How to Calculate Markup Percentage
Markup is profit as a percentage of cost; margin is profit as a percentage of the selling price. Enter cost and price to get both, or use the second tool to price a product from a target markup.
- Markup percentage
- 50%
- Profit margin
- 33.33%
- Profit per unit
- $20.00
Steps
- ($60.00 − $40.00) ÷ $40.00 × 100 = 50% markup
- ($60.00 − $40.00) ÷ $60.00 × 100 = 33.33% margin
Selling price from cost and markup
- Selling price
- $60.00
- Resulting margin
- 33.33%
Worked example
Example: you buy at $40 and sell at $60
- Profit = 60 − 40 = $20
- Markup = 20 ÷ 40 × 100 = 50%
- Margin = 20 ÷ 60 × 100 = 33.3%
A 50% markup equals a 33.3% gross margin.
Formula
Markup % = (Price − Cost) ÷ Cost × 100
Margin % = (Price − Cost) ÷ Price × 100
Price = Cost × (1 + Markup ÷ 100)
Convert between them with Margin = Markup ÷ (1 + Markup) and Markup = Margin ÷ (1 − Margin), using decimals.
Frequently asked questions
Is markup the same as margin?
No. With the same numbers, markup is always higher than margin because it divides by the smaller cost figure.
What markup gives a 50% margin?
A 100% markup (doubling the cost, called keystone pricing) gives a 50% margin.
What is a typical retail markup?
It varies widely: groceries can run 10–30%, apparel often 50–100% or more.
Last reviewed October 17, 2026 · Calculations run in your browser; nothing you enter is sent to a server.