Menu Price Calculator

A menu price calculator turns a plate cost and a target food cost percentage into a selling price. The formula is plate cost ÷ target food cost %: a $4.20 plate at a 30% target should sell for $14.00. Enter your own numbers and choose .99 or 50¢ rounding for a clean menu price.

Updated 16 September 2026

Menu price formula

The core formula is simple: menu price = plate cost ÷ target food cost % (as a decimal). If a dish costs you $4.20 in ingredients and you want a 30% food cost, divide $4.20 by 0.30 to get $14.00.

The lower your target percentage, the higher the price - because a smaller food cost means a bigger share of the price is gross profit. At a 25% target that same $4.20 plate would be $16.80; at 35% it would be $12.00.

That's the whole engine behind menu pricing. Everything else - rounding, concept, competition - is about adjusting the number the formula gives you. The calculator does the division instantly and then applies your chosen rounding, so you can test a few target percentages and see the price move before you commit.

Choosing a target food cost % by concept

Your target depends on your format and cost structure. As rough rules of thumb - not fixed rules - many operators aim in these ranges:

Fine dining: often 28-35%, with high labour and service costs to cover.
Casual / full-service: commonly around 28-32%.
Quick service: sometimes 25-30% on volume.
Bars / high-margin drinks: food may run higher because drinks subsidise it.

Pick a target that leaves room for labour, rent and profit after food. Then price each dish to that target, but don't treat every item identically - some dishes can carry a lower percentage (higher margin) while a signature draw runs higher.

Rounding and price psychology

The formula rarely lands on a tidy number. A $4.50 plate at 28% is $16.07 - awkward on a menu. Rounding fixes that, and the direction you round matters.

.99 rounding nudges $16.07 up to $16.99, a classic "charm price" that reads as better value. 50¢ rounding to the next half-dollar turns a $15.63 result ($5 plate at 32%) into $16.00 - cleaner for counter service and faster for cash. Rounding up also protects your margin, since it lowers the effective food cost slightly.

The calculator offers both rounding styles so you can see the finished price. Whichever you choose, be consistent across the menu - mixing $12.99 with $13.00 and $13.50 looks unconsidered.

Other pricing methods (markup, competitor, value)

Food-cost pricing is the backbone, but it's worth sense-checking against other methods:

Markup: multiply plate cost by a fixed factor (e.g. ×3 or ×4). It's really the food-cost method in disguise - a ×3.33 markup is a 30% food cost.
Competitor pricing: what similar restaurants nearby charge for a comparable dish. Useful as a ceiling and a reality check.
Value / perceived-worth pricing: what guests will happily pay for the experience, which can be above the formula for signature or hard-to-copy dishes.

Use the calculator for the food-cost number, then adjust toward the market and the perceived value. Price the menu as a whole, not each dish in isolation.

Frequently asked questions

How do you calculate menu prices?

Divide the dish's plate cost by your target food cost percentage (as a decimal). A $4.20 plate at a 30% target is $4.20 ÷ 0.30 = $14.00. Then round to a clean price. The calculator does the division and rounding for you, so you can test different targets quickly.

What is the 30/30/10 rule for restaurant expenses?

It's a rough budgeting guide: about 30% of revenue to food (cost of goods), about 30% to labour, and around 10% to occupancy (rent and utilities), leaving the rest for other costs and profit. Treat it as a starting benchmark - real splits vary a lot by concept and location.

How to calculate the selling price of a dish?

Work out the dish's total ingredient (plate) cost, then divide by your target food cost percentage. For a $5 plate at a 32% target, $5 ÷ 0.32 = $15.63, which you'd typically round to $15.99 or $16.00. Add a target and plate cost to the calculator to see it.

What are the 7 menu pricing methods?

Common approaches include food-cost (percentage) pricing, markup/multiplier pricing, competitor-based pricing, value or perceived-worth pricing, psychological (.99) pricing, bundle/combo pricing, and demand-based pricing. Most menus blend several - the food-cost method sets the floor, and the others adjust it up or down.

Results are estimates based on the numbers you enter.