Enter your material costs, packaging and selling price, and pick where you sell. The calculator shows your cost per unit, fees, profit and margin, plus the price you need for your target margin. Your figures are saved in this browser so they are there next time.
How to price wax melts
Start with cost-plus pricing: add up everything that goes into one unit, then add your profit on top. That means the wax and fragrance oil in it, its share of the dye, the clamshell or pot, the label and anything else that leaves with the order. Most new makers count the wax and oil and forget the rest, and packaging alone can cost more than the wax inside it.
Margin and markup are not the same. Margin is profit as a share of the selling price; markup is profit as a share of cost. A melt that costs £2 and sells for £4 has a 50% margin but a 100% markup. Aim for a margin of at least 50% on retail sales, as it leaves room for discounts, wasted batches and your own time, none of which this calculator counts.
Fees come off the price before you see any profit. On Etsy, transaction, payment and listing fees take around 15% of a £4.50 melt, and that rises as the price falls because the fixed 20p charges weigh more. A craft fair has no sales fees, but a £30 stall fee spread over 40 sales is still 75p a unit. Always compare channels on profit per unit, not on price.
Wholesale buyers usually expect about 50% off your retail price so they can double it in their shop. Set your retail price first, then switch the channel to Wholesale and check you still make a profit. If you don't, the answer is to raise your retail price, not to offer a smaller discount.
Worked example
These are the calculator's default figures: a 500 g batch of soy wax at 8% fragrance load, poured into six clamshells and sold on Etsy for £4.50 each.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Wax: £20 for 5 kg, 500 g used | £2.00 per batch |
| Fragrance: £6 for 100 ml, 40 g used at 8% | £2.53 per batch |
| Dye | £0.30 per batch |
| Materials per clamshell (£4.83 ÷ 6) | £0.80 |
| Packaging + label + other (35p + 10p + 15p) | £0.60 |
| Total cost per unit | £1.40 |
| Etsy fees (10.5% of £4.50 + 20p + 20p) | £0.87 |
| Profit per unit | £2.22 (49.4% margin) |
| Break-even price | £2.02 |
| Price for a 50% margin | £4.57 |
| Profit per batch (× 6) | £13.34 |
| Profit per month (10 batches) | £133.39 |
The same melt sold at a craft fair for £4.00, with a £30 stall fee and 40 sales, makes £1.85 a unit (46.1% margin), so a lower price there can still earn close to the Etsy figure.
Frequently asked questions
- How much should I charge for wax melts in the UK?
Work out your full cost per unit first, including packaging, labels and selling fees, then price for a margin of at least 50% on retail sales. For a typical soy clamshell costing around £1.40 to make, that puts the price somewhere around £4 to £5 on Etsy.
- What is the difference between margin and markup?
Margin is profit as a percentage of the selling price. Markup is profit as a percentage of cost. An item costing £2 and selling for £4 has a 50% margin but a 100% markup. This calculator uses margin.
- Do I need to include Etsy fees in my price?
Yes. Transaction, payment processing and listing fees together can take 15 to 20% of a low-priced item. Etsy also adds VAT to its seller fees for UK sellers, which you can only reclaim if you are VAT registered.
- How should I price wax melts for wholesale?
Shops usually expect around 50% off your retail price so they can double it. Set your retail price first, then use the Wholesale channel to check you still make a profit at the discounted price. If you do not, your retail price is too low.