Margin calculator
Enter the purchase cost and the selling price to see your margin, markup and profit per item. It also works the other way round: enter the margin you want and the calculator works out the net and gross price.
PLN
Not VAT registered? Enter the gross cost and choose 0% VAT.
PLN
%
%
PLN
Packaging, shipping, online payment.
Margin0%
- Profit per item0
- Markup0
- Margin0
- Net price0
- Gross price0
- Total cost per item0
Margin and markup are not the same
Both numbers describe the same profit, but compare it with something different. Margin tells you what share of the selling price is profit. Markup tells you how many percent the price is above the cost. That is why, for the same product, the markup is always higher than the margin.
Example: you buy for 100 PLN net and sell for 150 PLN net. The profit is 50 PLN. The margin is 33.3%, because 50 PLN is a third of the price. The markup is 50%, because 50 PLN is half of the cost.
| Markup | Margin | Cost 100 PLN, selling price |
|---|---|---|
| 25% | 20% | 125 PLN |
| 50% | 33,3% | 150 PLN |
| 100% | 50% | 200 PLN |
| 200% | 66,7% | 300 PLN |
The most common mistake: someone wants a 30% margin, so they add 30% to the cost. That gives a 30% markup, which is only about a 23% margin.
Formulas
Margin = (price - cost) ÷ price × 100%
Markup = (price - cost) ÷ cost × 100%
Price from margin = cost ÷ (1 - margin)
In the price formula, enter the margin as a fraction, for example 30% is 0.3. With a cost of 100 PLN and a 30% margin, the price is 100 ÷ 0.7, which is 142.86 PLN net.
Net or gross
If your business is VAT registered, calculate the margin on net prices. You pass the VAT on sales to the tax office and deduct the VAT on purchases, so neither is profit or cost. The calculator accepts a net or gross selling price and converts it to net itself.
If you are not VAT registered, the VAT you pay on purchases is your cost. In that case enter the gross purchase cost and choose the 0% rate.
Fees and costs that are easy to forget
A margin based only on the purchase price is too high. Marketplaces charge a fee on every sale, and on top of that come packaging, shipping the customer does not pay for and online payment fees. Enter the fee as a percentage and the other costs as an amount per item. The calculator subtracts them from the profit.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate margin?
Subtract the cost from the net selling price, divide the result by the selling price and multiply by 100. A product bought for 80 PLN and sold for 120 PLN net has a 33.3% margin.
What is the difference between margin and markup?
Margin is profit as a percentage of the selling price, markup is profit as a percentage of the cost. A 50% markup means a 33.3% margin, and a 50% margin means a 100% markup.
How do I set a price for a target margin?
Divide the cost by 1 minus the margin written as a fraction. For a 25% margin on a cost of 60 PLN, the price has to be 60 ÷ 0.75, which is 80 PLN net.
Is margin calculated on net or gross prices?
A VAT registered business uses net prices, because VAT is not its revenue. A business that is not VAT registered uses the gross cost, because it cannot deduct VAT on purchases.
What is a good margin?
There is no single number, because every industry has different costs. What matters more is what is left after fees, shipping, advertising and returns. That is why you should enter all costs per item in the calculator, not just the purchase price.
Updated: October 2026
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