Food Cost Calculator
Food cost is one of the fastest ways restaurant profit disappears. This calculator helps you estimate the true cost of a menu item, compare it against your selling price, and find a smarter price based on your target food cost percentage.
Recipe ingredients
Amount purchased and amount used must use the same unit. Any unit works — lb, oz, kg, g, L, ml — as long as you keep it consistent for each ingredient.
How to use this tool
- Add each ingredient with its purchase cost and the amount purchased vs. amount used in the same unit.
- Enter optional waste percentage if trim, spoilage, or prep loss applies.
- Set the number of servings the recipe yields.
- Optionally enter your current menu price and target food cost percentage.
- Review total recipe cost, cost per serving, and suggested price.
Formula explanation
Ingredient used cost = ingredient cost × (amount used ÷ amount purchased). Waste-adjusted cost = used cost × (1 + waste%). Total recipe cost = sum of all ingredient costs. Cost per serving = total recipe cost ÷ servings. Food cost % = cost per serving ÷ menu price × 100. Suggested menu price = cost per serving ÷ target food cost %.
Example calculation
You buy 5 pounds of chicken breast for $24 and use 1.5 pounds in a recipe that makes 4 servings. Ingredient used cost = $24 × (1.5 ÷ 5) = $7.20. If you sell the dish for $18, food cost = $7.20 ÷ $18 = 40%. To hit a 30% target, suggested price = $7.20 ÷ 0.30 = $24.00.
What this means for your restaurant
Your food cost percentage tells you how much of every menu dollar goes to ingredients. Many full-service restaurants target 28–35%, but fast casual, pizza, and steakhouse concepts vary widely. Use this number to spot underpriced items, portion drift, and waste problems before they show up on your P&L.
Common mistakes
- Mixing units — buying in pounds but entering ounces without converting.
- Forgetting prep waste, trim, and spoilage on high-yield-loss items.
- Using case price without breaking down to the unit actually used in recipes.
- Setting menu price from gut feel instead of cost plus target margin.
- Not recalculating after vendor price increases.
Pro tips
- Recalculate food cost whenever a vendor changes pricing or portion sizes shift.
- Track your top 10 sellers monthly — they drive the most profit impact.
- Compare actual vs. theoretical food cost weekly if you have POS recipe data.
- Build a standard recipe sheet so every cook portions the same way.
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