Business
Break-even calculator
Enter your fixed monthly costs, variable cost per unit, and selling price. The calculator returns how many units you must sell to cover everything — your break-even point.
Formula
The break-even point is where total revenue equals total cost. Below it you lose money, above it you start profiting. The formula is fixed costs divided by contribution margin per unit (price − variable cost).
Fixed costs are things you pay regardless of sales: rent, salaries, software subscriptions, insurance. Variable costs scale with units sold: materials, payment processing fees, shipping. The 'contribution' per unit is what's left from each sale after covering its variable cost — every dollar of contribution chips away at the fixed-cost mountain.
This is single-product break-even. For multi-product businesses use a weighted average contribution margin (more complex). For services with no marginal cost, variable cost is ~0 and contribution = price, so break-even = fixed ÷ price.
Examples
- 01$10,000 fixed, $15 variable, $40 price→ Contribution = $25, BE = 10000/25 = 400 units · Revenue $16,000
- 02SaaS: $5000/mo fixed, $0 variable, $29 subscription→ BE = 5000/29 = 173 subscribers/mo
- 03Restaurant: $30k fixed, $8 food cost, $25 average ticket→ BE = 30000/17 ≈ 1765 covers/mo (~60/day)
FAQ
- You can never break even — every additional unit just covers its own cost, leaving nothing for fixed expenses. Either raise the price or cut the variable cost. The calculator flags this case.