Break-Even Volume Calculator
Enter fixed costs, price and variable cost per unit to get the break-even point in units and revenue, plus the contribution margin and its ratio. How it works
Use the Break-Even Volume Calculator
About the Break-Even Volume Calculator
Break-even volume = fixed costs ÷ (price − variable cost per unit). With $50,000 of fixed costs, a $100 price and a $60 variable cost, each unit contributes $40.00, so you need to sell 1,250 units, $125,000.00 of revenue, to cover every cost. A fractional answer is rounded up to the next whole unit.
Break-even units with $50,000 of fixed costs
| Price per unit | Variable cost $40 a unit | Variable cost $60 a unit |
|---|---|---|
| $80 | 1,250 units | 2,500 units |
| $100 | 834 units | 1,250 units |
| $120 | 625 units | 834 units |
| $150 | 455 units | 556 units |
Units are rounded up: a $100 price and a $40 variable cost give 833.33, shown as 834.
Break-even by fixed costs at a $100 price and a $60 variable cost
| Fixed costs | Break-even units | Break-even revenue |
|---|---|---|
| $10,000 | 250 | $25,000.00 |
| $25,000 | 625 | $62,500.00 |
| $50,000 | 1,250 | $125,000.00 |
| $100,000 | 2,500 | $250,000.00 |
| $250,000 | 6,250 | $625,000.00 |
Contribution margin $40.00 a unit, a 40.00% contribution margin ratio.
Frequently asked questions
- How do you calculate the break-even point in units?
- Divide the fixed costs by the contribution margin per unit, price minus variable cost, and round up. $1,000 of fixed costs, a $10 price and a $3 variable cost give 1,000 ÷ 7 = 142.86, so 143 units and $1,430.00 of revenue. Amounts in cents are divided exactly: $7,500 of fixed costs at a $19.99 price and a $12.49 variable cost is 1,000 units, not 1,001.
- What is contribution margin?
- Price minus variable cost per unit: what each sale adds toward the fixed costs. At $100 and $60 it is $40.00 a unit, a contribution margin ratio of 40.00% of the price.
- How do I find break-even revenue?
- Break-even units × price. The calculator multiplies the rounded-up units, so 834 units at $100 show $83,400.00. Dividing the fixed costs by the contribution margin ratio gives the unrounded figure, $50,000 ÷ 60% = $83,333.33.
- What if the price is lower than the variable cost?
- Then there is no break-even point: each sale loses money, or adds nothing when the price equals the variable cost, and the calculator says so instead of showing a number of units.
- Which costs are fixed and which are variable?
- Fixed costs stay the same whatever you sell in the period, such as rent, salaries and insurance. Variable costs rise with every unit, such as materials, packaging and shipping. Use fixed costs for the same period as the sales you plan.
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