Markup vs Margin Calculator

Markup and margin are closely related, but they are not the same. This calculator shows both values from your cost price and selling price, making it easier to understand how profitable a product really is.

Markup measures profit as a percentage of cost, while margin measures profit as a percentage of selling price. This distinction matters in ecommerce, retail, wholesale pricing, and profitability analysis, because confusing the two can lead to incorrect pricing decisions.

Use this tool when checking product pricing, comparing margin targets, or learning how markup and margin behave at different price points.

Formula: Markup = (Profit ÷ Cost) × 100 | Margin = (Profit ÷ Selling Price) × 100

Calculator

Tip: If selling price is lower than cost, profit and margin will be negative.

Result Explanation

The result shows your absolute profit, markup percentage, and margin percentage. These three numbers work together to help you understand whether a selling price is commercially sensible.

Key insight: markup is based on cost, while margin is based on selling price. Because of that, markup will usually be higher than margin when profit is positive.

How It Works

The calculator first finds profit by subtracting cost from selling price. It then calculates markup by dividing profit by cost, and margin by dividing profit by selling price.

If cost is zero, markup cannot be calculated in a meaningful way, so the calculator returns markup as not available while still calculating margin when possible.

Examples

Example 1: Cost £40, selling price £60 → Profit £20, markup 50%, margin 33.33%.

Example 2: Cost £80, selling price £100 → Profit £20, markup 25%, margin 20%.

Related Calculators

FAQ

What’s the difference between markup and margin?

Markup is profit relative to cost. Margin is profit relative to selling price.

Why is margin usually lower than markup?

Because margin uses the larger selling price as the denominator when profit is positive.

Can this help with ecommerce pricing?

Yes. It’s a practical way to check profitability, pricing sanity, and retail performance.