Calculate how many units you must sell to break even and how much revenue you need to cover your costs.
Part of WebToolsHQ — simple tools for creators and small businesses.
Example: €500 rent + €200 marketing. Costs that don't change with sales volume.
Example: packaging, transaction fees, shipping per unit sold
Example: the price you charge customers per unit or subscription
Break-even units = Fixed Costs ÷ (Price − Variable Cost)
The contribution margin (Price − Variable Cost) is the amount each unit sale contributes toward covering fixed costs.
Use this for any recurring cost structure: monthly SaaS subscriptions, ecommerce products, service packages, or manufacturing runs. Enter costs for the same time period (e.g. monthly fixed costs → monthly break-even).
This calculator provides simplified estimates for planning purposes only. Actual break-even points depend on pricing tiers, volume discounts, seasonal variations, and other factors. Consult a financial professional for detailed business planning.
This break-even calculator helps you determine exactly how many units you need to sell — or how much revenue you need to generate — to cover all your fixed and variable costs. Whether you're launching an ecommerce product, pricing a SaaS subscription, planning a service business, or studying business fundamentals, this tool gives you a clear financial target to aim for.
The break-even formula is straightforward:
Break-Even Units = Fixed Costs ÷ (Selling Price per Unit − Variable Cost per Unit)
The key concept is the contribution margin — the difference between your selling price and your variable cost per unit. Each sale contributes this amount toward paying off your fixed costs. Once all fixed costs are covered, every additional sale becomes profit.
The interactive chart shows your revenue line (blue) and total cost line (red) plotted against units sold. The green dot where they intersect is your break-even point. Below that point you're operating at a loss; above it, you're earning profit. The dashed yellow line shows your fixed cost baseline — the minimum costs you incur regardless of sales volume.
This tool provides simplified estimates for planning purposes. Real-world break-even depends on pricing tiers, volume discounts, seasonal demand, and other factors. It does not account for taxes. Consult a financial professional for detailed business planning.
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The break-even point is the number of units you need to sell (or the revenue you need to generate) to cover all your costs — both fixed and variable. At break-even, your total revenue equals your total costs, meaning you have zero profit and zero loss.
Break-even units = Fixed Costs ÷ (Selling Price per Unit − Variable Cost per Unit). The difference between price and variable cost is called the contribution margin — it's how much each sale contributes toward covering your fixed costs.
Fixed costs are expenses that stay the same regardless of how many units you sell. Examples include rent, salaries, insurance, loan payments, software subscriptions, and other overhead that you pay whether you sell 0 or 10,000 units.
Variable costs change in proportion to the number of units you sell. Examples include raw materials, packaging, shipping, payment processing fees, sales commissions, and per-unit manufacturing costs.
The contribution margin is the selling price per unit minus the variable cost per unit. It represents the portion of each sale that goes toward covering fixed costs and, once those are covered, toward profit.
Yes. For SaaS, your fixed costs might include server hosting, team salaries, and tools. Your variable cost per unit could be per-customer support costs, payment processing fees, or usage-based infrastructure costs. The price per unit is your subscription fee.
If your selling price is equal to or less than your variable cost per unit, you have no positive contribution margin and break-even is mathematically impossible. You would lose money on every unit sold. You need to either raise prices or reduce variable costs.
Try different price points in the calculator to see how they affect the number of units needed to break even. A higher price means fewer units needed but may reduce demand. A lower price requires more volume. Break-even analysis helps you find the right balance.
This calculator focuses on operational break-even (revenue vs. costs). It does not include income taxes or VAT. For a complete financial picture, factor in your effective tax rate separately or consult an accountant.
Use the same time period for all inputs. If your fixed costs are monthly (e.g. rent, subscriptions), enter monthly figures. If you prefer annual analysis, enter annual fixed costs. The break-even result will match the period you chose.
A "good" break-even point depends on your industry and business model. Generally, the lower the break-even the better — it means you need fewer sales to cover costs and start earning profit. Compare your break-even volume to realistic sales forecasts. If break-even requires more units than you can reasonably sell, revisit your pricing or cost structure.
This calculator shows operational break-even — before income taxes. It tells you the point where revenue covers all fixed and variable costs. Taxes on profit come after break-even. For tax-inclusive planning, increase your target revenue by your effective tax rate or consult an accountant.
For SaaS, treat monthly recurring costs (servers, salaries, tools) as fixed costs. Per-customer costs (support, payment processing, onboarding) are your variable cost per unit. Your subscription price is the selling price per unit. The result tells you how many paying subscribers you need each month to cover costs.
If the selling price equals the variable cost, your contribution margin is zero — meaning no portion of each sale goes toward covering fixed costs. Break-even becomes impossible because you would need to sell an infinite number of units. You must either raise your price or lower your variable cost per unit.