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Delivery & haulage · cost · margin
What does a delivery cost to run, and what is my margin?
What one delivery costs to run — fuel, the driver’s time and the van’s cost per mile — against what you are charging, with the margin and the price that would give the margin you want. Every rate is yours to set.
Measure it
Every box has its own unit next to it.
Change the unit beside any box and the number converts. The (i) beside each question says what the box wants and where the figure usually comes from. Anything marked per cent is a percentage of the quantity above it.
Check the rates
Rates and assumptions used
These are the figures the calculator works to. Change any of them and the order list updates — your merchant’s pack sizes and your own waste allowances beat the defaults every time.
Order list
The orange figure is the one you order to. Highlighted rows are the other numbers you order to. The small print under each row is the sum that produced it, so you can check it against your own take-off. Amber rows are warnings, not quantities.
How this one works
- Fuel =
miles ÷ mpg × 4.546 litres a gallon, costed at your fuel price - Cost to run =
fuel + hours × driver cost + miles × van cost a mile, added as shown - Margin =
price − cost to run; the price for a margin you want =cost ÷ (1 − margin %)
The figures the calculator works to. Every one can be changed in step 2, and your merchant’s pack sizes and your own waste allowances beat these defaults every time.
| Rate | Default | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Van fuel use | 30 mpg | Miles per gallon, laden. |
| Fuel price | 1.45 £/L | Per litre - before VAT if you reclaim it. |
| Driver cost an hour | 16 £/h | The wage plus what employing them costs. |
| Van cost a mile | 0.25 £/mile | Tyres, servicing, wear and the lease or depreciation, per mile. Set your own. |
| Margin you want | 25 % | For the price that would give it. |
A worked example
With the defaults the page opens on:
- How many miles there and back? 40 miles
- How long does it take, door to door? 2 hours
- What are you charging? £95.00
Cost to run
- Fuel: 6.06 L — 40 miles ÷ 30 mpg × 4.546 L
- Fuel cost: £8.79 — 6.06 L × £1.45
- Driver: £32.00 — 2 h × £16.00
- Van: £10.00 — 40 miles × £0.25
- Cost to run: £50.79 — fuel cost + driver + van, as shown
Margin
- Margin: £44.21 — £95.00 − £50.79
- Margin as a share of the price: 46.5 % — margin ÷ price
- Price for a 25% margin: £67.72 — cost ÷ (1 − 25%)
Change any figure above and every line recalculates; the small print under each row is the sum that produced it.
Questions people ask
How do I work out what a delivery costs to run?
Fuel from the miles and the van’s mpg (4.546 litres to the gallon) at your fuel price, plus the driver’s hours at what they cost you, plus the van’s cost per mile. With the figures the page opens on, 40 miles and 2 hours come to £50.79.
How do I price a delivery for a margin?
Divide the cost to run by one less the margin you want: £50.79 at a 25% margin is £67.72. Margin here is a share of the price, not a mark-up on the cost.
Where does the van cost per mile come from?
From you - tyres, servicing, wear and the lease or depreciation, per mile. The page does the sum with the rates you give it.
More tools beyond the site
Pricing more than one run? PBS Delivery quotes from your own rate card and shows what each job will cost to run and the margin.
Read before you rely on this. These do the sum with the figures you give them and nothing more. A dose, the product and its withdrawal period come from the label and your vet; a keg’s yield from your own lines and till; a delivery’s real costs from your own books.