Break-even and pricing analyser
How much a business has to sell to cover its costs, what each sale really earns, and how far sales or prices can move before a profit becomes a loss.
Results
A worked example from the inputs shown. With JavaScript switched on, the results change as you change the inputs.
Break-even sales, a month
1,500 units
1,500.0 units cover the fixed costs exactly
Break-even revenue, a month
$150,000
Sales needed before any profit
Contribution, each unit
$40.00
40.0% of the price after discount
Profit at planned sales, a month
$20,000
2,000 units at $100.00
Margin of safety
25.0%
How far planned sales can fall before a loss
Sales for the target profit
1,750 units
$10,000 a month
Price that breaks even at planned sales
$90.00
Before any discount
Each unit sold at $100.00 contributes $40.00 towards fixed costs of $60,000 a month, so the business breaks even at about 1,500 units, or $150,000 of sales, a month.
At the planned 2,000 units the profit is $20,000 a month, and sales could fall 25.0% before it turns to a loss.
Price and volume move together in practice: a higher price usually sells fewer units. The grid below treats each combination as its own assumption.
- Revenue
- Total costs
- Fixed costs
Show the figures
| Units sold | Revenue | Total costs | Fixed costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | $0 | $60k | $60k |
| 150 | $15k | $69k | $60k |
| 300 | $30k | $78k | $60k |
| 450 | $45k | $87k | $60k |
| 600 | $60k | $96k | $60k |
| 750 | $75k | $105k | $60k |
| 900 | $90k | $114k | $60k |
| 1,050 | $105k | $123k | $60k |
| 1,200 | $120k | $132k | $60k |
| 1,350 | $135k | $141k | $60k |
| 1,500 | $150k | $150k | $60k |
| 1,650 | $165k | $159k | $60k |
| 1,800 | $180k | $168k | $60k |
| 1,950 | $195k | $177k | $60k |
| 2,100 | $210k | $186k | $60k |
| 2,250 | $225k | $195k | $60k |
| 2,400 | $240k | $204k | $60k |
| 2,550 | $255k | $213k | $60k |
| 2,700 | $270k | $222k | $60k |
| 2,850 | $285k | $231k | $60k |
| 3,000 | $300k | $240k | $60k |
Show the figures
| Units sold | Profit |
|---|---|
| 0 | −$60k |
| 150 | −$54k |
| 300 | −$48k |
| 450 | −$42k |
| 600 | −$36k |
| 750 | −$30k |
| 900 | −$24k |
| 1,050 | −$18k |
| 1,200 | −$12k |
| 1,350 | −$6k |
| 1,500 | $0 |
| 1,650 | $6k |
| 1,800 | $12k |
| 1,950 | $18k |
| 2,100 | $24k |
| 2,250 | $30k |
| 2,400 | $36k |
| 2,550 | $42k |
| 2,700 | $48k |
| 2,850 | $54k |
| 3,000 | $60k |
Show the figures
| Price | 1,600 units | 1,800 units | 2,000 units | 2,200 units | 2,400 units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price $80.00 (-20%) | −$28k | −$24k | −$20k | −$16k | −$12k |
| Price $90.00 (-10%) | −$12k | −$6k | $0 | $6k | $12k |
| Price $100.00 | $4k | $12k | $20k | $28k | $36k |
| Price $110.00 (+10%) | $20k | $30k | $40k | $50k | $60k |
| Price $120.00 (+20%) | $36k | $48k | $60k | $72k | $84k |
Show the figures
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Sales | $200k |
| Variable costs | −$120k |
| Fixed costs | −$60k |
| Profit | $20k |
Scenarios
Keep the base case and try other assumptions beside it. Each scenario starts from the base case and keeps only the inputs you change in it.
Profit at different sales levels, a month
| Units | Revenue | Variable and direct costs | Fixed costs | Profit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50% of plan | 1,000 | $100,000 | $60,000 | $60,000 | −$20,000 |
| 75% of plan | 1,500 | $150,000 | $90,000 | $60,000 | $0 |
| 100% of plan | 2,000 | $200,000 | $120,000 | $60,000 | $20,000 |
| 125% of plan | 2,500 | $250,000 | $150,000 | $60,000 | $40,000 |
| 150% of plan | 3,000 | $300,000 | $180,000 | $60,000 | $60,000 |
The full schedule, repayment by repayment, is in the downloads.
Download
The inputs, results and schedules of the scenario on screen. Files are made in your browser; nothing is sent anywhere.
What it does
Every sale brings in its price and costs its variable cost; what is left over, the contribution, goes towards the fixed costs that have to be paid whatever is sold. The analyser works out the contribution of each unit or billable hour, the sales that cover the fixed costs, the sales that reach a target profit, and how far planned sales sit above the break-even point.
It works for a business selling products or one selling its people's time. In service mode, capacity comes from the number of people, their hours and the share of those hours that can be billed. Professional mode adds discounts, other direct costs, a capacity limit and adjustments for testing scenarios.
Understanding your results
- Contribution
- The price after any discount, less the variable and direct costs of each unit or hour. It is what a sale adds towards fixed costs and then profit. As a share of the price it is the contribution margin.
- Break-even
- The sales at which contribution exactly covers fixed costs. Below it the business loses money, above it each sale adds its contribution to profit. If each sale contributes nothing, or less than nothing, there is no break-even.
- Margin of safety
- How far planned sales can fall before the business makes a loss, as a share of planned sales. A small margin means a small shortfall turns into a loss.
- The price grid
- Profit for prices and volumes 10% and 20% either side of your figures. Each cell is a separate assumption: the grid does not predict how customers would respond to a price change.
The method
How this is calculated
With a price p, a discount d, a variable cost v, other direct costs c and fixed costs F a month:
Contribution per unit CM = p × (1 − d) − v − c
Contribution margin = CM / (p × (1 − d))
Break-even volume = F / CM
Break-even revenue = F / CM × p × (1 − d)
Profit at volume Q = CM × Q − F
Margin of safety = (Q − break-even volume) / Q
Volume for a target profit T = (F + T) / CM
Price that breaks even at Q = (F / Q + v + c) / (1 − d)
When CM is zero or negative there is no break-even, and the tool shows none rather than a meaningless figure. In service mode, capacity is people × hours each × the share billable.
Figures are monthly and before tax, and exclude GST. See How the tools work.
Assumptions and limitations
The defaults are a simple illustration: a $100 product costing $60 to deliver, with $60,000 of fixed costs a month and 2,000 sales planned. Replace them with your own figures from your accounts.
The analysis assumes costs fall cleanly into fixed and variable and stay that way across the range shown, and that every unit sells at the same price. In practice fixed costs step up as a business grows, variable costs change with volume, and a business selling several products has a blended contribution. It is general information, not accounting or financial advice.
Learn more
- Beyond the balance sheet: how a business's mix of fixed and variable costs changes its risk, with a model of operating leverage.
- Understanding the economics of an indoor sports venue: break-even in practice, for a business that sells court hours.
- Costs up, customers careful: costs against prices in 2026.
- The staffing and operating cost analyser, for the fixed costs behind the break-even.