Business calculator

Ecommerce Profit Calculator

Revenue is not profit. An online order loses margin to product cost, packaging, shipping, platform fees, payment fees, discounts, ad spend, returns, chargebacks, and fixed overhead — this calculator estimates what you actually keep. Net profit per order, contribution margin, break-even price, break-even ROAS, max affordable CAC, fixed-cost break-even, channel and SKU comparison, scenario planning, and a formula-backed XLSX workbook. Built for Shopify and custom stores, Amazon, Etsy, eBay, Walmart, Flipkart sellers, and dropshippers.

Transparent assumptions Transparent formulas 3 modes incl. channel & scenario comparison 12 currencies + custom symbol 12-sheet XLSX workbook Practical interpretation
Calculate profit Profit formulas

Platform fees vary; verify current rates.

Ecommerce profit per order = net revenue − goods − fees − shipping − returns − marketing − fixed overhead per order. A $40 product with $4.95 shipping charged, $15.50 of landed goods and fulfilment costs, $1.60 of payment fees (2.9% + $0.30), $5.50 outbound shipping, a $0.84 return allowance (4%), and $6 of ads contributes $15.51 per order (34.5%); after $5 of overhead per order the net profit is $10.51 — and the campaign needs at least a 2.09 ROAS to break even.

Calculator

Single Product

A · Revenue per order· $44.95
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0 = off. When set, it replaces price × quantity as item revenue (price-based solves switch off).

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Entered amounts are tax-free.

B · Product & fulfilment costs· $15.50
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C · Platform & marketplace fees· $0.00

Presets pre-fill the fee fields with EXAMPLE figures — fees vary by country, category, plan, and date. Verify current platform rates before making financial decisions.

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D · Payment fees· $1.60
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Expected loss = rate × order charge.

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E · Shipping· $5.50
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For your notes — the toggle above decides whether THIS order ships free.

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Extra shipping cost you absorb (promos, remote surcharges).

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F · Returns & refunds· $0.84

Return rate × (goods + fulfilment + outbound shipping).

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G · Marketing & targets· $6.00
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Total ad spend ÷ total orders. Takes precedence over CAC and ROAS.

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Used when ad spend per order is 0 — blended by the paid share.

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Used when ad spend and CAC are 0: ad cost = revenue ÷ ROAS.

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Drives the target-price solve. Values above 95% are capped at 95%.

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Drives the max-affordable-CAC figure.

H · Fixed monthly overhead· $3,000 / mo
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SKU quick compare (optional)· off

Compare up to 6 products that share this store’s fees, shipping, returns, and overhead — only price, product cost, and ad cost differ. The table appears under the results.

Your inputs auto-save in this browser. The share link encodes them in the URL — nothing is sent to a server.

Results · per order

Profitable

Net profit per order

$10.51

Net margin 23.4% of net revenue.

Contribution profit per order

$15.51

Contribution margin 34.5% — before fixed overhead.

Monthly net profit

$6,304

At 600 orders; yearly ≈ $75,646.

Net revenue per order

$44.95

After discounts; incl. shipping charged and add-ons.

Gross profit per order

$30.95

Gross margin 68.9% — goods and packaging only.

Markup on variable cost

52.7%

Contribution ÷ total variable cost.

Break-even price

$24.03

Unit price where contribution hits 0 — every % fee moves with price.

Target price (15% net margin)

$35.42

Unit price that hits your target net margin after all costs.

Break-even orders / month

194

Volume cushion 67.8% above break-even.

Break-even ROAS

2.09

Campaigns below this lose money per order.

Max affordable CAC (per paid customer)

$21.51

At zero target profit, 100% paid share.

Max ad spend per order

$21.51

Ad spend that takes contribution to 0.

More per-order detail

Total variable cost

$29.44

Goods, fees, shipping, returns, marketing.

Total fees (platform + payment)

$1.60

Platform $0.00 · payment $1.60.

Shipping burden

$5.50

Customer covers 90% of it.

Return loss per order

$0.84

Simple allowance model.

Marketing as % of revenue

13.3%

All marketing (ads + influencer + email): $6.00 per order.

Fixed cost per order

$5.00

$3,000 overhead ÷ 600 orders.

Contribution before marketing

$21.51

Contribution with ads, influencer, and email added back.

Profit after marketing

$15.51

= contribution profit (returns are modelled in).

Estimate only — an educational model of one representative order, not accounting, tax, or financial advice. Platform fees vary by country, category, plan, and date.

12 sheets generated from your inputs with live formulas: per-order profit, monthly forecast, fixed-cost break-even, ROAS/CAC analysis, returns model, channel comparison, scenario planner, and SKU comparison.

