Know your number before you set a price

Break-Even Calculator

Works out how many units, or how much revenue, you need to sell to cover your costs - from fixed costs, variable cost per unit and selling price. A break-even gauge shows exactly where your current or expected sales sit against that line, with an optional target-profit figure and a margin-of-safety check. Save any set of inputs as a named scenario to compare pricing options side by side.

Metre2 Break-Even Calculator showing fixed cost, variable cost and price inputs on the left and a break-even gauge with a marker for current sales on the right

Break-Even Calculator, in practice

The Calculator tab working out a sample product's break-even point, and the Scenarios tab comparing two saved pricing options.

Break-even units and revenue, worked out instantly

Enter fixed costs, variable cost per unit and selling price, and the calculator works out exactly how many units - and how much revenue - you need to cover your costs, live as you type.

A break-even gauge, not just numbers in a list

A single horizontal ruler from £0 to your current sales figure, with a marker at the break-even point and your current position shown against it - see how close you are at a glance.

Contribution margin, broken out

Contribution per unit and contribution margin ratio are shown alongside the headline figures, so you can see how much of every sale actually goes towards covering fixed costs.

An optional target profit

Set a target profit figure and get the units and revenue needed to hit it, not just to break even - useful when you're setting a sales goal rather than just covering costs.

Margin of safety, in units and percent

Enter your current or expected units sold and see exactly how far above (or below) the break-even point you sit, both as a unit count and a percentage - a quick read on how much room you have before a loss.

Save and compare scenarios

Name and save a full set of inputs and results as a scenario, and build up a comparison table of pricing options, products or services side by side - no re-entering numbers to compare a second option.

Six currencies

GBP, EUR, USD, AUD, CAD and NZD symbols - break-even arithmetic doesn't vary by country, so you just pick the symbol that matches your own pricing.

Any product or service business

Not construction-gated or industry-specific - works for any business pricing a physical product, a service, or a subscription, whatever the trade.

Light/dark theme, and sample data

A light/dark toggle that remembers your choice, and "Load sample" fills in a realistic product costing so you can see the calculation before entering your own numbers.

Works entirely offline

Everything lives in local storage on your device - no account, no server, no internet connection required to use it day to day.

Genuinely thin, on purpose

No forecasting, no invoicing, no full costing suite - just the one number that matters when you're setting a price: how much you need to sell to cover it.

How it compares to a spreadsheet or a full pricing/costing platform

Most small businesses either build a break-even formula in a spreadsheet from scratch each time, or pay for a full costing/pricing platform they don't need. Here's how a dedicated, focused calculator compares.

Feature Break-Even Calculator A spreadsheet Full costing/pricing platform
Pricing model £0.79 one-off after trial Free (if you already have Excel/Sheets) Per-user monthly subscription
Works fully offline (local files) (cloud-hosted)
Break-even gauge visual, not just a formula cell (build a chart yourself)
Saved scenarios for side-by-side comparison (duplicate sheets/rows manually)
No formula errors to debug (one broken cell reference and it's wrong)
No account required to set up

General comparison as of August 2026 - features and pricing vary by spreadsheet tool and by costing/pricing platform. Not sponsored by or affiliated with any spreadsheet or platform vendor.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to install anything to use Break-Even Calculator?

It's a Windows desktop app. It is not yet available on the Microsoft Store - a Store listing is planned, but for now the app is built and ready ahead of submission.

What is break-even analysis?

It works out the point at which sales revenue exactly covers total costs - fixed costs plus variable costs - so profit is zero. Sell more than the break-even point and you're in profit; sell less and you're making a loss.

What inputs does it need?

Fixed costs (rent, salaries, insurance - costs that don't change with sales volume), variable cost per unit (materials, packaging, direct labour per unit sold) and your selling price per unit. Target profit and current or expected units sold are optional.

What is contribution margin?

The amount each unit sold contributes towards covering fixed costs, after variable costs - selling price minus variable cost per unit. Break-even units is fixed costs divided by contribution per unit.

What is margin of safety?

How far your current or expected sales sit above the break-even point, in units and as a percentage - a quick read on how much sales could drop before you tip into a loss.

What are scenarios for?

Save a set of inputs and results as a named scenario to compare pricing options, products or services side by side - useful when you're deciding between two prices or costings before committing to one.

Where does my data go?

Everything persists on your device between sessions - nothing is uploaded anywhere. The app works entirely offline with no server dependency, and data doesn't currently sync across multiple devices.

Is this financial advice?

No - it's a calculator to help you work out a figure, not financial advice. Always check your own numbers and take professional advice for business decisions.

Ready to try Break-Even Calculator?