Calculate gross contribution margin per dish, model price and cost scenarios, and see total monthly margin across your full menu mix.
Dish details
Results
Base dish
Price adjustment
Cost adjustment
Volume change
| Scenario | Selling price | Food cost | CM per dish | CM % | Monthly covers | Monthly CM | vs Base |
|---|
| Item | Price ($) | Food cost ($) | Monthly covers | CM per dish | CM % | Monthly CM | Mix % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | — | — | — | 100% |
For context on how contribution margin fits into a broader menu pricing strategy: How to Price a Restaurant Menu Without Leaving Margin on the Table.
The Menu Profit System extends this calculator into a consultant-grade workbook: 50+ recipes linked to a menu engineering matrix, week-by-week margin dashboard, repricing scenario planner, and category-level contribution analysis. Built for operators who need more than a snapshot.
Enquire about the Menu Profit System →Contribution margin analysis is the starting point for better pricing. A strategy call applies this thinking to your full menu.
Book a Strategy Call →🔒 This calculator runs entirely in your browser — the figures you enter are not sent to or stored on our servers.
Contribution margin is the dollar amount left after variable cost is subtracted from the selling price — it tells you how much a dish actually contributes to covering fixed costs and profit. Food cost percentage is cost expressed as a share of price. They're two different lenses on the same underlying numbers, and both matter.
No. Different dishes play different roles — some anchor value perception at a lower margin, others carry the bulk of the profit at a higher one. The right benchmark is the menu's overall contribution, not a flat target applied to every line.
Contribution margin, alongside sales volume, is the core input used to classify menu items into categories like stars, plowhorses, puzzles and dogs — see our guide on how menu engineering actually drives profit for the full framework.