Menu pricing calculator

Free tool · no signup · runs in your browser · Last updated: October 20, 2026 · By the Varastiq team

Key takeaway: Menu price = plate cost ÷ target food cost %. A dish that costs $4.85 to plate at a 30% target should sell for $16.17, which rounds up to $16.49. You can also price by dollars: plate cost + the contribution margin you want each sale to leave. The calculator below does both and compares the result with your current price.

How do you use the menu pricing calculator?

1. Enter the plate cost. Everything on the plate at today's invoice prices: protein, sides, sauce, garnish, packaging. If you don't have it, build it with the plate cost calculator.
2. Pick a method. Target food cost % if you manage to a percentage. Target margin $ if you'd rather each dish leave a set number of dollars.
3. Pick rounding. The calculator always rounds up, so the dish never lands below your target.
4. Add your current price (optional) to see both prices side by side.

What is the menu pricing formula?

By food cost %:  Price = Plate cost ÷ (Target food cost % ÷ 100)
By margin $:     Price = Plate cost + Target contribution margin $

Food cost % at a price = Plate cost ÷ Price × 100
Contribution margin    = Price − Plate cost
Markup %               = (Price − Plate cost) ÷ Plate cost × 100
Gross margin %         = (Price − Plate cost) ÷ Price × 100

Spreadsheet version, with plate cost in B1 and target % in B2 (as a decimal): =B1/B2.

Should I price by food cost % or by dollar margin?

Both, ideally. Percentage pricing keeps cheap dishes from being under-priced. Dollar margin keeps expensive dishes from being over-priced.

Look at two dishes at a 30% target. A pasta with a $3.00 plate cost prices at $10.00 and leaves $7.00. A steak with a $15.00 plate cost prices at $50.00 and leaves $35.00. If guests won't pay $50, you might sell the steak at $42 (a 35.7% food cost) and still take $27 per plate, nearly four times the pasta. Food cost % says the steak is the "worse" dish. Dollars say it pays more of the rent. Use the margin mode to check expensive items.

What does a worked example look like?

A smash burger plate: two patties, cheese, bun, sauce, pickles, fries and a basket liner, costed at $4.85. Target food cost is 30%.

• Raw price = $4.85 ÷ 0.30 = $16.17
• Rounded up to the next .49/.99 ending = $16.49
• Food cost at $16.49 = 29.4%
• Contribution margin = $11.64
• Markup = 240%, gross margin = 70.6%

If the burger is currently $15.00, its food cost is 32.3% and it leaves $10.15. Moving to $16.49 adds $1.49 a plate. At 400 burgers a month, that's about $596 a month before any change in how many you sell. Whether guests accept it is a judgment call for you, not for a calculator.

What is the difference between markup and margin?

Markup compares profit with cost. Margin compares profit with price. On the burger above, $11.64 of profit is a 240% markup on $4.85 of cost, and a 70.6% gross margin on a $16.49 price. Food cost % and gross margin always add up to 100%.

What mistakes make menu prices wrong?

• Stale plate costs. Pricing from last year's invoices.
• Forgetting the small stuff. Fryer oil, the side sauce, the to-go container.
• Ignoring yield. Costing a trimmed protein at its invoice price. See the yield calculator.
• One target for every dish. Drinks, apps, entrées and desserts carry different margins by nature.
• Rounding down. $16.17 → $15.99 quietly costs you on every plate.

How does Varastiq help with menu pricing?

Varastiq keeps every dish's live plate cost current from your invoices, so the plate cost you price from is today's. With sales from Toast or an uploaded sales report, you see which dishes earn the most dollars, not just the best percentage. To cost a whole menu at once, upload it on See your menu.

Frequently asked questions

How do you calculate a menu price from food cost?

Divide the plate cost by your target food cost percentage as a decimal. A $4.85 plate at a 30% target is $4.85 divided by 0.30, or $16.17 before rounding.

What food cost percentage should I price at?

It depends on the dish and concept. The National Restaurant Association reported a 32.0% median food and non-alcoholic beverage cost for full-service restaurants in 2024. Many operators price individual dishes around their own overall target and check the dollar margin on expensive items.

What is contribution margin on a menu item?

Contribution margin is the menu price minus the plate cost. It is the dollars each sale leaves to cover labor, rent and profit.

Is charm pricing worth it?

Rounding to endings like .49 or .99 is a common convention. This calculator rounds up so the dish never falls below your target.

Why does a lower food cost percentage not always mean more profit?

A low-cost dish at a low price can leave fewer dollars than a higher-cost dish at a higher price. Compare contribution margin in dollars as well as percentages.

Does this calculator save my numbers?

No. Everything runs in your browser and nothing you enter is sent anywhere.

Sources

• National Restaurant Association, "Restaurant operators kept food cost ratios in check in 2024," analysis of the 2025 Restaurant Operations Data Abstract. National Restaurant Association. Accessed October 20, 2026.

Related free tools

Plate cost calculator · Recipe cost calculator · Food cost calculator · Yield calculator · All tools

Price from today's costs, not last year's

Varastiq keeps plate costs live from your invoices so every price decision starts from the real number. Varastiq Pro: $149/month for your first location, plus $99/month for each additional location, or $1,639/year (1 month free). Optional $299 guided setup. Money-back guarantee on the software: 14 days on monthly plans, 30 days on annual.

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