ARDOTOOLS
Small Business Break-Even Calculator
Calculate monthly break-even sales and units from fixed costs and contribution margin.
Inputs
Result
Planning estimate only. Replace assumptions with your real costs, contracts, taxes, and market conditions.
How it works
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Separate fixed from variable
Rent and salaries do not move with volume. Materials and per-sale fees do.
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Find the contribution per unit
Price minus variable cost. That is what each sale contributes to the fixed costs.
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Divide
Fixed costs over contribution is how many units it takes before you are earning rather than covering.
Who this is for
Launching a product
Know the number of sales that clears the fixed costs before you commit to them.
Weighing a price change
A small price rise can move break-even far more than a small cost cut.
Deciding on a hire
A salary is a fixed cost. This is how many extra sales it needs to pay for itself.
Signing a lease
Rent for the term, converted into units you have to sell.
Questions
- What counts as a fixed cost?
- Anything you pay at the same level whether you sell one unit or a thousand: rent, salaries, software, insurance. Costs that scale with each sale are variable and belong in the contribution.
- What if I sell several different products?
- Use a weighted average contribution across your actual sales mix. If the mix shifts, break-even shifts with it.
- Is break-even the same as profitable?
- No. Break-even is where you stop losing money. Everything after it contributes to profit, which is why the distance between break-even and your real volume matters more than the number itself.
- Should I include my own salary?
- If the business has to support you, yes — put it in fixed costs. Otherwise break-even is measuring a business that only survives because you work for free.