How is a cascading (stacked) discount calculated?

In a cascading discount, each rate is applied to the price remaining after the previous discount, not to the original price. Example: a 1,000 item with 20% then 10% off: step 1 gives 1,000 × (1 − 0.20) = 800, step 2 gives 800 × (1 − 0.10) = 720. Total savings is 1,000 − 720 = 280, which is an effective discount of 28% — not 30%, because the second discount is calculated on a smaller amount.

What's the difference between profit margin and markup?

Profit margin is profit as a percentage of the selling price: Margin % = (Selling Price − Cost) / Selling Price × 100. Markup is profit as a percentage of the cost: Markup % = (Selling Price − Cost) / Cost × 100. Example: an item costing 80 sold for 100 has a profit of 20; that's a 20% margin (20/100) but a 25% markup (20/80) — for the same profit, these two percentages are always different.

How do I get the selling price from a target profit margin?

Selling Price = Cost / (1 − Target Margin/100). Example: for an item costing 80 with a 20% target margin, Selling Price = 80 / (1 − 0.20) = 80 / 0.80 = 100, giving a profit of 100 − 80 = 20. Simply multiplying the cost by 1.20 would be wrong here — that gives a 20% markup, not a 20% margin.

I know my selling price but not my margin — how do I calculate it?

Use the 'Margin from Selling Price' mode and enter the cost and selling price. The tool computes Margin % = (Selling Price − Cost) / Selling Price × 100 automatically. Example: entering a cost of 80 and a selling price of 100 shows a 20% margin and a 25% markup.

How many cascading discounts can I add?

You can add up to 10 discount steps at once; each one is applied in order to the discounted price calculated by the previous step.

Tools/💰 Finance/Discount and Profit Margin Calculator

Discount and Profit Margin Calculator

Calculate the discounted price (including stacked/cascading discounts) or work out the selling price and profit from a target profit margin.

Version 1.0 · Last Updated: August 4, 2026 · Maintained by ToolLarder

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