Find how many units you need to sell to cover your fixed and variable costs.
Break-even estimates assume fixed costs, selling price and variable cost per unit remain constant. Real business costs and prices can change.
A break-even calculator estimates the sales volume needed for total revenue to cover total fixed and variable costs. At the break-even point, the estimated operating profit is zero.
First subtract variable cost per unit from selling price per unit to find the contribution per unit. Divide fixed costs by that contribution. Because partial units may not be practical, this calculator rounds the required unit count up to the next whole unit.
Contribution margin percentage is the contribution per unit divided by the selling price. It shows the share of each sales unit available to cover fixed costs and, after break-even, contribute toward profit.
Fixed costs can include expenses that do not normally change directly with each unit sold, while variable costs are expenses associated with producing or selling each additional unit. Use values appropriate to your own business model.