What your numbers mean

Plain-English reading of the current inputs — planning signals, not verdicts.

Scale-ready

Contribution stays positive after ads and returns, and the fixed-cost break-even (194 orders) sits within your current volume. Extra orders add roughly $15.51 each.

Revenue-to-profit waterfall

Where each part of the order value goes — net revenue down to the net profit per order.

Cost breakdown per order

Which cost line is hurting profit the most — share of the total variable cost.

Total variable cost: $29.44 per order — 65.5% of net revenue.

Break-even monthly orders

Monthly profit as volume grows — the line crosses zero at 194 orders.

Show chart data as a table
Break-even volume data
OrdersMonthly profit
0−$3,000
150−$674
300$1,652
450$3,978
600$6,304
750$8,630
900$10,956
1,050$13,282
1,200$15,608

Margin sensitivity

One assumption moves, the rest stay put — percentage fees and the return model recompute at the new values. Ad tweaks scale your current resolved ad cost.

Margin sensitivity table
ChangeContributionCM %Net / orderNet marginMonthly netΔ vs current
Current$15.5134.5%$10.5123.4%$6,304—
Price +5%$17.4537.2%$12.4526.5%$7,469+$1,165
Price +10%$19.3939.6%$14.3929.4%$8,634+$2,330
COGS −5%$16.1335.9%$11.1324.8%$6,678+$374
COGS −10%$16.7537.3%$11.7526.2%$7,053+$749
Ads +10%$14.9133.2%$9.9122%$5,944−$360
Ads +25%$14.0131.2%$9.0120%$5,404−$900
Returns +5pp$14.4632.2%$9.4621%$5,674−$630
Returns +10pp$13.4129.8%$8.4118.7%$5,044−$1,260

Monthly forecast

Profit at different volumes, assuming the per-order economics hold — fee tiers, shipping rates, and ad efficiency usually change as you scale.

Monthly forecast table
% of currentOrdersNet revenueContributionFixed overheadMonthly net profit
50%300$13,485$4,652$3,000$1,652
75%450$20,228$6,978$3,000$3,978
100%600$26,970$9,304$3,000$6,304
125%750$33,713$11,630$3,000$8,630
150%900$40,455$13,956$3,000$10,956
200%1,200$53,940$18,608$3,000$15,608

At a glance

Formula shown
Net profit per order = Net revenue − goods − fees − shipping − returns − marketing − fixed overhead per order.
Scenario support
Three modes with break-even ROAS, max CAC, target price, channel comparison, and a scenario planner.
Workbook export
12-sheet Excel (XLSX) export
Educational estimate
Planning support from the values you enter — not professional advice.

How to read your result

The results run through one pipeline: net revenue minus every cost that scales with the order gives contribution profit — the single most useful per-order number, since positive contribution means each order helps cover overhead and negative contribution means volume makes things worse. Subtracting fixed overhead per order gives net profit, which is volume-dependent — the same product can be net-profitable at 600 orders a month and loss-making at 150. Watch the break-even ROAS card especially closely if you run paid ads: a 3× ROAS the ad platform reports as a win can still lose money if your break-even ROAS is 3.5×, because ROAS measures revenue per ad dollar, not margin. Switch to Channel Comparison to see the same product under different fee structures, or Scenario Planner to stress-test a discount, free shipping, or heavier ad spend before committing.

The ecommerce profit formula

Net revenue

Price × Qty + Shipping charged + Add-ons − Discounts − Tax

Tax is carved out when included in the price.

Contribution profit

Net revenue − Goods − Fees − Shipping − Return loss − Marketing

Everything that scales with one more order.

Net profit per order

Contribution − (Monthly overhead ÷ Monthly orders)

Monthly net = contribution × orders − overhead.

Break-even ROAS

Gross charge ÷ Max ad spend per order

Max ad spend = contribution with ad cost added back.

Worked example

A $40 product with $4.95 shipping charged collects $44.95 per order. Costs: $12 COGS + $0.80 freight + $1.20 packaging + $1.50 pick-pack + $1.60 payment fees (2.9% + $0.30) + $5.50 outbound shipping + $0.84 return allowance (4%) + $6 ads = $29.44.

Contribution = 44.95 − 29.44 = $15.51 per order (34.5%). With $3,000 of monthly overhead spread over 600 orders ($5/order), net profit = $10.51 (23.4%), or roughly $6,304 a month.

