How to price an item to cover its fees
To clear a specific amount after fees, don’t add the fee percentage on top — divide by what’s left after the fee. If a platform takes 13.6%, you keep 86.4% of the sale, so the list price that nets you a target is the target divided by 0.864 (plus any fixed fees). The reverse calculator below does this for any platform, including fixed per-order fees and tiered commissions, and checks the answer to the cent.
The formula
list price = (target net + fixed fees) ÷ (1 − total percentage rate) − buyer-paid shipping
This simplified formula applies when the percentage fees share the same item-plus-shipping base and buyer-paid shipping reaches the seller. “Total percentage rate” is those rates added together. “Fixed fees” is every flat-amount charge (per-order, processing fixed, listing). If you charge shipping, subtract it to get the item’s list price. The calculator also handles separate fee bases, buyer tax where a fee applies to it, platform-handled shipping, thresholds, and minimum or maximum fees by checking the rounded fee model.
Worked example: net $50.00 on eBay
eBay’s most-categories rate is 13.6% final value on the portion of the sale up to $7,500 (2.35% above it) plus a $0.40 per-order fee on orders over $10. With $5.00 shipping charged to the buyer, to take home $50.00:
- Solve for the list price($50.00 + $0.40) ÷ (1 − 0.136) − $5.00
- Item price + buyer-paid shipping$58.33
- List at$53.33
- Fees on that sale (14.3%)−$8.33
- You keep$50.00
Listing at $53.33 plus $5.00 buyer-paid shipping leaves you $50.00 after eBay’s fees — your $50.00 target, to the cent.
Reverse fee calculator
Set the amount you want to take home and the calculator finds the list price. This one is set to eBay; open any platform’s calculator and switch to “price to net an amount” to do the same elsewhere.
Rates checked 9 October 2026
Money amounts are rounded to cents before calculation.
To take home $50.00, list at
$53.33
Net payout after fees: $50.00
- Total fees
- $8.33
- Effective rate
- 14.3%
- Profit
- $31.00
Profit margin 58.1% of item price
Unaffiliated with eBay. Published fee rules checked 9 October 2026 and may not reflect your account’s negotiated or promotional rates. Source: eBay Selling fees help page.
Step by step
- 1Decide the cash you want to walk away with after your item cost and shipping — that is your target profit.
- 2Add your item cost and shipping paid separately back on to get the target net payout. Enter shipping deducted by the platform in its field without adding it again to the target.
- 3Enter that target in the reverse calculator for your platform, with your usual shipping charged and ad rate.
- 4Read off the list price, then sanity-check the profit line covers what you need.
- 5Round the list price to a sensible figure (e.g. $X.99) and re-check the net, since rounding down eats a little margin.
Frequently asked questions
- Why can't I just add the fee percentage to my target?
- Because the fee is charged on the final sale price, which already includes the fee itself. Adding 13% to a $50 target gives $56.50, but 13% of $56.50 is more than $6.50, so you fall short. You have to divide by (1 − rate), not multiply by (1 + rate).
- Do fixed fees change the formula?
- Yes. Fixed per-order and processing fees are added on top of the percentage, so you add them back before dividing. The general shape is: list price = (target + fixed fees) ÷ (1 − total percentage rate), adjusted for any shipping you charge.
- What if I also need to cover item cost and shipping?
- Add your item cost and any shipping paid separately to your target profit to get the target net payout. If the platform deducts a label or shipping subsidy from payout, enter that in the calculator and do not add it again: the modeled payout already includes that deduction. Check the profit line to confirm the result covers your costs.
- Does this work for every platform?
- The reverse solver uses the selected platform's modeled fee schedule, including tiered commissions like Poshmark's and category rates like eBay's, then checks the answer against the rounded calculation. Open your platform's calculator and use the 'price to net an amount' mode. An unreachable target is reported explicitly.