FREE TOOL
Menu Price Calculator
Know your recipe cost and want to hit a target food-cost percentage? Enter both and get the price to charge — the reverse of costing a dish from its menu price. Free, no signup.
Suggested menu price
—
Profit per plate
—
Price at common food-cost targets
| Target % | 25% | 28% | 30% | 32% | 35% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | — | — | — | — | — |
Most full-service segments target 28-35% food cost; quick-service often runs lower at 25-30%, while fine dining and steakhouses can run 30-45% and stay healthy thanks to higher prices and check averages. Use your own segment's typical range, not a single universal number.
Why pricing forward beats costing backward
Most food-cost tools start from a menu price and tell you the resulting percentage. This one starts from your target percentage and tells you the price — useful the moment you're building a new dish instead of auditing an existing one.
This calculator answers one question at a time. CalcMenu's recipe costing software keeps the same numbers current for every recipe on your menu, and recalculates them whenever an ingredient price changes.
Frequently asked questions
- How is this different from the Food Cost Calculator?
- The Food Cost Calculator starts with a menu price and tells you the resulting food-cost percentage. This one runs the other direction: you already know the cost and the percentage you're aiming for, and want the price that hits it.
- What target percentage should I use?
- Match your segment: roughly 25-30% for quick-service, 28-35% for full-service casual, and 30-45% for fine dining or steakhouses, where higher menu prices absorb a higher food-cost share while staying profitable.
- Does this price include labor or overhead?
- No — this is food cost only, the same scope as a standard food-cost percentage. Prime cost (food cost plus labor) is a separate, broader number; our Prime Cost Calculator covers that side.
- Why show prices at several different targets?
- Because the 'right' target is rarely a single number — seeing the price at 25%, 28%, 30%, 32% and 35% side by side makes it easier to see how sensitive the final price is to the target you pick.
- Does this calculator store or send my data anywhere?
- No — all calculations run locally in your browser; nothing is saved or transmitted.
15 minutes to see if CalcMenu changes your day-to-day.
We won't sell you software. We'll look at what's wearing you down today and check together if CalcMenu fits.
Talk to a human — 15 min