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Retail pricing / know the basis

Dispensary Product Pricing Calculator

Build a pre-tax price from your costs and target margin. See customer tax separately, then check the margin at a shelf price you enter.

Browse Dispensary toolsBuild your price
01 / Price assumptions

Set the cost and margin

Enter all money in USD. Include each cost once, and enter your own applicable tax rate.

Two percentages. Two bases.

Modeled margin divides the amount above landed cost and entered fees by the pre-tax price.

Markup on landed cost divides the price increase above landed cost by landed cost alone.

The amount above these inputs is not net profit; omitted operating expenses still matter.

Check a shelf priceKeep the costs. Test the margin at an entered pre-tax price.

What does that price leave?

Enter a pre-tax shelf price, not a tax-inclusive checkout total. The same landed cost, allocated fees and tax rate apply to both columns.

Same cost basisTarget modelEntered price
Pre-tax price——
Above cost basis——
Modeled marginAfter entered fees——
Customer priceEntered tax added——
MarkupOn landed cost alone——

Enter a shelf price to check. The target estimate stays in place.

The tax model is a simple addition to the pre-tax price. This tool does not select jurisdiction-specific tax treatment, infer market demand or include expenses you have not entered.





What it calculates
Use the result as a scenario, not a black box
Work backward from a target gross margin instead of guessing a markup. Enter landed unit cost, target margin, per-unit fees and a customer tax rate to estimate the required pre-tax shelf price and final customer price.
Many pricing mistakes come from confusing markup with margin. This calculator solves for the price required to hit a target gross margin after landed cost and any per-unit fees you choose to include. Customer taxes are then shown separately so you can see both shelf economics and checkout impact.
How the math works
Cost basis = landed cost + allocated unit fees. Required price = cost basis ÷ (1 − target margin). Customer tax = required price × tax rate. Final customer price = required price + customer tax. Markup = (required price − landed cost) ÷ landed cost.
Example
A product with an $18 landed cost and $1.25 of allocated unit fees has a $19.25 cost basis. To achieve a 45% gross margin, the pre-tax retail price is $35.00. At a 20% customer tax rate, checkout price is $42.00.
Build a packaging cost per unit and include that expense once. Track stock with Inventory Turnover and budget retail coverage with Budtender Staffing.
Review Dispensary POS systems, Setting up a dispensary and Cannabis retail banking for the surrounding retail workflow.
For the difference between margin and markup, see OpenStax’s retail pricing explanation. Here, modeled margin includes your allocated fees; the markup output uses landed cost alone.



FAQ
Questions about this calculator
Why is a 50% margin not the same as a 50% markup?
A 50% markup on a $20 cost gives a $30 price, which is only a 33.3% margin. A 50% margin requires a $40 price.
Can I include packaging or testing in unit cost?
Yes. Include them either in landed cost or the per-unit fee field, but not both.
Does this choose the right tax rate?
No. You enter the rate because cannabis tax structures vary by location and can change.


From shelf price to operating plan
Test the bigger picture.
Carry the same cost assumptions into margin, break-even and wholesale models.
Retail economicsDispensary MarginBring the price into sales and total-cost assumptions.Unit economicsBreak-EvenCheck how fixed costs and unit volume affect the model.Licensed wholesaleWholesale MarginKeep wholesale revenue, markup and margin on the same basis.