The harvest ledger · USD

Build a harvest budget

Use one harvest cycle. Replace the example with your own numbers.

See the math
Harvest and sales
Enter a whole number.
Count only the dry flower you expect to sell (up to four decimal places).
Use the price you expect to receive after discounts. Pick the unit on your quote; changing it keeps the amount you typed.
Cycle expenses

Enter each cost once. Use 0 where a cost doesn’t apply.

Payroll and paid harvest or trim labor.
Power, cooling, heating and water.
Plants, media, nutrients and packaging.
Testing and this cycle’s share of licensing fees.
Rent, insurance and any equipment allocation.
Optional. Shares actions like reviewing a result with site analytics. This calculator doesn’t send or save your entries or results.

Illustrative example

Your cycle estimate

The worked example is shown. Enable JavaScript to enter your own figures.

Operating profit $3,700.00

After entered expenses, before income taxes and financing.

Projected revenue
$7,200.00
Entered cycle expenses
$3,500.00

72 oz × $100.00/oz = $7,200.00

See itemized expenses
Labor
$1,200.00
Utilities
$800.00
Supplies and crop inputs
$550.00
Compliance and fees
$250.00
Other cycle expenses
$700.00
Saleable dry weight
72 oz 4.5 lb
Operating margin
51.4%
Cost per unit
$48.61/oz $777.78/lb

What covers your costs?

Price at this yield
$48.62/oz
Yield at this price
35 oz 2.19 lb

Break-even assumes costs stay fixed. Thresholds round up in each unit.

Read the ledger

How to calculate profit per harvest

Multiply the dry weight you expect to sell by the price you expect to receive, then subtract the expenses for that harvest. The result is an operating estimate for that cycle.

  1. Saleable weight

    Plants × dry oz per plant. Divide ounces by 16 for pounds. A wet harvest weight is only a starting point; exclude trim, rejects and flower you don’t expect to sell.

  2. Projected revenue

    Saleable ounces × dollars per ounce, or saleable pounds × dollars per pound. For a blended price across grades, divide their total expected sales by their total saleable weight.

  3. Operating result and margin

    Revenue − the five entered expenses. Divide that result by revenue for margin (undefined with no revenue). Divide expenses by saleable weight to get the cost per ounce or pound.

  4. Break-even

    Expenses ÷ saleable weight gives the required price. Expenses ÷ price gives the required weight. If costs change with volume, enter the new costs before judging that case.

Follow the example

24 plants × 3 saleable oz = 72 oz (4.5 lb). At $100/oz ($1,600/lb), revenue is $7,200. Subtract $3,500 of costs for $3,700 in operating profit. At that yield it takes at least $48.62/oz to cover the costs in whole cents. Try $45/oz on the same example and the result becomes a $260 loss. These inputs illustrate the math; they are not typical prices, yields or costs.

The tool keeps full precision for calculations and rounds the display. If every expense is zero, it shows revenue and weight but leaves profit, unit cost and break-even unset.

Grow room startup cost versus cost per harvest

Keep buildout and equipment purchases in an opening budget. For this estimate, include recurring costs and only the depreciation or share of equipment you choose to allocate to this cycle. That allocation is a planning input, not a tax depreciation calculation.

Example. If you spread a $1,200 equipment purchase over 12 harvests, the cost is $100 per harvest. Add that $100 to Other cycle expenses alongside any rent or other costs you enter there. Keep the $1,200 in your separate startup budget.

The indoor grow room design guide can help identify equipment to price. Use the startup budget and cash runway planner for opening costs and monthly cash needs.

What this estimate leaves out

The result does not determine licensing eligibility, income or excise taxes, debt payments, capital investment, cash flow or annual profit. Include applicable operating fees and only the costs you want this cycle to bear. Leave taxes collected on behalf of a government out of revenue. Don’t enter a selling fee again if you already deducted it from the price.

Sales and payments may happen at different times. Crop losses, unsold inventory, pricing changes and downtime can make the year look different from a single harvest. Review the assumptions for your operation and jurisdiction before basing a decision on them.

Sources for the budgeting methods: University of Maryland Extension and University of Missouri Extension. Mass units: NIST Handbook 44.

Plan the next number

Give your harvest budget better inputs

Facility planningGrow Room BuilderSize the room and its major systems before you price the buildout.Plan the room
Grow light electricity costTurn your lighting schedule into a utility estimate. Trim labor costBudget post-harvest hours and payroll. Wet-to-dry weightEstimate dry weight before adjusting for saleable flower.