Menu Price from Food Cost
Free Menu Price from Food Cost calculator with clear step-by-step results.
About Menu Price from Food Cost
Menu pricing runs from ingredient cost divided by target food cost percentage, but two adjustments make the number usable: wastage has to be added to the recipe cost first, and tax has to be added to the net price last. Skipping either is how a 28% target quietly becomes 35%.
Formulas
Net menu price
Net = ingredient cost x (1 + wastage) / target food cost percentage
Menu price shown
Gross = net menu price x (1 + sales tax rate)
Worked example
With the default values below, Menu Price from Food Cost returns Menu price including tax of $19.44. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.
Inputs used
- Ingredient cost per portionminimum 0 $
- 4.2 $
- Target food cost percentageaccepts 5–80 %
- 28 %
- Wastage and trim allowanceaccepts 0–40 %
- 8 %
- Sales tax or VAT on the menu priceaccepts 0–40 %
- 20 %
Results
- Menu price including tax
- $19.44
- Net menu price before tax
- $16.20
- True cost per portion after wastage
- $4.54
- Gross profit per portion
- $11.66
Step by step
- 1Values used
- 2Net menu price
- 3Menu price shown
- 4Menu price including tax= $19.44
- 5Net menu price before tax= $16.20
- 6True cost per portion after wastage= $4.54
- 7Gross profit per portion= $11.66
Assumptions and limits
- The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
- In particular, this calculator does not take inflation or compounding frequency into account.
- Figures are rounded for display to 2 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.
How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What food cost percentage should I target?
Typically 25-32% for restaurants, lower for beverages and higher for premium proteins where diners expect the plate cost to show. It is a portfolio target, not a per-dish rule.
Should every dish hit the target?
No. Cash gross profit per dish matters more than percentage. A steak at 40% food cost may contribute more cash than a pasta at 20%.