About this tool
Calculate how many units you need to sell to break even and how much volume is required to hit a target profit.
Break-even Calculator takes four money inputs, fixed costs, price per unit, variable cost per unit, and a target profit, plus a planned sales volume in whole units, and works out where revenue covers cost. It first computes the contribution margin (price minus variable cost) and shows it both as an amount and as a percentage of price. From there it derives break-even units, break-even revenue, the units required to reach the profit target, revenue and profit at the planned volume, and the cushion between planned units and the break-even point. Math is done in minor currency units (cents, or whole won and yen) so totals do not drift, and required units are always rounded up because you cannot sell a fraction of a unit.
- Calculates contribution margin from selling price and variable cost.
- Shows break-even units and approximate break-even revenue.
- Adds a target-profit scenario to support simple planning.
How to use Break-even Calculator
Choose a Currency first; USD, EUR, GBP, CAD, and AUD accept two decimals while KRW and JPY accept none. Fill in Fixed costs, Price / unit, Variable cost / unit, and Target profit; each is capped at 1 billion major units and cannot be negative, and price must be above zero. Enter Planned sales units as a whole number from 0 to 1 billion. Results update immediately: the headline shows break-even sales volume with the contribution margin underneath, and the Threshold summary lists break-even revenue, units for target profit, planned revenue, profit at planned volume, and the planned cushion. If price does not exceed variable cost, a warning appears and the unit rows read Not reachable. The Load a business example dropdown offers product, agency, subscription, and KRW workshop presets.
When this tool is useful
- A founder deciding whether a $120 product with $45 unit cost can cover $12,000 of monthly overhead at a realistic volume.
- An agency owner pricing a fixed-scope package and checking how many sales per quarter clear payroll and rent.
- A subscription product manager modeling how many $29 seats cover hosting and support staff before a profit target is met.
- A workshop organizer in Korea checking, in won, how many tickets must sell before venue and speaker fees are recovered.
- A student or bootcamp learner working through a contribution-margin exercise with real numbers instead of a textbook table.
Practical tips
- Change one input at a time: raising price by 10 percent usually moves break-even units far more than cutting fixed costs by the same percentage.
- For several products, enter a weighted average price and variable cost; the model assumes one constant sales mix.
- Profit at planned volume is margin times planned units minus fixed costs, so a negative figure simply means planned units sit below break-even.
- Rounding up matters at small volumes: 249.2 units becomes 250, and break-even revenue is that rounded count times price.
- Results are arithmetic illustrations only; taxes, discounts, returns, step costs, and cash timing are outside the model, so review them with real accounting before deciding.
Examples you can test
Load an example, compare the result with the expected output, then replace it with your own input.
Product launch preset
Example input
USD, fixed costs 12,000, price 120, variable cost 45, target profit 10,000, planned units 350
Expected output
Contribution margin $75.00 (62.5% of price), break-even 160 units, break-even revenue $19,200, 294 units for target profit, planned profit $14,250, cushion 190 units
12,000 divided by 75 is exactly 160; the target needs (12,000 + 10,000) / 75 = 293.3, rounded up to 294.
Margin too thin
Example input
EUR, fixed costs 5,000, price 20, variable cost 20, target profit 0, planned units 1,000
Expected output
A warning that price must exceed variable cost; break-even units, break-even revenue, and target units read Not reachable, and planned profit equals a loss of the full fixed costs
With zero margin every sale adds nothing toward fixed costs, so no volume ever breaks even and the cushion is also Not reachable.
Validation checklist
- Separate truly fixed costs from per-unit costs before entering them.
- Confirm the currency matches the decimal precision of the figures you typed.
- Check that price per unit is greater than variable cost per unit.
- Compare planned units with break-even units and read the cushion row.
- Treat every figure as an illustration, not accounting, tax, or financial advice.