What is my variable cost?
Enter what one unit costs and how many units you make or sell. Or enter your total cost and fixed costs. The calculator shows the total variable cost, the cost per unit and the total cost.
- Total variable cost
- $1,050.00
The total variable cost is $1,050.00.
- Total cost
- $1,770.00
- Average total cost per unit
- $118.00
Total variable cost: $1,050.00. The total variable cost is $1,050.00.
The results are estimates for information only. They are not financial, tax, or legal advice. Check the numbers with your lender or a qualified professional before you decide. Terms of use
How to calculate
Computes total variable cost from the cost per unit and the number of units, or from total cost minus fixed costs, with the variable cost per unit and total cost.
Example with the default inputs (Start from Cost per unit, Variable cost per unit $70.00, Units 15, Fixed costs $720.00): The total variable cost is $1,050.00.
Method: From the cost per unit: total variable cost = variable cost per unit × units, and total cost = fixed costs + total variable cost. From the total cost: total variable cost = total cost − fixed costs, and variable cost per unit = total variable cost ÷ units. Average total cost per unit = total cost ÷ units.
- Each unit costs the same, so total variable cost rises in direct proportion to the units.
- Fixed costs stay the same over the range of units you enter.
- Arithmetic is exact on the typed decimals; money shows to the cent, halves up.
Worked examples
Each example is checked against the calculator on every build.
- Start from Cost per unit, Variable cost per unit $70.00, Units 15, Fixed costs $720.00 gives Total variable cost $1,050.00, Total cost $1,770.00, Average total cost per unit $118.00.Source: OpenStax, Principles of Managerial Accounting, 2.2 Identify and Apply Basic Cost Behavior Patterns (variable costs vary in direct proportion to activity; total cost = fixed costs + variable costs). https://openstax.org/books/principles-managerial-accounting/pages/2-2-identify-and-apply-basic-cost-behavior-patterns (Pat’s ski trip: total variable cost $1,050, total fixed cost $720)
- Start from Total cost, Total cost $8,435,000.00, Fixed costs $1,560,000.00, Units 625 gives Total variable cost $6,875,000.00, Variable cost per unit $11,000.00, Average total cost per unit $13,496.00.Source: OpenStax, Principles of Managerial Accounting, 2.2 Identify and Apply Basic Cost Behavior Patterns (variable costs vary in direct proportion to activity; total cost = fixed costs + variable costs). https://openstax.org/books/principles-managerial-accounting/pages/2-2-identify-and-apply-basic-cost-behavior-patterns (Carolina Yachts: fixed $1,560,000, variable $6,875,000, $11,000 a boat)
- Start from Total cost, Total cost $400.00, Fixed costs $160.00, Units 60 gives Total variable cost $240.00, Variable cost per unit $4.00, Average total cost per unit $6.67.Source: OpenStax, Principles of Economics 3e, 7.3 Costs in the Short Run (total cost = fixed cost + variable cost; average variable cost = variable cost ÷ quantity; The Clip Joint). https://openstax.org/books/principles-economics-3e/pages/7-3-costs-in-the-short-run (Table 7.9: fixed cost $160, variable cost $240, total cost $400 at 60 haircuts)
- Start from Cost per unit, Variable cost per unit $3.45, Units 1,250, Fixed costs $2,000.10 gives Total variable cost $4,312.50, Total cost $6,312.60, Average total cost per unit $5.05.
- Start from Cost per unit, Variable cost per unit $12.50, Units 400 gives Total variable cost $5,000.00.Source: OpenStax, Principles of Managerial Accounting, 2.2 Identify and Apply Basic Cost Behavior Patterns (variable costs vary in direct proportion to activity; total cost = fixed costs + variable costs). https://openstax.org/books/principles-managerial-accounting/pages/2-2-identify-and-apply-basic-cost-behavior-patterns
How it works
From the cost per unit:
- Total variable cost = variable cost per unit × units
- Total cost = fixed costs + total variable cost (when you enter fixed costs)
From the total cost:
- Total variable cost = total cost − fixed costs
- Variable cost per unit = total variable cost ÷ units (when you enter units above 0)
In both cases, when the total cost and units above 0 are known:
- Average total cost per unit = total cost ÷ units
Rules:
- Every amount and the units are $0 (or 0) or more, at most 1 quadrillion. Units may have decimals, for example hours.
- Starting from the cost per unit, you must enter the units; fixed costs are optional. Starting from the total cost, you must enter the fixed costs; units are optional. A missing box that the method needs gives no answer, with a message.
- Fixed costs larger than the total cost give no answer.
- A cost per unit too large to show as a number gives no answer. So does a result that is not 0 but too small to show as a number.
- The arithmetic is exact on the decimals you type. Money shows to the cent, with halves rounded up (away from 0).
Assumptions
- Every unit costs the same, so total variable cost rises in direct proportion to the units.
- Fixed costs stay the same over the range of units you enter.
Worked examples by hand
Pat's ski trip. Food and lift tickets cost $70 per person per day. Five skiers for three days is 15 person-days. Total variable cost = 70 × 15 = $1,050. With $720 of fixed costs (car, condo and gasoline), total cost = 720 + 1,050 = $1,770, or 1,770 ÷ 15 = $118 per person-day.
Carolina Yachts. Total cost $8,435,000 for 625 boats, of which $1,560,000 is fixed. Total variable cost = 8,435,000 − 1,560,000 = $6,875,000. Per boat: 6,875,000 ÷ 625 = $11,000 of variable cost, and 8,435,000 ÷ 625 = $13,496 of total cost.
The Clip Joint. Three barbers give 60 haircuts a day. Total cost is $400, of which $160 is fixed. Total variable cost = 400 − 160 = $240, or 240 ÷ 60 = $4 per haircut. Average total cost = 400 ÷ 60 = $6.67 per haircut.
A cost per unit with cents. 1,250 units at $3.45 each: total variable cost = 3.45 × 1,250 = $4,312.50. With $2,000.10 of fixed costs, total cost = $6,312.60, or 6,312.60 ÷ 1,250 = $5.05008 per unit, shown as $5.05.
No fixed costs entered. 400 units at $12.50: total variable cost = $5,000. Total cost and the average need the fixed costs, so they are not shown.
Other questions people ask
What is a variable cost?
A variable cost changes in direct proportion to how much a business makes or sells: materials, direct labor paid by the unit, sales commissions and shipping. Make twice as many units and the total variable cost doubles, while the cost per unit stays the same.
How do I calculate total variable cost?
Multiply the variable cost per unit by the number of units. On Pat's ski trip, food and lift tickets cost $70 per person per day; 5 skiers for 3 days is 15 person-days, so the total variable cost is 70 × 15 = $1,050.
How do I find variable cost from total cost?
Total cost is fixed costs plus variable costs, so subtract the fixed costs from the total cost. Carolina Yachts had $1,560,000 of fixed costs and $8,435,000 of total cost, so its variable costs were $6,875,000.
How do I calculate variable cost per unit?
Divide the total variable cost by the number of units. Carolina Yachts built 625 boats with $6,875,000 of variable costs, so each boat had $11,000 of variable cost. Economists call this the average variable cost.
What is the difference between fixed and variable costs?
Fixed costs, such as rent, insurance and salaries, stay the same in total when volume changes, over a normal range of activity. Variable costs rise and fall with volume. Per unit, it is the other way round: the fixed cost per unit falls as volume grows, while the variable cost per unit stays the same.
Why does variable cost matter?
Price minus variable cost per unit is what each sale adds toward fixed costs and profit (the contribution margin). It sets the break-even point and the operating leverage of a business.