Perpiece
Perpiece resources

Labor & overhead
per item.

Put a cost on your time and the overhead each sale needs to cover.

Free. No account needed. Your amounts stay in this browser until you choose to save a cost sheet.

Your time
Monthly overhead

Include only overhead you have not counted in materials, labor, packaging or order fees.

Fictional example · change any value

Cost per item

Labor
$8.00
Overhead allowance
$2.00
Labor + overhead
$10.00

All amounts in USD. Each cost is rounded to the nearest cent.

This is part of your unit cost. Materials, packaging, fees and profit still need their own allowance.

Open the order calculator

How the allowance works

Labor: minutes per item ÷ 60 × hourly pay. The fictional example uses 24 minutes at $20/hour: $8 per item. For batch work, divide the total working minutes by the number of usable items first.

Overhead: monthly overhead ÷ expected monthly items sold. At $120 and 60 sales, that is $2 per item. At 30 sales, it becomes $4. This is a planning allowance, not a forecast of sales. Check it against actual sales and costs.

An equal allowance suits reasonably similar products. If some items use much more time or space, allocate that overhead by an appropriate driver, such as production hours, instead. Keep costs in one currency; this tool does not convert exchange rates.

The order calculator receives your labor minutes, hourly pay and overhead under Other cost per unit. It starts a blank cost sheet so fictional materials or fees do not carry over. Add your product, materials, packaging, selling price and order fees there.

See how unit costs affect a wholesale order →

Saved cost sheets and order comparisons have a 14-day trial with no card, then USD 19/month. The calculators remain free.