How to calculate marketplace contribution margin
A worked example separating net revenue, product costs, marketplace fees, fulfilment and advertising, with a checklist for missing data.
By Power CM Software · Product workflow guide
Start with net revenue, not the sales total
A marketplace sales total does not tell you what is left to support your business. Compare revenue and costs over the same period, in the same currency, and at a consistent order or SKU level. In Stock & Margin, net revenue is recorded revenue minus discounts and returns. Decide how taxes are represented in your source export and apply that convention consistently before importing.
Keep discounts and returns in separate columns. If your export already subtracts them from revenue, do not subtract them a second time. Reconcile a few sample orders to the source before importing the full file.
Subtract the costs you can trace
Contribution margin = net revenue − cost of goods − marketplace fees − fulfilment − logistics − advertising − other attributable costs. The percentage is contribution margin divided by net revenue, when net revenue is positive. This is not company net profit: overhead, financing and other items outside the recorded cost fields still need their own treatment.
Illustrative example, not customer results: revenue of €1,000, discounts of €50 and returns of €100 produce €850 net revenue. With €300 product cost, €100 fees, €60 fulfilment, €40 logistics, €80 advertising and €20 other costs, contribution is €250, or 29.41% of net revenue.
Keep unknown costs visible
A blank cost is different from a confirmed zero. Stock & Margin flags missing cost components and leaves contribution unresolved rather than silently presenting an inflated margin. When available, same-currency product unit cost can supply order cost of goods multiplied by units.
Check whether fees already include fulfilment or logistics. Allocate shared advertising consistently and record the allocation method with the analysis. The application does not automatically reconcile settlement files or convert currencies. Compare currency groups separately.
Turn the result into a decision
Import product and order CSV records, review missing costs, and group the contribution report by the market, channel or period that matters. Investigate the largest unexplained gaps before treating a low-margin SKU as a pricing problem. A missing cost mapping may be a data problem first.
Assign an owner to a proposed change and record the expected outcome. After the change, compare a suitable period and record what actually happened. Changes in volume, returns and advertising can affect the comparison; a scenario is a planning assumption, not a promised result.