Two decisions fall out of the same pipeline: the fixed overhead breaks even at 194 orders a month, and the ad campaign needs at least a 2.09 ROAS to avoid losing money per order — well below the 3-4× a dashboard might call "good," but the number this specific cost structure actually requires.

Assumptions and limitations

  • This models ONE representative order — not bookkeeping, a P&L, or a tax computation.
  • Platform fee presets are examples only. Fees vary by country, category, plan, and date — verify current rates on the platform, gateway, and marketplace fee pages before relying on a result.
  • Return and chargeback losses are expected values (rate × cost); real losses arrive lumpily and depend on resale recovery and condition grading.
  • Monthly and yearly projections assume order volume and per-order economics stay constant — fee tiers, carrier rates, and ad efficiency all change with scale.
  • Income taxes, working-capital timing, inventory carrying costs, and customer-lifetime effects (repeat orders, LTV) are out of scope; for acquisition economics over a customer’s lifetime see the LTV:CAC calculator.
  • Soft benchmarks only: there is no single "good" ecommerce margin — category, channel, country, fulfilment model, ad intensity, return rates, and product type all shift the bar.

For the classic revenue-to-net-margin view see the profit margin calculator; to price from cost see the markup calculator; for volume break-even see the break-even calculator; for ad-spend break-even on its own see the break-even ROAS calculator.

Frequently asked questions

How do I calculate ecommerce profit?

Net revenue (price × quantity + shipping charged + add-ons − discounts − tax) minus everything that scales with the order: product cost, packaging, freight, duty, fulfilment, platform fees, payment fees, shipping you pay, expected return loss, and marketing. That is contribution profit; subtract fixed overhead per order for net profit.

What is the difference between gross profit and net profit?

Gross profit removes only the goods and packaging from net revenue. Net profit also removes fees, shipping, returns, marketing, and a share of fixed overhead. An order can look healthy on gross profit and still lose money net — the middle cost lines are where ecommerce margins go to die.

What is contribution margin in ecommerce?

Contribution profit (net revenue − all variable costs) as a share of net revenue. It is the single most useful per-order number: positive contribution means each order helps cover overhead; negative contribution means scale makes things worse.

What is break-even ROAS?

The gross charge per order (what the customer pays — the figure ad platforms report as revenue) ÷ the maximum ad spend per order the margin can absorb (the contribution with ad cost added back, other marketing unchanged). A campaign below break-even ROAS loses money per order regardless of what the ads dashboard celebrates.

How do returns affect ecommerce profit?

A return refunds the revenue while you still pay reverse shipping and processing. The detailed model computes the expected per-order loss as return rate × (refund + reverse shipping + reverse logistics − net recovery), where net recovery is the resale value of returned stock — the goods cost itself is already expensed, so it is never counted twice.

Related calculators

This page answers “what do I keep per order?” — these tools take the neighbouring questions:

  • Profit Margin CalculatorWork out gross, contribution, operating, and net margin, with target pricing, break-even, scenarios, and SKU comparison.
  • Markup CalculatorPrice from cost across nine modes — markup, target margin, reverse cost ceilings, and ecommerce landed cost after fees.
  • Break-Even CalculatorFind units and revenue break-even, contribution margin, target profit, and margin of safety, with sensitivity tables and a chart.
  • Break-Even ROAS CalculatorWork out break-even and target ROAS from your real margins, plus max CAC, break-even MER, and ad budgets.
  • LTV:CAC CalculatorCalculate CAC, discounted LTV, the LTV:CAC ratio, and CAC payback, with channel-by-channel decisions and scenarios.

Read the guides

For the full walkthrough of fees, shipping, ad spend, and returns math with more worked examples, see Ecommerce Profit: Fees, Shipping, Ads, Returns, and Real Margin.

Running paid ads on these orders? See Break-Even ROAS Explained for Small Business Advertising.

Business planning disclaimer

This ecommerce profit calculator and its XLSX workbook are for educational and business-planning purposes only. They model one representative order from the figures you enter; platform fees, payment processing costs, tax treatment, shipping rates, advertising results, return behaviour, and business outcomes vary by country, platform, category, plan, date, and seller circumstances. Platform fee presets are examples only — always verify current rates on the platform’s own fee pages. This is not accounting, tax, legal, investment, or financial advice. Verify important decisions with current fee pages and a qualified professional.

How we calculate · Found an error? email us

Learn more

Ecommerce Profit: Fees, Shipping, Ads, Returns, and Real Margin

What an online order really earns once platform fees, shipping, ad spend, and returns are subtracted — with a full worked example per order.

Read the guide

Authorship & verification

Written and maintained by

  • Formula and examples verified on 14 June 2026
  • Educational estimate only

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