Food-truck owner pricing a new menu
A taco truck adding a $14 plate special needs a break-even calculator factoring in food cost, labor per shift, and truck fixed costs to see how many plates per day she must sell.
Simple Break-Even Calculator
Tier 2 · Accounting & Finance · $100 · 5-6 hrs · 10 day turnaround
Listed price is the project base price. A 3% payment processing fee is added at checkout. The full total is charged upfront when you place your order.
Create a spreadsheet that calculates break-even point from fixed costs, variable costs, and selling price, including a chart.
You'll get a working spreadsheet that shows exactly how many units you need to sell (or revenue you need to hit) to cover all your costs. Input your fixed costs, variable cost per unit, and selling price—the calculator spits out your break-even point in units and dollars, plus a visual chart so you can see the profit/loss zones at different sales volumes.
Deliverables
- Break-even calculator spreadsheet
- Inputs for fixed/variable costs and price
- Break-even chart
What's included
- Single product/service model
- Editable assumptions
- One chart
Not included
- Multi-product modeling
- Scenario/Monte Carlo analysis
- Investor-ready financials
What you'll get
Your fixed costs (rent, salaries, insurance—whatever you pay monthly regardless of sales), variable cost per unit (materials, packaging, direct labor), and selling price per unit. If you have multiple cost scenarios in mind, note those too.
Student builds the spreadsheet with input cells clearly labeled, creates formulas to calculate break-even quantity and break-even revenue, sets up a line chart showing total revenue and total cost lines intersecting at break-even, and tests the calculator with sample numbers to confirm accuracy.
A single Excel or Google Sheets file containing the calculator (with editable assumption cells), one break-even chart, and a simple summary showing break-even point in units and dollars. File is yours to edit and reuse.
Your payment stays in escrow until you confirm the spreadsheet calculates correctly with your real numbers and the chart displays both revenue and cost lines clearly.
Common use cases
Side-hustle candle maker going full-time
A maker debating going full-time needs to know how many candles per month she must sell at $24 retail to replace her $60k salary, factoring in materials and booth fees.
SaaS founder pricing the first tier
A bootstrapped founder needs a calculator showing how many $29/mo subscribers she needs to cover her hosting, contractor, and tooling costs each month.
Freelance consultant setting hourly rates
A consultant with $500/month overhead (workspace, software) wants to know how many billable hours at $75/hour cover costs. The break-even calculator shows she needs 6.67 billable hours per month, then anything above that is margin—helping her understand whether a part-time or full-time model makes sense.
E-commerce seller testing a product variant
An Etsy seller manufactures a new product variant with higher material costs ($8 vs $5) but the same selling price ($35). The calculator quickly shows the new break-even is higher (fewer units), letting her decide in minutes whether the variant is worth the tooling investment.
Gym membership model planning
A personal trainer opening a small group fitness studio has fixed costs of $2,000/month (lease, insurance) and wants to know if 20-person monthly memberships at $80 each cover expenses. The calculator shows break-even at 25 members, helping her set realistic enrollment targets before launch.
Frequently asked questions
Can I change the fixed or variable costs after the student delivers it, or do I have to request a revision?
The spreadsheet is fully yours to edit—all cost and price inputs are in plain, unlocked cells marked as assumptions. You can update them anytime without requesting changes. The formulas and chart will automatically recalculate.
What happens if my variable cost is zero or my fixed costs are very high—will the calculator break?
The student will build the spreadsheet to handle edge cases like zero variable cost (break-even = infinite units above fixed cost) and will include clear notes on the sheet. If your scenario is unusual, mention it upfront so the student can design for it.
Do I get the chart as a separate image file, or only embedded in the spreadsheet?
The chart is embedded in the spreadsheet so it updates automatically when you change inputs. You can copy and paste it into presentations, but the student won't export it as a separate PNG or PDF unless you request that as a revision.
Can the calculator handle monthly, annual, or different time periods—or is it locked to one?
The calculator works with any time period as long as all your inputs (fixed cost, variable cost, price) are in the same period. The student won't build separate monthly/annual tabs, but you can duplicate the sheet and label each one if you need both.
Is this spreadsheet formatted for investors, or is it internal-only?
This is a working tool for your own planning—clean enough to understand, but not investor-presentation ready. If you need polished charts, executive summaries, or scenario analysis, those fall outside this project scope.
Ready to get your project started?
Select a scope and let your Shamrck PM handle the rest. Pay the full total upfront at checkout, then review and approve the completed deliverable. Approval does not trigger a new charge.
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