Discount Floor Calculator

Before you run a sale or accept a haggling customer, see exactly how much you can discount before each sale stops being profitable. Enter your retail price and loaded cost to find your discount floor.

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Retail price
$60.00
Break-even (do not sell below)
$25.00

Discount floor

Max discount before break-even
Larger than this and every sale loses money
58.3%
Profit at 10% discount
$29.00
Profit at 20% discount
$23.00
Profit at 30% discount
$17.00

Fixed business costs you have not entered here are not captured by this calculator.

The formula

max discount = (retail price − break-even price) ÷ retail price

Your break-even price is where profit hits zero after costs and fees. The discount floor is how far your retail price can fall before reaching it. Profit at each discount level is the discounted price minus your loaded cost and the fees on that discounted price.

Worked example

Retail $60, loaded cost $25, 6.5% fee + $0.30 fixed. Break-even = $27.06. Max discount before break-even = 54.9%. At 10% off: profit = $25.19. At 30% off: profit = $13.97.

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Frequently asked questions

How much can I discount my products?

Up to your discount floor — the point where the discounted price equals your break-even. Beyond that, every sale loses money. This calculator shows that point and the profit you'd keep at 10%, 20% and 30% off.

Why does my profit drop so fast when I discount?

Because your costs don't fall with the price, a moderate discount can take a much larger bite out of your profit than you might expect.

Should I ever sell below break-even?

Only deliberately — for example to clear dead stock that's costing you storage. Otherwise, discounting below break-even means paying to give your work away.