Price for profit, not cost-plus
Doubling your cost feels safe until the platform takes its share. This calculator runs your price through the same engine as our platform calculators, then subtracts your product cost, shipping label and packaging, so the profit you see is real. Switch to What to charge, set a target profit or margin, and it solves the price.
| $40 sale, $12 product + $5 label + $1 packaging | Fees | Fee rate | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shopify (plan not included) | $1.85 | 4.63% | $20.15 |
| Depop | $1.97 | 4.92% | $20.03 |
| TikTok Shop | $2.40 | 6.00% | $19.60 |
| Etsy | $4.25 | 10.6% | $17.75 |
| Mercari | $4.80 | 12.0% | $17.20 |
| Walmart | $6.00 | 15.0% | $16.00 |
| eBay | $6.22 | 15.6% | $15.78 |
| Amazon | $6.40 | 16.0% | $15.60 |
| Poshmark | $8.00 | 20.0% | $14.00 |
The same $40 item leaves anywhere from $14.00 (Poshmark’s 20%) to $20.15 profit (Shopify, before its monthly plan). Fees are a bigger lever than most sellers think.
Selling Price Calculator: From Cost and Margin to List Price
The textbook formula is price = cost ÷ (1 − margin). It ignores fees, which are themselves a percentage of the price. With an $18 all-in cost and a 40% margin target, the formula says $30; on Etsy you’d need more, because about 9.5% of the price plus fixed fees comes off first. Set the target in What to charge to get the exact figure for each platform.
Three rules we price by:
- Price from the profit you need, not from what competitors charge. A price you can’t profit at isn’t a price.
- Count the label. Free shipping is never free; it’s in your cost line.
- Leave room for discounts. Offers and promotions come out of your margin, so a 15% margin at list is 0% after a 15% offer.
For wholesale pricing to stores, use the wholesale price calculator; for handmade work where your time is the main cost, the craft pricing calculator.
Where the fee numbers come from
Each row uses the same engine as that platform’s calculator, built from the platform’s own fee pages: for example Etsy’s Fees & Payments Policy, eBay’s selling fees and Poshmark’s fee policy. Shopify’s figure is payment processing only; its monthly plan comes on top (Shopify pricing).