Profit Margin Calculator

Profit margin is the percentage of revenue that remains after subtracting all costs. It tells you how much of every dollar you earn actually stays in your pocket. A 25% profit margin means you keep $0.25 from every $1 of revenue. Tracking profit margin helps you understand if your pricing is sustainable and whether your business is actually profitable—not just bringing in revenue.

The profit margin formula is: Profit Margin = ((Revenue - Total Costs) / Revenue) × 100. For example, if you charge $1,000 for a job and your costs are $700, your profit is $300. Divide $300 by $1,000 to get 0.30, then multiply by 100 to get 30% profit margin.

Profit margin and markup both measure profitability, but they use different bases. Markup is calculated as a percentage of costs: (Profit / Cost) × 100. Profit margin is calculated as a percentage of revenue: (Profit / Revenue) × 100. A 50% markup on $100 cost means selling at $150. But that same $50 profit represents a 33.3% profit margin. Many business owners confuse these—understanding the difference is crucial for pricing correctly.

A "good" profit margin varies by industry. Service businesses like cleaning or consulting often target 25-40% margins. Contractors and tradespeople typically see 15-30%. Retail businesses might operate on 5-15%. Generally, 20% or higher is considered healthy for most small businesses. However, whats most important is that your margin covers your expenses, pays you fairly, and allows for growth.

Gross profit margin only considers direct costs (labor, materials) related to delivering your service or product. Net profit margin includes ALL business expenses: rent, insurance, marketing, taxes, and everything else. Your gross margin shows how efficient your service delivery is; your net margin shows overall business profitability. This gross profit margin calculator focuses on analyzing individual jobs, which is essential for accurate pricing and business profitability tracking.

Multiply the number of workers by hours worked by their hourly rate. If 2 workers spend 4 hours on a job at $25/hour, labor cost is 2 × 4 × $25 = $200. Dont forget to include your own time if you work on jobs! Many business owners undercharge because they forget to account for their own labor as a cost.

Overhead includes all the costs of running your business that arent directly tied to a specific job: office rent, vehicle payments, insurance, phone and internet, software subscriptions, marketing, accounting fees, and equipment depreciation. To allocate overhead to a job, divide your monthly overhead by monthly work hours, then multiply by hours spent on that job.

Understanding your profit margin helps you set prices that actually make money. If your current margin is 10% but you need 25% to be sustainable, you know you need to either raise prices or cut costs. Many small business owners discover they have been undercharging for years once they calculate their true profit margin—including all costs.

A negative profit margin means your costs exceed your revenue—you are losing money on the job. This happens more often than people think, especially when overhead and labor are underestimated. Common culprits: not accounting for your own time, forgetting overhead allocation, material cost increases, or scope creep where jobs take longer than expected. The fix usually involves raising prices or improving efficiency.

Revenue is the total money customers pay you—before any expenses. Profit is what remains after subtracting all costs. A $10,000 job might sound great, but if it costs $9,000 to complete, your profit is only $1,000. Focusing on revenue alone is dangerous; profit is what actually keeps your business alive and growing.

There are two paths: increase revenue or decrease costs. To increase revenue: raise your prices (most businesses undercharge), upsell additional services, focus on higher-margin work, and improve your closing rate. To decrease costs: negotiate better material prices, improve job efficiency, reduce waste, and minimize overhead. Often the fastest win is simply raising prices—most customers wont even notice a 5-10% increase.

Both! Per-job margin tells you which services and clients are most profitable, helping you focus on the right work. Overall business margin shows your total picture including all overhead. Some jobs might show high per-job margins but contribute to overhead costs that hurt overall profitability. Use this job profit margin calculator for individual pricing decisions, and track your overall margins with a comprehensive business profitability calculator for health checks.