Pricing & Profit Calculator
Costing, margin targets, break-even and wholesale pricing in one workbook, with Ontario HST and price-advertising rules built in.
Written against
- · Excise Tax Act (HST 13%)
- · Consumer Protection Act, 2002 (Ontario)
- · Competition Act — ordinary selling price and drip pricing provisions
1. Cost build
- · Direct materials per unit, including yield loss and packaging
- · Direct labour: minutes per unit × fully loaded hourly rate (wage + CPP + EI + EHT + WSIB + vacation accrual)
- · Variable overhead: payment processing (typically 2.4–2.9% + per-transaction fee), delivery, marketplace commission
- · Fixed overhead allocation: total monthly fixed cost ÷ expected units
2. Pricing formulas
| Method | Formula | Use when |
|---|---|---|
| Margin pricing | Price = Unit cost / (1 − target margin) | Default for most products |
| Markup pricing | Price = Unit cost × (1 + markup) | Wholesale and trade |
| Break-even units | Fixed costs / (Price − variable cost) | Launch decisions |
| Contribution margin | Price − variable cost | Ranking products |
| Wholesale | Retail ÷ 2 (keystone), verify margin stays positive | Stockists |
3. Ontario tax and advertising rules
- · HST in Ontario is 13%. Register once worldwide taxable supplies exceed $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters
- · Decide and state clearly whether prices are HST-included or HST-extra; be consistent everywhere
- · Advertise the all-in price. Adding mandatory fees at checkout that were not in the advertised price can be a misleading representation under the Competition Act's drip-pricing provisions
- · Sale claims must be genuine: the reference or 'was' price must be a price at which a substantial volume was sold, or offered in good faith, for a reasonable period
- · Consumer Protection Act, 2002 requires clear disclosure of total cost, delivery timing and cancellation rights for most consumer agreements
4. Margin health targets
| Business type | Gross margin | Net margin |
|---|---|---|
| Food service | 65–75% (food cost 25–35%) | 5–12% |
| Retail product | 40–60% | 5–15% |
| Service / trades | 50–70% | 10–25% |
| Digital products | 80–95% | 20–50% |
| Agency / consulting | 50–65% | 15–30% |
5. Price change protocol
- · Review costs quarterly and after any input increase above 10%
- · Give existing contract clients written notice ahead of a change, per your terms
- · Change price on one line first and measure unit volume for 30 days
- · Update every surface at once: website, POS, menus, marketplaces, wholesale sheet
This template is provided for general business use and reflects Ontario and federal Canadian requirements as commonly applied. It is not legal, tax or clinical advice. Confirm current requirements with Ontario.ca, your local public health unit or municipality, the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, the CRA, WSIB and your professional regulator, and have high-risk documents reviewed by a licensed Ontario lawyer or accountant before use.