How to Calculate Resale Cost, Profit and ROI

1. Add acquisition costs once

An item costs 45, individual acquisition delivery costs 5, its allocated lot shipping is 4, and additional shipment costs are 6. Total acquisition cost is 45 + 5 + 4 + 6 = 60. Do not add a delivery charge again if it is already included in another amount.

2. Record the actual sale and sale costs

The item sells for 100. A commission of 13 and shipping to the buyer of 5 paid by the seller make sale costs of 18. Shipping paid directly by the buyer and never charged to you is not a seller expense in this example.

3. Calculate profit and ROI

Profit = sale value − total acquisition cost − sale costs = 100 − 60 − 18 = 22. ROI = profit / total acquisition cost × 100 = 36.67%. Profit margin on revenue = profit / sale value × 100 = 22%. ROI needs a positive cost basis to be meaningful.

4. Keep forecasts and results separate

Before the sale, a target price describes a potential outcome. After the sale, use the actual price and costs. These item-level calculations exclude expenses you have not recorded, such as labour or general business overheads. This example is not tax advice.

Try the workflow in Adrafteo

Listing templates, inventory, lots and profit tracking are included free during the beta. No payment is required.

Adrafteo is an independent tool. Marketplace names describe where you can use your copy; they do not imply affiliation or automatic integration.