The Business Calc

Food Cost & Menu Price Calculator

Menu price = plate cost ÷ target food cost %. A dish that costs $4.50 to make needs a $15.00 menu price to run at a 30% food cost. Enter your plate cost and target to price any dish.

Updated · Standard food-cost formulas, shown in full below.

Try an example
Every ingredient in the portion as served, including sides and sauces.
    Menu price $15.00

    keeps ingredients at 30.0% of what the guest pays.

    $4.50 Plate cost 0.30 Food cost % $15.00 Menu price
    Gross profit per plate $10.50
    Markup on ingredients 233.3%

    At other food cost targets

    • 25% food cost $18.00
    • 28% food cost $16.07
    • 35% food cost $12.86

    What this price means

    • Each plate leaves $10.50 to pay for labor, rent, and everything else before profit.
    • Simply doubling ingredient cost would price this at $9.00 — a 50.0% food cost.
    • Ingredient prices move. Re-cost your top sellers whenever a supplier changes prices, and check the result here.

    Food cost formula

    Formula and worked example
    food cost % = plate cost ÷ menu price × 100 menu price = plate cost ÷ (target food cost % ÷ 100)

    Food cost percentage is the share of the menu price spent on ingredients. Solving that for price gives the second formula. It is the same idea as pricing to a margin on the selling price calculator, with margin = 100% − food cost %.

    Worked example

    Plate cost
    $4.50
    Target food cost
    30%
    Calculation
    $4.50 ÷ 0.30
    Menu price
    $15.00
    Check
    $4.50 ÷ $15.00 = 30%

    Food cost FAQ

    How do I calculate food cost percentage?

    Divide the cost of a dish's ingredients by its menu price and multiply by 100. A plate that costs $4.50 to make and sells for $15.00 has a food cost of 30%.

    How do I set a menu price from food cost?

    Divide the plate cost by your target food cost percentage written as a decimal. For a $4.50 plate and a 30% target, that's $4.50 ÷ 0.30 = $15.00.

    What's a good food cost percentage?

    Many restaurants aim for roughly 28–35% across the menu, but it varies widely by concept. Items with cheap ingredients, like pasta or drinks, often run lower, while steak and seafood often run higher. What matters is the blended figure across everything you sell.

    What should plate cost include?

    The cost of every ingredient in the portion as served — including garnishes, sauces, oil, and sides — at the price you actually pay. It doesn't include labor, rent, or other overhead; those are paid out of the gross profit the calculator shows.

    Is food cost percentage the same as margin?

    It's the other side of it. A 30% food cost means 70% of the menu price is gross margin before labor and overhead. The equivalent markup on ingredient cost is much higher — about 233% in this example.

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