Calculator

Break-even point and margin of safety calculator

Three numbers from the P&L — revenue, variable costs, fixed costs — and the answer to at what sales the company stops losing money, how much slack it has and what happens when the margin drops a few points.

Annual revenuezłAnnual variable costszłmaterials, goods, subcontractors, commissions — they grow with salesAnnual fixed costszłfixed payroll, rent, depreciation, interest — paid regardless of salesScenario: contribution margin drops byp.p.percentage points (e.g. supplier price rises, price pressure)

Break-even point (BEP)

3 789 474PLN of revenue per year

revenue: part up to the threshold and the margin

Contribution margin (CM I): 1 900 000 zł
Contribution margin as % of revenue: 39,6 %
Result before tax: 400 000 zł
Margin of safety: 1 010 526 zł
Margin as % of revenue: 21,1 %
Margin in months of sales: 2,5
Operating leverage: 4,75×

the % change in result for a 1 % change in sales

With margin lower by 3,0 p.p. → contribution margin as % of revenue: 36,6 %
new break-even point: 4 100 228 zł
extra sales needed to keep today’s result: +393 622 zł

An indicative tool: the result is an order of magnitude on your assumptions, not a valuation or tax, legal or investment advice. Data entered into the form is never sent or stored anywhere.

How it is computed

1Splitting costs into variable and fixedVariable costs grow with sales: materials, goods, subcontractors, commissions, transport. Fixed costs are paid regardless: fixed payroll, rent, depreciation, interest, licences. This split is the most important decision in the whole calculation — and the most common source of error.
2Contribution margin (CM I)Revenue minus variable costs — what every złoty of sales leaves to cover fixed costs and profit. In the management P&L I use in analyses this is the first level of result; the second (CM II) further deducts fixed costs directly attributable to a business line.
3Threshold, margin, leverageBEP = fixed costs ÷ CM I %. Margin = revenue − BEP; in months = margin ÷ revenue × 12. Operating leverage = CM I ÷ result: the percentage change in result for a 1 % change in sales — at a leverage of 4, a 10 % drop in sales removes 40 % of profit.
4Margin-drop scenarioA supplier price rise, client price pressure, dearer transport — the contribution margin drops a few points while fixed costs do not. The calculator shows the new threshold and how much more revenue is needed to keep today’s result. Usually more than expected.

Profitability analysis — segment accounts

Frequently asked questions

What margin of safety is enough?

There is no single number, but in practice: below 10 % of revenue (about a month of sales) the company is exposed to every weaker quarter; 20–30 % gives room for investment or a downturn. The direction matters more than the level — a margin shrinking for the third year in a row is a signal whatever its value.

Should depreciation be included in fixed costs?

For the accounting threshold — yes: it is the cost of maintaining assets that must be covered for the result to be positive. For the cash threshold (“from what sales does cash stop shrinking”) depreciation is replaced by loan and lease instalments plus replacement capex. Both thresholds are worth knowing; the gap between them shows how much of its assets the company is consuming.

What if variable costs exceed revenue?

Then there is no threshold — every additional sale deepens the loss and the calculator says so plainly. That is a situation calling for a fix to price or unit cost, not for “selling more”. I have seen it in trading companies that computed margin without transport and returns.

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