Café Cup Cost Calculator: Cost per Cup, Margin and Break-Even

25 October 2026

How do you work out the profit on a cup? Take the selling price, remove VAT, then subtract the cost of everything in the cup: coffee or drink mix, milk, sweetener and the cup itself. What is left is your gross profit per cup. Enter your own prices and costs below to see cost per cup, margin, monthly profit and how many cups a day you need to cover your fixed costs.

Café Cup Cost and Profit Calculator

Price and tax

CurrencyVAT %enter your local rateSelling price per cupwhat the customer pays, incl. VAT

Cost per cup

Drink mix or coffeeper cupMilkper cupCup, lid and sleeveper cupSweetener, topping, otherper cup

Sales

Cups sold per dayOpen days per monthFixed costs per monthrent, staff, utilities (optional)

Gross profit per cup

cost per cup

price without VAT

gross profit per month

profit after fixed costs

cups per day to break even

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Example numbers are placeholders, not Lucarise prices. Enter your own costs. Gross profit here means price without VAT minus ingredient and packaging costs; it does not include staff, rent or other running costs unless you add them as fixed costs.

How the café cost calculator works

Price without VAT = selling price ÷ (1 + VAT rate). With 5% VAT, a 1.000 OMR drink is 0.952 OMR before tax.
Cost per cup = drink mix or coffee + milk + cup, lid and sleeve + sweetener, topping and anything else.
Gross profit per cup = price without VAT − cost per cup. Gross margin = gross profit ÷ price without VAT.
Monthly gross profit = gross profit per cup × cups per day × open days.
Break-even = fixed monthly costs ÷ open days ÷ gross profit per cup.

Checking café drink costs and margin on a phone with a notebook, calculator and latte

Example: three drinks at the same price

Drink	Price incl. 5% VAT	Price without VAT	Cost per cup (example)	Gross profit	Gross margin
Instant cappuccino from a sachet	1.000	0.952	0.300	0.652	68%
Karak from a 1 kg mix	1.000	0.952	0.180	0.772	81%
Espresso-based latte	1.000	0.952	0.420	0.532	56%

Illustrative costs in OMR to show the method, not real or Lucarise prices.

Ways to protect your margin

Fix your portions: a set amount of powder or coffee per cup stops costs creeping up. Single-serve sachets and measured scoops both help.
Count every item: cups, lids, sleeves, stirrers and napkins add up, especially for takeaway.
Price with VAT in mind: the price on your menu includes tax, so your real income per cup is lower.
Review costs regularly: update the calculator when your supplier prices change.
Reduce waste: prepare milk-based drinks to order and track what is thrown away.

Lucarise makes cappuccino, karak, matcha latte and coffee in single-serve sachets, hotel boxes and 1 kg packs for cafés and hotels. See our hotels and cafés page, plan supplies with the office and hotel coffee calculator, or browse all our free calculators.

Café cup cost: frequently asked questions

How do I calculate the cost of a cup of coffee?

Add up everything that goes into one cup: the coffee or drink mix, milk, sweetener or topping, and the cup, lid and sleeve. For example, 0.200 + 0.080 + 0.020 + 0.050 = 0.350 per cup.

How do I calculate gross margin for a café drink?

First remove VAT from the selling price: price ÷ (1 + VAT rate). Then subtract the cost per cup to get gross profit, and divide gross profit by the price without VAT. A 1.000 OMR drink with 5% VAT is 0.952 without VAT; with 0.350 of costs, gross profit is 0.602 and the margin is about 63%.

What is the VAT rate in Oman?

Oman's standard VAT rate is 5%. Other countries use different rates, so enter the rate that applies where you sell.

How many cups a day do I need to break even?

Enter your fixed monthly costs, such as rent, staff and utilities. The calculator divides them by the open days and by the gross profit per cup to show how many cups you need to sell each day to cover them.

Why use sachets or pre-portioned mixes in a café?

Pre-portioned sachets and fixed-dose powders make every cup use the same amount, which keeps your cost per cup predictable and makes stock easy to count.

Sources

CMS. The introduction of VAT in the Sultanate of Oman: a brief legal guide. cms.law