Craft fair booth break-even calculator
Put in what one fair costs you and what one sale earns, and the calculator gives the number of units that pays for the booth, then how many more reach a profit you pick. Booth, travel, lodging and extras count as fixed costs. Price, materials (COGS) and the card or market fee decide what each sale contributes. Everything is worked out in your browser and nothing you type is sent anywhere.
Sample defaults: booth $250 plus travel $40 is $290 fixed, price $28, cost $10, card 2.9%. Contribution after fees is $17.19, break-even is 17 units, 29 units for $200 profit, and about $398 left at 40 units.
- Runs in your browser
One fair: fixed costs and unit maths
Every field is yours. Card fee % is whatever your card reader or the market takes; the 2.9% starter is only a placeholder for your own rate.
What the organiser charges for the space.
Fuel, train, parking — your estimate.
Hotel or overnight if the fair is away.
Table hire, bags, extras that do not scale with units.
Share of selling price taken by card or market.
What the buyer pays for one item.
Materials (and labour if you include it) per unit.
Your own estimate for the day.
Optional. Units needed to cover fixed costs and this profit.
fixed costs — contribution after fees / unit —
- Break-even units
- —
- Ceil of fixed ÷ contribution after fees
- Units for target profit
- —
- Fixed + target profit ÷ contribution
- Profit after fixed
- —
- At your expected units
Enter booth fee, price and COGS to see break-even.
Every figure here is one you typed. The calculator has no data on what fairs sell, so the verdict is only as good as your expected units.
Worked example (sample defaults above)
Booth $250 + travel $40 · price $28 · COGS $10 · card 2.9% · expect 40 · target profit $200
| Step | Result |
|---|---|
| Fixed costs | $290 |
| Card fee / unit | $0.81 |
| Contribution after fees | $17.19 |
| Break-even units | 17 |
| Units for $200 profit | 29 |
| At 40 expected units | About $398 left after fixed costs |
The card fee is 2.9% of $28, or $0.81. $290 ÷ $17.19 is 16.9, which rounds up to 17, because you can’t sell part of a mug.
How the math works
- Add booth, travel, lodging and other fixed costs.
- Contribution after fees = price − COGS − (price × card fee %).
- Break-even units = fixed costs ÷ contribution after fees, rounded up.
- Compare that with your expected units. The verdict is about those inputs and says nothing about the fair itself.
Questions
Is this a guarantee I will sell that many units?
No. It is arithmetic on the booth fee, travel, lodging, card fee %, price, COGS and expected units you type. Sales are still up to the fair day.
What is contribution after fees?
Price minus your COGS minus the card (or market) fee share of the price. That is what each unit puts toward the booth before you have covered fixed costs.
Should I include my time as COGS?
Only if you want labour in the unit cost. Many makers put materials in COGS and treat their time as something the contribution should cover after break-even. Either way works if you do it the same way at every fair, so one show can be compared with the next.
What about a multi-show season?
This page is one fair. The craft fair multi-show workbook ($15) forecasts several shows and compares what you planned with what sold. Checkout isn't open yet; the box at the foot of this page gets you one email when it is.
Are there other free booth calculators?
Yes, several free tools do single-fair break-even, and for the same inputs they should agree with this one. This page shows each step of the working, and there's a separate paid workbook if you plan a whole season of shows.
Is this tax advice?
No. Order and booth arithmetic only.
Updated