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PR-02Pricing

Markup vs margin calculator

Markup is profit as a share of your cost; margin is the same profit as a share of the price. Price a cost either way, check a price you already have, or convert one percentage into the other.

Markup and margin

What do you want to work out?

Example: $100 of cost. Pick what you know, change any number.

PriceExample

Price $150.00: markup 50% on cost, margin 33.33% on price, gross profit $50.00.

Gross profit $50.00

See it drawn to scale
One profit, two percentagesDrawn to scale: cost and price on one dollar scale
Cost $100.00 and price $150.00, drawn to scaleTwo bars on one dollar scale: cost $100.00 and price $150.00. The profit of $50.00 is 50% of the cost (markup) and 33.33% of the price (margin).Markup · measured on the costCost$100.00Price$150.00Cost100%Markup+50%Cost66.67%Margin33.33%Margin · measured on the price
  • Cost
  • Profit
  • Price = cost
Markup
50%on cost
Margin
33.33%on price
Gross profit
$50.00× 1.5

$100.00 × (1 + 50%) = $150.00

Already showing the example.

Margin here is gross margin: the price minus the cost you entered. Overhead, the truck and your own pay still have to come out of it.

Why the two numbers differ

  • A 50% markup is only a 33.33% margin.
  • To earn a 50% margin instead you would need a 100% markup: $200.00 on this cost.
Conversion table
Markup → margin
Markup on costMargin on price
10%9.09%
20%16.67%
25%20.00%
30%23.08%
40%28.57%
50%33.33%
60%37.50%
75%42.86%
100%50.00%
150%60.00%
200%66.67%
Margin → markup
Margin on priceMarkup on cost
10%11.11%
15%17.65%
20%25.00%
25%33.33%
30%42.86%
35%53.85%
40%66.67%
50%100.00%
60%150.00%
70%233.33%
80%400.00%
90%900.00%

Change the numbers

Your numbers

What you paid, including any sales tax you paid on it.

Profit as a share of the cost. Below 0 is a loss.

Round the price up to

Rounded prices show the margin they really earn.

Price $150.00 · markup 50% · margin 33.33%. Back to the result

How the math works

In this tool, markup means profit divided by cost and margin means profit divided by price — the gross margin of the item or job, not the company’s net profit. Every figure is computed at full precision and rounded only for display.

  1. Price from markupcost × (1 + markup)SBA’s pricing worksheet: cost × markup % gives the markup; add it to the cost. $100 × 1.5 = $150.
  2. Price from margincost ÷ (1 − margin)A divisor, not a multiplier: $100 ÷ 0.60 = $166.67 for a 40% margin.
  3. Gross profitprice − costThe same dollars whichever percentage describes them.
  4. Margin from markupmarkup ÷ (1 + markup)50% markup → 33.33% margin.
  5. Markup from marginmargin ÷ (1 − margin)40% margin → 66.67% markup. As margin nears 100%, the markup grows without limit.
  6. Multiplierprice ÷ cost = 1 + markup = 1 ÷ (1 − margin)Common in price books.
  7. Rounded pricesround up to the step, then re-measure$250 at a 35% margin is $384.62; rounded up to $385 it earns 35.06%.

Before you use the number

  • Markup and margin describe the same dollars. A 50% markup is a 33.33% margin; a 50% margin needs a 100% markup.
  • Gross margin is not net profit. Margin here is the price minus the cost you entered; overhead, the truck and the owner’s pay must be covered out of it. Price below total cost per unit and, in SBA’s words, the business is losing money.
  • Cost means what you actually paid, including any sales tax you paid as the consumer of the materials. Whether you pay or collect sales tax depends on your state and the contract type.
  • A 100% margin is impossible unless the cost is zero, so margins of 100% or more are refused. Negative figures are allowed and shown as a loss in red.
  • No markup or margin is recommended here. No government source reviewed gives a typical markup or margin for plumbing, HVAC or electrical work; the right number comes from the margin your shop needs.

Sources

Opened and checked October 4, 2026. The conversion table and worked examples are the site’s own arithmetic.

  1. Worksheet – Pricing Models for Successful BusinessU.S. Small Business Administration (SBA Ascent)
  2. Plan your business: calculate your startup costs (break-even point)U.S. Small Business Administration
  3. Schedule C (Form 1040) 2025, Profit or Loss From BusinessInternal Revenue Service
  4. Understanding HVAC Profit MarginsServiceTitan (software vendor)
  5. How to Build a Plumbing Flat Rate Price BookWorkiz (software vendor)

  • 1.03In-depth guide

    Markup vs Margin for Contractors: Formulas and Table

    Markup is on cost, margin is on price. Formulas, a conversion table, the classic mistakes and a water heater swap with labor, parts, tax and card fees.

    $250 ÷ (1 − 0.35) = $384.62

    Length
    11 min
    Updated

  • 1.12Guide

    Job Costing a Plumbing Job, Worked Start to Finish

    A plumbing job costed line by line: materials, loaded labor, overhead, sub, permit and disposal, then gross profit, net margin and profit per hour.

    $3,450.00 − $3,233.55 = $216.45

    Length
    6 min
    Updated