Does a 20% price discount reduce profit by only 20%?
When unit cost stays unchanged, a price reduction directly compresses the gap between price and cost. Profit can fall much faster than the selling price.
Profit margin and markup calculator →Separate profit amount from margin
A lower selling price does not automatically reduce the cost of acquiring or making the item. Keep the cost definition consistent when comparing before and after a promotion. Inspect both profit per item and profit as a share of sales, rather than relying on revenue alone. The calculator does not infer additional operating costs from a larger sales volume.
Trace one discount through the numbers
At cost of 60 and an original selling price of 100, profit is 40 and margin is 40%. Reducing price by 20% gives a selling price of 80, profit of 20 and margin of 25%. Price has fallen by 20%, but profit per item has fallen by 50%. If every other assumption stays unchanged, two discounted sales are needed to produce the original single sale’s profit of 40.
Do not treat required volume as a sales forecast
Higher volume may bring extra shipping, support or platform costs, so even two sales may not achieve the simplified total. Recheck the promotion with actual variable expenses and a consistent tax basis. The arithmetic identifies a break-even comparison; it does not predict that demand will double. Use the discount calculator for the price change and the margin calculator to inspect what remains after the defined costs.
Try the calculators
- Profit margin and markup calculator
Calculate profit, margin, markup or a target selling price.
- Discount calculator
Find the sale price and how much you save.
- Sales tax / VAT / GST
Add tax or extract it from an inclusive price.