Candle pricing calculator

Enter what you paid for each supply and how much one candle uses. You get the cost per candle and the price for your target margin after Etsy fees. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

Item	Pack price ($)	Pack size	Unit	Used per candle	Cost

Labor minutes per candle Your hourly rate ($) Packaging + overhead per candle ($) Target margin % Selling fees % (Etsy 6.5% + 3%) Fixed fees per sale ($)

Use the same unit for pack size and amount used on each row (oz with oz, pieces with pieces). Labor per candle is your batch time divided by candles poured.

How it works

Each supply costs pack price × amount used ÷ pack size. Cost per candle = supplies + labor + packaging and overhead. Price = (cost + fixed fees) ÷ (1 − margin − % fees).

Worked example (the values above): 7 oz of soy wax from a $54.00, 160 oz case is $54.00 × 7 ÷ 160 = $2.36. Fragrance oil at $30.00 per 16 oz, 0.8 oz per candle, is $1.50. Add a $0.09 wick, a $1.50 jar and a $0.125 label and the supplies come to $5.58 ($5.5775). Ten minutes at $18/hour adds $3.00 and packaging $0.50, so one candle costs $9.08. For a 50% margin after 9.5% + $0.45 fees: ($9.0775 + $0.45) ÷ (1 − 0.50 − 0.095) = $9.5275 ÷ 0.405 = $23.52. Etsy takes $23.52 × 9.5% + $0.45 = $2.68 and your profit is $23.52 − $9.08 − $2.68 = $11.76, 50.0% of the price.

Pouring more candles per batch lowers labor per candle fastest. See also the soap pricing calculator and all calculators.