Calculators
Restaurant Prime Cost Calculator
Calculate restaurant prime cost (cost of goods sold plus total labour) and prime cost as a percentage of sales.
- Runs in your browser
- Nothing uploaded
The tool
Enter your numbers below. Results update as you type, and nothing leaves your browser.
Everything you enter stays on your own machine. Nothing is sent to us or to anyone else, which you can confirm in your browser network tab.
What people use it for
- Weekly restaurant performance tracking
- Budgeting
- Comparing locations
- Investor reporting
About this tool
What the Restaurant Prime Cost Calculator does
Prime cost combines cost of goods sold (food and beverage) with total labour cost, including payroll taxes and benefits. It is the largest controllable cost in a restaurant, and many operators aim to keep it around 60% of sales or below.
Formula
- Prime cost = food and beverage cost of goods sold + total labour
- Prime cost % = prime cost ÷ sales
Worked example
Using the starting values in the calculator above:
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Sales for the period | $85,000 |
| Food cost of goods sold | $25,500 |
| Beverage cost of goods sold | $5,200 |
| Wages and salaries | $22,000 |
| Payroll taxes and benefits | $3,800 |
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Prime cost percentage | 66.5% |
| Prime cost | $56,500 |
| Cost of goods sold | 36.1% |
| Labour cost | 30.4% |
| Left for rent, overheads and profit | $28,500 |
How to read the result
Calculate prime cost weekly; waiting for monthly accounts lets problems run for weeks.
Use cost of goods sold from opening inventory plus purchases minus closing inventory, not just purchases.
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Questions
Questions about this tool
The things clients actually want to know — costs, timelines, ownership and what happens after launch.
Cost of goods sold plus total labour costs.
Many operators target 55% to 65%, with lower being better.
Yes, prime cost includes all labour plus taxes and benefits.
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