Candle Pricing Calculator
Candles are made in batches but sold one at a time. Enter your batch costs and how many candles it yields — FundiJumla works out the per-candle cost and recommends a price that protects your margin.
Profitability breakdown
Price ladder
Compare your recommended price across target margins.
| Target margin | Selling price | Profit / unit | Markup | Hourly earnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20% | $13.95 | $2.79 | 25.0% | $13.95 |
| 30% | $15.94 | $4.78 | 42.9% | $23.91 |
| 40% | $18.60 | $7.44 | 66.7% | $37.19 |
| 50% | $22.32 | $11.16 | 100.0% | $55.79 |
Discount floor
Based on your recommended retail price of $15.94.
Any discount below the recommended price reduces your margin below target. Fixed business costs you have not entered here (insurance, software, etc.) are not captured by this calculator.
The formula
Wax and fragrance are divided by the batch yield; vessels, wicks and labels are per-candle already. Labour and overhead are split across the batch too. The formula then solves for a per-candle price after fees and margin.
Worked example
Batch: $20 wax, $8 fragrance, 10 candles. Vessels $2.50, wicks $0.30, labels $0.25 each, packaging $0.75, 2h labour at $18, overhead $4, waste 5%. The engine spreads these across the batch and waste-adjusts to a loaded cost of $11.16 per candle (labour $3.60, overhead $0.40 per candle). With a 6.5% fee and 30% margin, the recommended price = $18.04 per candle.
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Frequently asked questions
How do I price homemade candles?⌄
Cost one candle fully: a share of wax and fragrance, plus the vessel, wick, label and packaging, plus your labour and overhead per batch divided by yield. Add waste and your target margin. Commonly missed costs include the vessel and the labour.
What's a realistic batch yield?⌄
The number of good, sellable candles you reliably get — after any that fail wet spots, sinkholes or poor burns. If 1 in 20 fails, set waste around 5%.
Should fragrance be a per-candle or per-batch cost?⌄
Either works — enter the total fragrance cost for the batch and the calculator divides it by your yield. Just be consistent.
How do I price candles for wholesale?⌄
Get your retail price first, then use the wholesale calculator to build discounted tiers off it while checking your producer margin doesn't fall below your minimum.