Free Tool

Free Wholesale Margin Calculator

Calculate your wholesale margin instantly. Enter your cost and selling price to get wholesale margin percentage, markup, and profit per unit — free for Shopify merchants selling bulk or surplus inventory.

Short answer: Wholesale margin = (selling price − total unit cost) ÷ selling price × 100. If a unit costs $12 and sells wholesale for $20, gross profit is $8, margin is 40%, and markup is 66.7%. Include every cost you want the result to reflect; the calculator does not add fees, shipping, taxes, returns, or overhead automatically.

How to Calculate Your Wholesale Margin

Enter your cost price and wholesale selling price below. The calculator returns your wholesale margin %, markup %, and gross profit per unit.

Total Unit Cost ($)

Wholesale Selling Price ($)

Wholesale Margin vs Markup: What's the Difference?

Wholesale margin (also called gross margin) measures profit as a percentage of the selling price. Markup measures the same profit as a percentage of your cost. Both describe the same transaction from different angles.

Metric	Formula	Cost $12 / Price $20
Wholesale Margin %	(Price − Cost) / Price × 100	40%
Markup %	(Price − Cost) / Cost × 100	66.7%
Profit / Unit	Price − Cost	$8.00

How to Choose a Target Wholesale Margin

There is no single target margin that is right for every wholesale deal. Start with the costs and risks of the specific transaction, then check whether the remaining gross profit can support the expenses that sit outside this calculator.

Total unit cost: include the purchase cost and any inbound freight, duties, or handling you want the margin to cover.
Selling costs: allow separately for marketplace fees, payment fees, outbound shipping, and expected returns when they are not in your cost input.
Risk and time: slower-moving, seasonal, or condition-sensitive inventory may need a different price decision from predictable replenishment stock.
Volume: a lower per-unit margin can still produce more total gross profit only when the additional units actually sell.

To work backward from a target margin, use selling price = total unit cost ÷ (1 − target margin). Write the target as a decimal: a $12 unit cost at a 40% target margin gives $12 ÷ 0.60 = $20.

Using the Wholesale Margin Calculator for Surplus Inventory

If you're pricing surplus inventory or overstock for bulk sale, use the landed unit cost you want to recover and the proposed bulk selling price. A negative result means the proposed price is below that cost input; it does not mean the sale is necessarily wrong, because liquidation decisions can also involve storage, aging, and cash-flow tradeoffs.

Forthclear is a B2B surplus marketplace for e-commerce merchants. Listing is free; sellers pay 5% of the item subtotal when an item sells.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is wholesale margin?

Wholesale margin is gross profit expressed as a percentage of the selling price. The formula is (selling price − total unit cost) ÷ selling price × 100.

What's the difference between wholesale margin and markup?

Margin divides gross profit by selling price; markup divides the same gross profit by cost. If total unit cost is $12 and selling price is $20, gross profit is $8, margin is 40%, and markup is 66.7%.

How do I calculate wholesale margin?

Subtract total unit cost from the wholesale selling price, divide the result by the selling price, and multiply by 100. For a $12 unit sold for $20, ($20 − $12) ÷ $20 × 100 equals a 40% margin.

What selling price gives me a target margin?

Divide total unit cost by one minus the target margin written as a decimal. At a $12 total unit cost and a 40% target margin, $12 ÷ (1 − 0.40) gives a $20 selling price.

Which costs should I include?

For a planning estimate, use the total unit cost you want the result to cover, such as purchase cost, inbound freight, duties, and per-unit handling. The calculator does not add taxes, outbound shipping, marketplace fees, returns, or overhead automatically.

Is this wholesale margin calculator free?

Yes. No signup is required, and the calculator runs in your browser without submitting the cost or price values you enter.