Wholesale Price Calculator
Set a wholesale price from your unit cost and margin or markup, see the suggested retail price, or work back from MSRP to the wholesale price retailers expect.
A wholesale price has to cover your cost, leave you a profit and still let the store make its own margin at a retail price shoppers will pay. This calculator works in both directions: build up from your unit cost to a wholesale price and a suggested retail price, or start from the MSRP and work back to the wholesale price a retailer will expect.
How to use this tool
- Choose whether you are starting from your cost or from the retail price.
- Enter your full cost per unit, including labor and packaging.
- Set your margin or markup, or the MSRP if you are working backwards.
- Enter the margin the retailer expects and the order size to see order totals.
Formula
Wholesale = Cost ÷ (1 − Your margin) or Cost × (1 + Markup)
Retail = Wholesale ÷ (1 − Retailer margin)
Wholesale from MSRP = Retail × (1 − Retailer margin)
Margins are entered as percentages and divided by 100. Margin is measured on the selling price, markup on the cost, so a 50% margin equals a 100% markup and a 40% margin equals a 66.7% markup. Calculations retain fractional cents; displayed prices are rounded. Round an actual quote upward when preserving a minimum margin, then recompute the achieved margin. This excludes separately charged tax and intermediary fees.
Example
A candle costs $8 to make. At a 50% margin the wholesale price is $8 ÷ 0.5 = $16, leaving you $8 a unit. A shop that uses keystone pricing (50% margin) sells it at $16 ÷ 0.5 = $32. An opening order of 24 candles totals $384, of which $192 is your profit.
Frequently asked questions
What is keystone pricing?
Keystone doubles the wholesale price at retail, which yields a 50% gross margin before the retailer's other costs. It is a pricing convention, not a guarantee of net profit.
Should my wholesale price be half of retail?
Use the margin agreed with your buyer and the costs included in that agreement. A 50% retailer margin makes wholesale half of retail, while a different target changes that ratio.
What should be included in my cost?
Include production materials, packaging, labor and allocated overhead consistently. Freight, commissions and other deductions may also matter to the return you are targeting; only costs you enter are included.
What if a distributor is involved?
Work backward one stage at a time from retail. At a $100 retail price, a 50% retailer margin leaves a $50 distributor selling price. A 20% distributor margin then leaves $40 for the manufacturer.
Last updated: 2026-10-30