How to Calculate Gross Profit Margin: 8 Steps (with Pictures) (2024)

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Co-authored byMichael R. Lewis

Last Updated: November 18, 2023Approved

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Gross profit is a way to compare the cost of the goods your company sells and the income derived from those goods. All you need for the gross profit formula is your total revenue, and the cost of goods sold (COGS). You can use your gross profit margin to quickly and meaningfully compare your company to your competitors, the industry as a whole, or even your own past performance. Our how-to guide breaks it down for you, including examples.

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Calculating Gross Profit Margin

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  1. 1

    Look up Net Sales and Cost of Goods Sold. The company's income statement lists both values.

  2. 2

    Gross Profit Margin = (Net Sales - Cost of Goods Sold) ÷ Net Sales.

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  3. 3

    Example. A company makes $4,000 selling goods that cost $3,000 to produce. Its gross profit margin is How to Calculate Gross Profit Margin: 8 Steps (with Pictures) (7), or 25%.

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  1. 1

    Understand Gross Profit Margin. The Gross Profit Margin (GPM) is the percentage of revenue a company has left over after paying direct costs of producing goods.[1] All other expenditures (including shareholder dividends) must come out of this percentage. This makes the GPM a good indicator of profitability.

  2. 2

    Define Net Sales. A company's net sales equal its total sales minus returns, allowances for damaged merchandise, and discounts.[2] This is a more accurate measure of incoming money than total sales alone.

  3. 3

    Measure Costs of Goods Sold. Abbreviated COGS, this figure includes the cost of materials, labor, and other expenses directly related to the production of goods or services.[3] It does not include costs of distribution, labor that does not go into goods production, or other indirect costs.

  4. 4

    Avoid confusing Gross Profit with GPM. The Gross Profit equals the Net Sales minus the Cost of Goods Sold. This is expressed in dollars or other units of currency. The formula above converts Gross Profit to GPM, a percentage, for easy comparison with other companies.

  5. 5

    Understand why these figures are important. Investors look at Gross Profit Margin to see how efficiently a company can use its resources. If one company has a GPM of 10% and a second company has a GPM of 20%, the second company is making twice as much money per dollar spent on goods. Assuming other costs are roughly equal between the two companies, the second company is probably the better investment opportunity.

    • It's best to compare companies in the same sector. Some goods and services have a lower average profit margin than others.
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  • Question

    How do I calculate the profit, expressed as a percentage, that the vendor makes when selling a 180 airtime voucher?

    Michael R. Lewis
    Business Advisor

    Michael R. Lewis is a retired corporate executive, entrepreneur, and investment advisor in Texas. He has over 40 years of experience in business and finance, including as a Vice President for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas. He has a BBA in Industrial Management from the University of Texas at Austin.

    Michael R. Lewis

    Business Advisor

    Expert Answer

    Subtract the cost of the voucher from the price received from its sale. the difference is gross profit. To calculate the Gross Profit Margin percentage, divide the price received for the sale by the gross profit and convert the decimals into a percentage. For example, 0.01 equals 1%, 0.1 equals 10 percent, and 1.0 equals 100 percent.

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  • Question

    How do I calculate the gross as a percentage if I have the GP in dollars and the net sales in dollars?

    Michael R. Lewis
    Business Advisor

    Michael R. Lewis is a retired corporate executive, entrepreneur, and investment advisor in Texas. He has over 40 years of experience in business and finance, including as a Vice President for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas. He has a BBA in Industrial Management from the University of Texas at Austin.

    Net Sales is Gross Sales less returns, discounts, and allowances for damaged or missing goods. Calculate Gross Sales by adding back those amounts if known to Net Sales, then divide your Gross Profit by Gross Sales. This will provide the answers in decimals that can be converted into a percentage.

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      About This Article

      How to Calculate Gross Profit Margin: 8 Steps (with Pictures) (32)

      Co-authored by:

      Michael R. Lewis

      Business Advisor

      This article was co-authored by Michael R. Lewis. Michael R. Lewis is a retired corporate executive, entrepreneur, and investment advisor in Texas. He has over 40 years of experience in business and finance, including as a Vice President for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas. He has a BBA in Industrial Management from the University of Texas at Austin. This article has been viewed 1,432,958 times.

      9 votes - 56%

      Co-authors: 19

      Updated: November 18, 2023

      Views:1,432,958

      Categories: Featured Articles | Accounting

      Article SummaryX

      To calculate gross profit margin, start by subtracting the cost of goods sold from the net sales. Then, divide the difference by the net sales to find the gross profit margin. If you're not sure what the net sales and cost of goods sold are, you can look them up on the company's income statement. For more tips from our Financial co-author, like how to interpret gross profit margin, scroll down!

