To price a small print run, calculate what remains from each sale after production and selling costs, then check whether that amount can recover the project’s fixed costs. Also calculate the cash you must spend before the first sale. A profitable-looking unit price can still leave you with unaffordable unsold stock.
This worksheet is for creators comparing ways to sell their own books. It separates direct sales from retailer sales and gives you formulas you can reproduce in a spreadsheet. All worked figures are invented for teaching. They are not printer quotes, payment-provider rates or YourBookBound bulk prices.
Gather these numbers before setting a price
Use a quote for the exact page count, format, paper, binding and quantity you intend to order. Record the currency, what delivery is included and when the quote expires. Comparing an uncoated paperback with a large color hardcover will not tell you which supplier is cheaper for the same book.
List costs in three groups. Fixed project costs happen whether you sell one copy or every copy: editing, design, a proof, photography and an event booking. Production costs depend on the run: printing and getting the stock to you. Per-order costs happen when you sell: packing, dispatch, payment charges and any contribution you make to customer shipping.
Keep taxes collected for the government out of your sales revenue calculation. Use tax-exclusive figures consistently, and determine the treatment appropriate to your business before applying this model. The worksheet is an operating-cost illustration, not a tax calculation.
| Input | Illustrative amount | What to check in your project |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed project costs | $240 | Include work you pay for before sale |
| Copies ordered | 50 | Separate sale stock from gifts and proofs |
| Landed production cost per copy | $12 | Print plus incoming freight allocated per copy |
| Packing per order | $1.50 | Book mailer, protection and label |
| Shipping you pay toward each order | $3 | Only the amount not recovered from the buyer |
| Payment fee | 3% plus $0.30 | Illustrative only; use your actual arrangement |
| Proposed selling price | $30 | Net of any tax you must remit |
Calculate contribution, then project profit
Contribution is what one sale leaves to help pay fixed costs. In this simple direct-sale model:
Contribution per copy =
price × (1 − percentage fee)
− landed production cost
− packing
− shipping subsidy
− fixed payment fee
Example:
30 × 0.97 = $29.10
29.10 − 12 − 1.50 − 3 − 0.30 = $12.30The $12.30 is not take-home profit. With $240 of fixed costs, you need ROUNDUP(240 / 12.30, 0), or 20 sold copies, to cover those fixed costs on a per-unit contribution basis. If you sell all 50, the result is 50 × 12.30 − 240 = $375 before any omitted costs or tax.
This calculation allocates printing cost to copies sold. Because you paid for all 50 upfront, it does not yet answer when your cash comes back.
Check the cash tied up in the whole run
Initial cash outlay is $240 plus 50 × $12, or $840. After each sale, the money available to recover that outlay is $30 less the payment fee, packing and shipping subsidy: $24.30.
You therefore need ROUNDUP(840 / 24.30, 0), or 35 sales, to recover the initial $840 in this example. At 20 sales, the project has recovered $486 in cash after selling expenses, leaving a $354 cash shortfall and 30 unsold books. Those books are stock, not cash.
| Copies sold | Cash recovered after selling expenses | Less $840 upfront | Unsold copies |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | $486 | −$354 | 30 |
| 35 | $850.50 | $10.50 | 15 |
| 50 | $1,215 | $375 | 0 |
That distinction matters when comparing a small run with a much larger discounted run. A lower unit cost is useful only if the extra stock fits your demand, storage and cash limits.
Reproduce the worksheet in your spreadsheet
Put the labels below in column A and the corresponding numbers in column B. Enter the percentage as 3%, not 3. The formulas use English function names; your spreadsheet’s locale may use different separators or translated function names.
| Cell | Label | Value or formula |
|---|---|---|
| B2 | Price | 30 |
| B3 | Percentage fee | 3% |
| B4 | Fixed fee | 0.30 |
| B5 | Landed print cost | 12 |
| B6 | Packing | 1.50 |
| B7 | Shipping subsidy | 3 |
| B8 | Fixed project costs | 240 |
| B9 | Run quantity | 50 |
| B10 | Contribution | =B2*(1-B3)-B4-B5-B6-B7 |
| B11 | Upfront cash | =B8+B9*B5 |
| B12 | Cash recovered per sale | =B2*(1-B3)-B4-B6-B7 |
| B13 | Sales to recover upfront cash | =ROUNDUP(B11/B12,0) |
Check the model before trusting it: B10 should show 12.30, B11 should show 840, B12 should show 24.30 and B13 should show 35. If B12 is zero or negative, every additional sale fails to recover cash. If B13 exceeds the available sale copies, this run cannot recover its upfront spending at that price.
Work backwards from the amount you need
Suppose you want $10 contribution per direct sale with the same costs. Solve for price:
Minimum price for target contribution
= (12 + 1.50 + 3 + 0.30 + 10) / (1 − 0.03)
= $27.63, rounded up to the next centThis is a cost-based floor for that contribution target, not evidence that readers will pay it. Compare your actual edition with relevant books and test the offer with intended readers. If the floor exceeds what they value, change the economics or the product. Do not simply add a premium adjective.
Make a separate model for a retailer
A retailer discount is normally a deduction from the list price in the arrangement being discussed, not a percentage you add to manufacturing cost. For an illustrative 40% discount on a $30 list price, the publisher receives $18 before other deductions. Subtract $12 production and an assumed $1 per-copy delivery allocation, and only $5 remains before fixed costs and returns.
Do not also deduct your direct-to-customer checkout fee if that transaction does not happen in the retailer route. Equally, do not ignore distributor fees, returns or unpaid invoices if they apply. Obtain the actual terms and use a separate row for every deduction.
A listing or a favorable discount does not guarantee a store will stock the book. The channel must make sense commercially on its real terms.
Test a promotion before announcing it
At 20% off the illustrative $30 direct price, revenue becomes $24. Contribution falls to 24 × 0.97 − 16.80 = $6.48. That is almost half the original $12.30. Recovering $840 of upfront cash now takes 46 sales because each sale returns only $18.48 after selling expenses.
Add a plausible adverse case: fewer sales, some damaged copies, a reprint or extra postage. Enter the actual costs when known; do not present an arbitrary allowance as an industry average. If one ordinary problem turns the plan negative, reduce your commitment before spending.
Choose a print decision you can live with
Write down your maximum upfront spend, maximum unsold stock and the evidence supporting expected sales. Use the reader-testing guide to improve that evidence and the launch checklist to check fulfilment.
YourBookBound’s current service is $99 per hardcover copy, including the listed preparation services and standard tracked shipping. The $12 teaching example above is unrelated to that offer. A personal keepsake or service-supported one-copy project has different economics from a low-priced retail edition. Send your files for a free check when you want to confirm your own book’s production plan.
Further reading: Blurb’s book-pricing overview discusses positioning and format. The contribution, stock-cash distinction and numerical worksheet here are original worked examples.