Why “correct cost” still loses money
Many sellers treat cost as materials only. After platform commission, payment fees, ads and shipping, volume growth can deepen the loss. Others confuse 30% markup with 30% margin—on a cost of 100 the prices differ by more than ten units, and that error scales with every SKU.
ComTools Product Cost Calculator connects itemized cost → channel fees → suggested price → Excel batch → optional AI diagnose. Free, no signup.
Margin vs markup (decide first)
| Mode | Formula (no channel fees) | Cost 100, target 30% |
|---|---|---|
| Markup | price = cost × (1 + markup) | 130.00 |
| Margin | price = cost ÷ (1 − margin) | ≈ 142.86 |
The tool defaults to margin; switch to markup anytime. With fees:
- Margin:
suggested = unit cost ÷ (1 − fee rate − target margin) - Markup:
suggested = unit cost × (1 + target markup) ÷ (1 − fee rate)
Same “30%” wording is not the same price—align vocabulary before you quote.
Single-product workflow
- Open the product cost calculator on Single product.
- Pick margin/markup and a channel (Taobao, Amazon, Shopify, offline, export, or custom).
- Edit commission%, payment%, ads%, fixed logistics and FX to match reality.
- Enter material, labor, packaging, shipping, other; set target % and quantity.
- Read unit cost, suggested price, unit profit, fees and quantity totals on the right.
Channel presets
Presets are starting points only—always override with live backend rates. Fixed logistics adds into unit cost (useful for per-unit shipping packs). Export mode can show a foreign-currency price via FX.
Excel batch pricing
On Batch Excel: download the template → fill SKUs → upload .xlsx → export suggested prices. Status flags loss / below-target / OK. Uploads are processed in memory and not stored.
Optional AI diagnose
With a non-empty batch list, paste your own API key (DeepSeek, OpenAI, Qwen, etc.) to flag loss-making or under-priced SKUs. Keys stay in localStorage. Without AI, single + batch + rule flags still work.
Pair with quotations
| Stage | Tool |
|---|---|
| Cost floor & suggested price | Product cost calculator |
| Client-facing quote | AI quote generator |
| Templates & share links | ComTools Quotely |
FAQ
Margin or markup? Use margin for net-profit share; markup when buyers think “cost plus”. Switch and compare in the tool.
Are fees fixed? No—edit presets to your real rates.
Is data stored? Drafts in localStorage; Excel in memory only; AI uses your key and is not saved on our servers.
Need AI? No. Core costing works without it.