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      Español:calcular el margen bruto de ganancias

      Deutsch:Die Bruttogewinnspanne errechnen

      中文:计算毛利率

      Русский:вычислить коэффициент валовой прибыли

      Français:calculer la marge bénéficiaire brute

      ไทย:คำนวณกำไรขั้นต้น

      Bahasa Indonesia:Menghitung Margin Laba Kotor

      العربية:حساب هامش إجمالي الربح

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      How to Calculate Gross Profit Margin: 8 Steps (with Pictures) (2024)

      FAQs

      What is the formula for calculating the gross profit margin? ›

      In order to calculate it, first subtract the cost of goods sold from the company's revenue. This figure is known as the company's gross profit (as a dollar figure). Then divide that figure by the total revenue and multiply it by 100 to get the gross margin.

      How do you calculate gross profit step by step? ›

      Gross profit is calculated by subtracting the cost of goods sold from net revenue. Net income is then calculated by subtracting the remaining operating expenses of the company.

      How do you calculate profit margin step by step? ›

      To determine the net profit margin, we need to divide the net income (or net profit) by the total revenue for the year and then multiply by 100. To determine the operating profit margin, we need to divide the operating income or operating profit by the company's total revenue and then multiply by 100.

      How do you calculate profit margin on a calculator? ›

      To calculate your margin, use this formula:
      1. Find your gross profit. Again, to do this you minus your cost from your price.
      2. Divide your gross profit by your price. You'll then have your margin. Again, to turn it into a percentage, simply multiply it by 100 and that's your margin %.
      Oct 26, 2017

      What is 8s profit margin? ›

      It's a percentage that measures how profitable your pricing strategy is, how well you control costs, and how efficiently you use raw materials and labor to produce your products or services.

      What is the gross profit method? ›

      Gross Profit Method

      The gross profit (or gross margin) method uses the previous year's average gross profit margin (i.e. sales minus cost of goods sold divided by sales) to calculate the value of the inventory. Keep in mind the gross profit method assumes that gross profit ratio remains stable during the period.

      What is the formula for gross margin level? ›

      Let's assume a company has $ 5,000 in net sales and $ 3,000 in COGS over two months. To calculate the gross margin percentage, we would use the formula: (Total revenue - COGS)/Total revenue x 100. Using this gross profit formula for our example scenario: ($5000 - $3000) / $5000 x 100 = 40%.

      What is the formula for gross profit markup? ›

      How to calculate: Markup % = (Selling price – cost price) / cost price x 100. Gross profit % = (Selling price – cost price) / selling price x 100.

      What is the simplest formula for profit? ›

      Profit = Selling Price (S.P.) - Cost Price (C.P.)

      This formula represents the most basic calculation of profit, which is used to determine the financial outcome of any commercial enterprise. It should be noted that when the selling price is less than the cost price, there is a loss in the transaction.

      What is the formula of gross profit answer in one sentence? ›

      Gross Profit is the total revenue amount that a company earns before deducting the expenses connected with that revenue. To calculate Gross Profit, you should know the total amount of Net Sales and the total amount of Cost of Goods Sold. The formula of Gross Profit is Gross Profit = Net Sales – Cost of Goods Sold.

      What is the gross profit margin ratio? ›

      How do you calculate gross profit margin? The gross profit margin is calculated by subtracting direct expenses or cost of goods sold (COGS) from net sales (gross revenues minus returns, allowances and discounts). That number is divided by net revenues, then multiplied by 100% to calculate the gross profit margin ratio.

      How do you calculate the gross margin? ›

      Gross margin may appear as a dollar value or as a percentage.
      1. The dollar formula is: Total Revenue – COGS = Gross Margin.
      2. The percentage formula is: Total Revenue – COGS / Net Sales x 100.

      What is a good gross profit margin? ›

      While the overall average sits above 30%, there is a wide disparity in gross profit margins between regional banks (99.75%) and automotive businesses (9.04%), for example. Generally speaking, service industries that do not sell physical products will post higher gross profit margins because they have a much lower COGS.

      What is a profit margin for dummies? ›

      Expressed as a percentage, it represents the portion of a company's sales revenue that it gets to keep as a profit, after subtracting all of its costs. For example, if a company reports that it achieved a 35% profit margin during the last quarter, it means that it netted $0.35 from each dollar of sales generated.

      Is 8% profit margin good? ›

      A general rule of thumb is that a good operating profit margin sits between 10–20%, meaning the business has a profit of 20 cents on each dollar of revenue after operating costs have been deducted. However, this can vary from industry to industry.

      What is the profit of 8 of 500? ›

      We get the profit at 8% is Rs. 540.

      How do you calculate the profit percentage? ›

      When the selling price and the cost price of a product is given, the profit can be calculated using the formula, Profit = Selling Price - Cost Price. After this, the profit percentage formula that is used is, Profit percentage = (Profit/Cost Price) × 100.

      How do you calculate profit margin price? ›

      It's simple to find gross profit margin automatically using the calculator. To calculate manually, subtract the cost of goods sold (COGS) from the net sales (gross revenues minus returns, allowances, and discounts). Then divide this figure by net sales, to calculate the gross profit margin in a percentage.

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