Food Cost Calculator — Free Online Tool

How to use Food Cost Calculator

Calculate the ingredient-cost percentage of a dish, per-serving ingredient and variable costs, contribution after modeled expenses and a selling price based on target ingredient cost percentage.

1. Total the cost of ingredients used for one batch.
2. Enter the actual number of portions from that batch.
3. Enter the menu price per portion and target percentage.
4. Include optional packaging and labor to compare contribution, not just ingredient cost.

Important: Not full restaurant accounting; confirm portion yield and current ingredient prices.

Formula and methodology

Ingredient food cost % = (batch ingredient cost ÷ serving count) ÷ menu selling price × 100. Target menu price = ingredient cost per serving ÷ target food cost fraction.

The interactive calculations depend on the inputs, units and assumptions you provide. Display values are rounded for readability, but calculations use unrounded input values where applicable.

Worked example

If ingredients for eight servings cost $24, each serving costs $3. At a menu price of $12, ingredient food cost is 25%. A 30% target food cost implies a menu price of $10 before other costs.

Try entering your own measurements above to reproduce this calculation and understand each result.

Frequently asked questions