Breakeven Analysis Calculator
Find how many units you must sell to cover your costs — the point where your business starts to make money.
A worked example
Running this tool on current national benchmarks (Federal Reserve / Freddie Mac via FRED (St. Louis Fed)) — swap in your own numbers to see how the result moves.
- Fixed costs (per period)
- $20,000
- Price per unit
- $50
- Variable cost per unit
- $30
$50,000 in revenue covers your costs
- Contribution margin$20.00
- Breakeven units1,000
- Breakeven revenue$50,000
How the breakeven volume changes with fixed costs (per period)
Holding the other inputs at the example above, here is how the result moves as fixed costs (per period) changes.
| Fixed costs (per period) | Breakeven volume | Contribution margin |
|---|---|---|
| $5,000 | 250 units | $20.00 |
| $20,000 | 1,000 units | $20.00 |
| $50,000 | 2,500 units | $20.00 |
| $100,000 | 5,000 units | $20.00 |
The math behind it
First the calculator finds your contribution margin: price per unit minus variable cost per unit. That is the dollars each sale leaves over to cover fixed costs. Breakeven volume is then fixed costs divided by the contribution margin, rounded up to a whole unit. Multiply that by price to get breakeven revenue. The margin ratio is contribution margin divided by price. If price does not exceed variable cost, contribution is zero or negative and there is no breakeven point at any volume.
Assumptions & limits
- Price and variable cost per unit are constant at every volume — no bulk discounts, no price breaks as you scale.
- Fixed costs stay flat across the whole range shown; in reality they step up as you add capacity.
- The model is single-product. For a mixed product line, use a blended or weighted average contribution margin.
- Breakeven units are rounded up, because you cannot sell a partial unit and still fully cover fixed costs.
- It measures the accounting breakeven on operating costs — it does not fold in loan principal, taxes, or an owner's target profit.
Common questions
What is contribution margin?
Contribution margin is the price of one unit minus its variable cost — the money each sale contributes toward covering fixed costs. Here, if you sell at $50 and each unit costs $30 to make, your contribution margin is $20. Once fixed costs are covered, that $20 per unit becomes profit.
What is the difference between fixed and variable costs?
Fixed costs stay the same no matter how much you sell — rent, salaries, insurance, loan payments. Variable costs rise with each unit produced — materials, packaging, per-unit labor, shipping. Breakeven analysis separates the two because only the variable cost is subtracted per unit to find your contribution margin.
Why does the calculator say there is no breakeven point?
That happens when your price per unit is at or below your variable cost per unit. Contribution margin is then zero or negative, so every sale loses money before any fixed costs are even touched — no volume can cover your costs. You have to raise price or cut variable cost first.
How do I break even faster?
Three levers: raise your price, lower the variable cost per unit, or cut fixed costs. Each widens the gap the contribution margin has to close. Raising price or trimming variable cost lifts the margin on every unit; cutting fixed costs shrinks the target you are aiming at.