How do you calculate meal profit?
Meal profit is the selling price of one serving minus everything it costs you to produce that serving — ingredients, packaging and any per-meal costs such as delivery or platform fees.
Profit per meal = selling price − (ingredient cost + packaging + other per-meal costs)
Count every cost that leaves with the meal
Most people who calculate a meal by hand count the protein and forget the rest. Oil, sauce, seasoning, the container, the lid, the label and the cutlery all leave the kitchen with the food, so all of them belong in the cost.
Costs that stay in the building — rent, your own time, electricity — are real, but they are not per-meal costs. Keep them out of this number so you can see the profit before overhead each meal contributes toward covering them.
Use the price you actually paid
Work from your last invoice, not the shelf price you remember. If chicken came in at $9.80/kg and the portion is 180 g, the ingredient cost is 0.18 × 9.80 = $1.76.
If you sell through a delivery platform that takes a commission, put that commission in 'other costs' — it comes out of every order whether you count it or not.
Worked example
A single chicken teriyaki bowl sold at $12.99:
- Chicken breast, 180 g
- $2.15
- Rice, 150 g
- $0.42
- Vegetables, 100 g
- $0.65
- Teriyaki sauce, 40 ml
- $0.38
- Packaging
- $0.55
- Total direct cost per serving
- $4.15
$12.99 − $4.15 = $8.84 profit per serving before overhead, a 68.1% margin. Food cost is 27.7% (ingredients only); direct cost is 31.9% once the box is included.
Frequently asked questions
Does meal profit include labour?
Not in this calculation. This is profit before overhead: selling price minus the direct cost of producing the meal. Labour, rent and utilities are overheads that profit before overhead has to cover across all the meals you sell.
Should I include delivery platform commission?
Yes, if the order comes through that platform. A 30% commission on a $12.99 meal is $3.90 out of your profit, so add it as a per-meal cost to see the real number.
What profit should I make on a meal?
It depends on your model. A meal-prep business selling in batches can work on a thinner per-meal profit than a restaurant carrying front-of-house staff and a dining room. Work out what your fixed monthly costs are, divide by the meals you realistically sell, and make sure your profit before overhead clears that with room to spare.