Margin vs markup

Fees as of 14 Nov 2026.

Margin is profit divided by the price. Markup on cost is profit divided by the cost. Before fees, a 30% margin is a 42.86% markup on cost.

Common pairs

Worked example with fees

A $6.00 item on Etsy with a 30% margin target. Etsy takes 9.5% plus $0.45 in fixed fees per sale.

The lowest price that keeps 30% after each fee is rounded to the cent is $10.66. Fees come to $1.46 and profit is $3.20, a 30.02% margin.

That price is 77.67% above cost. This is the markup needed after fees. It is higher than the table's 42.86% markup on cost, before fees, because the table ignores fees.

How the math works

Markup on cost equals margin divided by (1 minus margin). Margin equals markup on cost divided by (1 plus markup). These two formulas ignore fees.

Questions

What is the difference between margin and markup?

Margin is profit divided by the price. Markup on cost is profit divided by the cost. When a sale makes a profit and the cost is above zero, the margin is always the smaller number. At zero profit both are 0%, and with a cost of $0 markup has no value.

What markup gives a 30% margin?

Before fees, a 42.86% markup on cost. A 50% markup on cost is a 33.33% margin. Once a platform takes its fees you need a higher markup, shown as markup needed after fees in the workbook.

Why price from margin instead of markup?

Platform fees come out of the price, not the cost. Pricing from a target margin keeps that share of every sale after fees, which markup does not.

What does a 30% margin cost on Etsy once fees are counted?

If your cost is $6.00 and you want a 30% margin, the lowest Etsy price is $10.66. Fees at that price are $1.46 and profit is $3.20, a 30.02% margin.

Price every product at once

Marginrule Pricing Workbook Lite is a free Excel workbook that does this math for one product. Marginrule Pricing Workbook does it for up to 200 products across every channel you sell on, for $17.00.