Recipe Cost Calculator

For each ingredient, divide purchase price per unit by usable yield as a decimal, then multiply by the usable recipe quantity. Add ingredient line costs and divide by batch servings. The free recipe costing template contains the same chicken rice bowl example, pack prices, yield inputs, and a blank sheet. It calculates with full precision; displayed money rounds to cents.

20% waste means 80% usable yield. A 20 lb chicken pack costing $60 that provides 16 usable lb costs $3.75 per usable lb. Four usable pounds cost $15. Enter purchase price $3/lb, usable quantity 4 lb, and waste 20%. Alternatively, enter usable price $3.75/lb and waste 0%; do not divide by yield twice. Measure your own process. BCcampus yield testing explains the calculation. Use the recipe yield calculator to check a measured yield.

No. A percentage alone does not tell you the dollars left after ingredients or the other costs of serving the dish. The default 30% target is an illustration. Choose a target that fits your menu and operating costs. Use the food cost calculator to compare a known selling price with ingredient cost, or the menu pricing calculator to test a target. Sales minus ingredient cost is not net profit.

The batch control multiplies ingredient cost and servings together, keeping cost per serving constant. In the example, 2x makes 20 servings for $48.08, still about $2.40 per serving. It is an arithmetic projection. It does not test equipment capacity, cooking time, or whether the larger batch has the same yield. Saving keeps the base recipe quantities and servings; the batch multiplier is a projection. Use the portion size calculator to check serving quantities.

It includes the ingredients and waste percentages you enter. Labor, packaging, overhead, and taxes are separate. Suggested selling price is ingredient cost divided by your food cost target; it does not guarantee that all costs are covered. Use the cost per plate calculator to add labor and overhead.

Update it when a supplier price, ingredient quantity, portion count, or measured yield changes. If the chicken pack rises from $60 to $70 while yield stays at 80%, purchase price becomes $3.50/lb and usable price becomes $4.375/lb. The 4 usable lb line rises from $15 to $17.50; batch cost becomes $26.541667 and cost per serving becomes $2.654167. Keep other inputs fixed when you test one change.

Add the oil, salt, sauce, garnish, and other quantities you use. If you use an estimated allowance for unmeasured ingredients, label it and review it against purchases and production. No universal dollar amount or percentage fits every recipe. Keep disposables and packaging separate from ingredient food cost.

Cost the sauce separately, then divide its batch cost by usable quantity or portions. Enter that cost per matching unit in the parent recipe. A synthetic 32 fl oz sauce batch costing $6.40 has $0.20/fl oz cost; 4 fl oz costs $0.80. Use 0% additional waste if loss is already included. Try the public recipe demo without an account. The recipe costing software page explains saved recipes and current plans.