Landed cost per unit $6.52
$6.43profit per order
Margin 25.75%
Break-even price$15.89
Landed Cost and Profit per Unit Calculator
Spread the purchase price, freight, duty and platform fees over each unit and see what one sale really earns. Duty comes from the official US tariff schedule.
- What does each unit cost once it reaches the US?
- How much does each order make at today's price?
- What is the lowest price that breaks even, and the price for a 20% margin?
Worked example
Cotton T-shirts & tank tops made in China, ex-factory ¥25, 500 units by ocean, freight $400, broker $150, delivery $150, rate 6.6761. Sold for $24.99 on a marketplace with 15% commission, $5 fulfillment, ads at 10% and 5% returns. Landed cost $6.52 per unit, profit $6.43 per order (25.75% of price), break-even price $15.89.
| Purchase price | $3.74 |
|---|---|
| International freight | $0.80 |
| Duty | $1.37 |
| MPF and HMF | $0.01 |
| Customs broker | $0.30 |
| Delivery to warehouse | $0.30 |
| Landed cost per unit | $6.52 |
| Sales revenue | $23.74 |
| Platform commission | −$3.56 |
| Fulfillment | −$5.00 |
| Ads | −$2.50 |
| Return handling | −$0.05 |
| Cost of goods | −$6.20 |
| Profit per order | $6.43 |
| Break-even price | $15.89 |
| Price for a 20% margin | $22.16 |
How it works
- Purchase price per unit (USD) = CNY price ÷ exchange rate.
- Duty = customs value per unit × total duty rate (a few codes add a per-kg duty). The customs value is the purchase price (FOB), without international freight.
- MPF: 0.3464% of the shipment's customs value when it is over $2,500, at least $34.58 and at most $670.86; $2.77 for an informal entry. Ocean freight also pays HMF of 0.125%.
- Landed cost per unit = purchase price + (freight + duty + MPF/HMF + broker + delivery) ÷ quantity. With a DDP quote = DDP price + delivery ÷ quantity.
- Profit per order = price × share not returned × (1 − commission − payment rate) − payment fixed fee × share not returned − fulfillment − price × ad share − return rate × handling per return − landed cost × (share not returned + return rate × cannot be resold).
- The break-even price makes the profit 0; the target price makes the profit equal price × target margin. Both are solved directly from the formula above.
- Margin = profit ÷ price; markup = (price − landed cost) ÷ landed cost.
Have an AI assistant check it
Paste this into ChatGPT, Claude or another assistant (it updates with your numbers) to look for missing costs and room on price.
Questions
What does landed cost include?
The purchase price, international freight, duty, the US customs fees MPF and HMF, customs broker fees, and delivery from the port to your warehouse or Amazon. Platform commission, fulfillment, ads and returns are not part of landed cost; they come off the profit per order.
What is the difference between margin and markup?
Margin = profit ÷ price; markup = (price − cost) ÷ cost. A $10 item sold for $20 has a 100% markup but a 50% gross margin before fees. Factory quotes that talk about doubling the cost mean markup.
How is the break-even price worked out?
Part of every sale is taken as a percentage (commission, payment fees, ads, and refunds on returned orders). What is left has to cover the fixed costs per order: payment fixed fee, fulfillment, return handling and the goods. Break-even price = those fixed costs ÷ the share of the price you keep. If ads and commission are too high, no price makes a profit, and the page says so.
How do I compare a DDP quote?
Pick "Delivered duty paid", enter the DDP unit price and delivery to your warehouse. Then pick "Ex-factory, you import" and enter the ex-factory price, freight and broker fees, and compare the two landed costs. DDP only means the forwarder pays the duty for you; still ask whether the declared value and code are correct.
How are returns counted?
Returned orders are refunded, so revenue, commission and payment fees count only for orders that are kept (most platforms refund most of the commission on a refund; check your platform's rules). Each return also costs the handling fee, and if the returned unit cannot be resold its cost is lost too.
Why is MPF worked out per shipment?
The Merchandise Processing Fee is charged once per customs entry. A shipment over $2,500 needs a formal entry and pays 0.3464%, at least $34.58 and at most $670.86; smaller ones pay $2.77. So the more units in the shipment, the less MPF per unit.
Which exchange rate is used?
The ECB reference rate of 2026-10-21, converted from the euro rates of the dollar and the yuan: 1 USD = 6.6761 CNY. Banks and payment platforms usually give you less, so change it to your own rate.