Book a free 15-minute call
NewFractional CFO for growing businesses in BC and Alberta, offered by fit.Fractional CFO, offered by fitBook a free 15-minute callBook
Free tool · Restaurants

Free restaurant profit check

Type in one month's sales and costs to see your food cost, labour, prime cost and rent as a share of sales, and what's left as profit before tax. Prime cost is food and drink cost plus total labour, divided by net sales. It all works in your browser.

Free, no sign-upNothing you type is stored or sentResults as you type

Profit check calculator

One month of your restaurant

Sample figures are filled in. Replace them with your own month.

After discounts and comps, before GST and PST, without tips.

Cost of goods sold (opening inventory + purchases − closing inventory), or the month's purchases if you don't count. Food, drink and alcohol, before GST you claim back.

Gross wages and salaries, vacation pay, employer CPP and EI, WorkSafeBC or WCB premiums and benefits. Leave out tips paid to staff.

Rent, common-area charges, property tax and building insurance you pay.

Utilities, repairs, card and delivery fees, supplies, marketing, software, accounting, loan interest and anything else.

Everything is worked out in your browser. Nothing you type is stored or sent.

Profit before tax

$2,747

5.7% of sales. Prime cost is 70.0% of sales.

Food and beverage cost34.0%$16,388
Labour36.0%$17,352
Prime cost70.0%$33,740
Rent and occupancy10.0%$4,820
Other operating costs14.3%$6,893
Profit before tax5.7%$2,747

What this tells you

  • Prime cost is 70.0% of sales. Many full-service restaurants aim for prime cost around 60–65% of sales; your own target depends on your rent, menu and service style.
  • Labour is the bigger part of prime cost this month: 36.0% of sales, against 34.0% for food and beverage.
  • Each point of prime cost is about $482 a month at these sales.

Want us to check your real numbers?

Book a free 15-minute call

This is an automated estimate, not a reviewed report. It is general information, not financial or tax advice. Results are as good as the figures you enter, and one month can be skewed by timing, such as a big delivery just before month-end.

How it's worked out

The sums behind your result

Every line is shown as a share of net sales, so a busy month and a quiet month can be compared on the same scale.

Food cost %Food and beverage cost ÷ net sales × 100
Labour %Wages including payroll costs ÷ net sales × 100
Prime cost %(Food and beverage cost + labour) ÷ net sales × 100
Occupancy %Rent and occupancy ÷ net sales × 100
Profit before taxNet sales − all four costs, and as a share of net sales for the margin

Sales: leave the taxes and tips out

GST, and BC PST on liquor, belongs to the government. Tips belong to staff. Left in, they make every percentage look lower than it is.

Food cost: count if you can

Purchases tell you what you bought. A count at the start and end of the month tells you what you used. How to work out food cost.

Labour: include the employer costs

Vacation pay, employer CPP and EI, workers' compensation premiums and benefits are part of what staff cost you. Tips and payroll.

Next steps

What to look at next

One month is a snapshot. The trend over several months, and which line moved, tells you more.

Want us to check your real numbers?

On a free 15-minute call we'll go through your month with you and explain what we'd look at first.

Book a free 15-minute call
Questions

Restaurant profit check, answered

How do I work out prime cost?

Add your cost of goods sold (food, drink and alcohol) to your total labour, including employer payroll costs, then divide by net sales and multiply by 100. On $48,200 of sales with $16,388 of cost of goods sold and $17,352 of labour, prime cost is $33,740, or 70.0% of sales.

Should I enter purchases or cost of goods sold?

Cost of goods sold if you can: opening inventory plus purchases minus closing inventory. If you don't count inventory, enter the month's purchases, but a big delivery just before month-end, or a cupboard that ran down, can make food cost look higher or lower than what you really used.

What should I include in wages?

Gross wages and salaries for the kitchen, front of house and managers, vacation pay, the employer share of CPP and EI, WorkSafeBC or WCB Alberta premiums, and any benefits you pay. Leave out tips paid to staff, and leave them out of sales too.

What is a good prime cost for a restaurant?

Many full-service restaurants aim for prime cost around 60–65% of sales. Your own target depends on your rent, menu and service style, and is best worked out backwards from the profit you want.

Is what I type stored anywhere?

No. The profit check runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is stored or sent to us or anyone else, and it is gone when you close the page.

My prime cost is high. What should I look at first?

Look at whichever of food or labour moved most since last month. For food, check your inventory counts, waste, comps and recipe costs. For labour, compare scheduled hours with sales by day and shift. Then book a free 15-minute call and we'll look at your real numbers with you.

Sources, checked 27 Oct 2026. The food cost, prime cost and profit formulas on this page are standard management-accounting methods, not government rules, and the 60–65% prime cost range is a common industry rule of thumb, not an official figure. Official sources are listed only for the tax and payroll facts. Rules have exceptions and can change. This page is general information, not legal or tax advice for your situation.

  • Excise Tax Act, s. 169 (laws-lois.justice.gc.ca): input tax credits for registrants on GST/HST paid on business purchases.
  • Government of BC, Provincial sales tax (last updated 21 Sep 2026), gov.bc.ca: 7% general rate; the planned PST on accounting and other professional services is paused. Alberta has no PST.
  • Government of BC, Food and beverage service providers and retail liquor sellers, gov.bc.ca: 10% PST on liquor.
  • CRA, Employers' Guide, Payroll Deductions and Remittances (T4001), canada.ca: deduct income tax, CPP and EI, add the employer share of CPP and EI, remit to CRA, and issue T4 slips.
  • WorkSafeBC, Who does and doesn't need coverage?, worksafebc.com: employers that hire workers or unregistered subcontractors need coverage unless exempt.
  • WCB-Alberta, Worker coverage, wcb.ab.ca: employers in mandatory industries open an account within 15 days of hiring a first worker; contract workers count unless they keep their own WCB account.
Free 15-minute call

Talk it through with us on a short call

Book a free 15-minute call by video or phone. Bring last month's sales and costs, and we'll talk through what they show and how we'd keep them in view every month.

Which office?

Book a free 15-minute call

15-minute calls every weekday at 10 am and 2 pm Pacific (11 am and 3 pm Mountain), except holidays.

Free 15-minute callVideo or phoneIn person in Surrey, Edmonton and Courtenay

Call (236) 300-3322Email contact@finvo.caMon–Fri, 9 am – 5 pm PT/MT5.0 on Google · 92 reviews