Calculator
Side hustle profit and break-even calculator
Many side hustles feel busy before anyone has checked whether each sale actually leaves money behind. Type in your own numbers to see what is left from one sale, and how many sales a month it takes to cover your fixed costs. It updates as you type and nothing leaves your device.
$25.00 left from each sale
Worked example (shown when scripts are off): a $40 sale with $15 of direct costs leaves $25. With $100 of fixed costs a month, that takes 4 sales to cover. Ten sales leave $150 before any set-aside, and a 20 percent set-aside would put $30 away.
Before you decide
These numbers are examples and arithmetic, not a forecast or a promise of income. The set-aside percentage is a figure you type, and the page does not know your tax situation. Check the rules where you live.
What goes in each box
Price per sale is what one customer pays. Cost of each sale is everything you spend only because that sale happened: materials, packaging, postage, a platform or payment fee, and the cost of any item you resell. Fixed costs per month are what you pay whether you sell anything or not, such as a software subscription, a booth fee or a phone plan share. Your own time is not counted here, which is why a result that looks fine can still be a low hourly rate. Use the time budget planner to check the hours.
The formulas
- Profit per sale = price minus cost of each sale.
- Break-even sales per month = fixed costs divided by profit per sale, rounded up to a whole sale. If profit per sale is zero or less, no number of sales breaks even.
- Profit for a month = sales times profit per sale, minus fixed costs.
- Set-aside = your percentage of that month's profit, only when the profit is above zero.
Worked example
A $40 item costs $15 to make and ship. Profit per sale is $25. Fixed costs are $100 a month, so $100 divided by $25 is exactly 4 sales to break even. If the fixed costs were $110, the answer would be 4.4, which rounds up to 5 sales. Ten sales leave $250 after direct costs, and subtracting the $100 of fixed costs gives $150. A 20 percent set-aside of $150 is $30, leaving $120.
What to do with the result
If break-even needs more sales than you can realistically reach in a month, the usual levers are the price, the cost per sale and the fixed costs, in that order of effort. A small price change often moves profit per sale more than a large cut in volume costs. If profit per sale is negative, stop and fix that before spending time on marketing. The guides on validating a side hustle before spending money and whether an offer needs fixing cover the next step.
The set-aside box and tax
Published IRS guidance says that income from side work is generally taxable even when the amount is small, and that people with self-employment income may owe self-employment tax and may need to make estimated payments during the year, or in some cases adjust withholding at a regular job. The right percentage depends on your income, country, state and business type, so this page does not suggest one. Enter a figure you have chosen, ideally after reading the tax authority's own pages or asking a qualified tax professional. Rules and rates change, so check the current year.
Limits
The calculator assumes one price and one cost per sale. If you sell several products, run each one separately or use an average you have worked out. It ignores refunds, unsold stock, equipment you bought once, and the time you spend. It is general information, not tax, legal or financial advice.
Where this comes from
Break-even arithmetic (fixed costs divided by the amount each sale contributes) is the standard contribution-margin method from introductory accounting. The note on taxes reflects general guidance on the IRS website for self-employed and gig workers, which we read for the general points only. No tax rate or limit is used in the calculation.