actually running today, which is the honest place to start.
One boundary worth stating plainly: markup prices materials. It does not price the job. Labor, overhead, and your target margin still need their own recovery — that's the full four-legged math every trade calculator on this site runs.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much should I mark up materials and parts?
General reference points: many contractors run 25–50% on materials; parts-heavy repair trades often run 50–100%, because the markup also covers sourcing, stocking, and warranty risk. The wrong answer is 0% — at-cost materials mean your labor subsidizes every part you touch.
Is a 50% markup the same as a 50% margin?
No — a 50% markup is a 33.3% margin. Markup measures profit against cost, margin against price, and margin is always the smaller number. A true 50% margin requires a 100% markup.
How do I convert markup to margin?
Margin = markup ÷ (1 + markup). And markup = margin ÷ (1 − margin). The table above has the common values worked out.
Does markup replace charging properly for labor and overhead?
No. Materials markup covers materials handling and risk — it's not a substitute for a loaded labor rate and overhead recovery. Cheap labor under a marked-up parts bill still loses money.
Is this calculator really free?
Yes. No account, no email, no ads. It runs in your browser and the numbers you enter are never sent to us. We use basic traffic analytics, described in our privacy policy.
Estimates only: results are based on the numbers you enter. We work to keep the formulas accurate, but costs, taxes, and regulations vary by location — always verify your own numbers before making business decisions. MyPricingCalculator.com is not responsible for pricing or business decisions made with these tools.