Markup is your profit divided by your cost. Margin is your profit divided by the selling price. A blind that costs you $280 and sells for $700 has a 150% markup and a 60% margin: same $420 of profit, two different percentages. The two are easy to mix up, and the usual slip is marking up 50% and thinking you made 50%. This post gives the formulas, a few worked examples with example numbers, a conversion table you can keep next to your price books, and the places where the job margin quietly ends up lower than the number you set.
to skip the math, the free markup and margin calculator converts either way and adds up a whole job.
The three numbers: multiplier, markup and margin
Many window treatment dealers price with a multiplier. You take your cost (manufacturer list price times your dealer factor) and multiply it by a number like 2 or 2.5. That multiplier is the same thing as markup, written differently.
- Multiplier = selling price ÷ cost
- Markup % = (selling price − cost) ÷ cost × 100, which is (multiplier − 1) × 100
- Margin % = (selling price − cost) ÷ selling price × 100, which is (1 − 1 ÷ multiplier) × 100
So a 2.0 multiplier is a 100% markup and a 50% margin. A 2.5 multiplier is a 150% markup and a 60% margin. Markup can go past 100%. Margin never can, because profit can't be bigger than the price.
Your accountant and your P&L speak margin: gross profit as a share of sales. Your price books speak cost and multiplier. The trouble starts when you set prices in one language and judge results in the other.
Worked example: one blind
Example numbers, not a real price list. A 2" faux wood blind lists at $800 in the manufacturer's book. Your factor with that manufacturer is 0.35, so you pay $280.
| Multiplier | Selling price | Gross profit | Markup | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5 | $420 | $140 | 50% | 33.3% |
| 2.0 | $560 | $280 | 100% | 50% |
| 2.5 | $700 | $420 | 150% | 60% |
| 3.0 | $840 | $560 | 200% | 66.7% |
Here is the classic mistake in numbers. An owner decides the business needs a 50% margin, then tells the reps to "mark it up 50%." They sell the blind for $420. Profit is $140, a 33% margin. To get the 50% margin the owner wanted, the blind had to sell for $560. On that one window, the mix-up cost $140.
The rule of thumb: to hit a target margin, divide cost by (1 − margin). For a 50% margin, $280 ÷ 0.5 = $560. For a 60% margin, $280 ÷ 0.4 = $700.
Conversion table: margin to multiplier and markup
Use this when you know the margin you need and want the multiplier to type into your pricing settings. The last column is what $1,000 of cost sells for.
| Target margin | Multiplier | Markup | $1,000 cost sells for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30% | 1.43 | 43% | $1,429 |
| 35% | 1.54 | 54% | $1,538 |
| 40% | 1.67 | 67% | $1,667 |
| 45% | 1.82 | 82% | $1,818 |
| 50% | 2.00 | 100% | $2,000 |
| 55% | 2.22 | 122% | $2,222 |
| 60% | 2.50 | 150% | $2,500 |
| 65% | 2.86 | 186% | $2,857 |
| 70% | 3.33 | 233% | $3,333 |
Read it both ways. If you sell at a 2.2 multiplier today, you are running about a 55% product margin. If you want 60%, you need 2.5.
What multiplier should a blinds dealer use? There is no single right answer: it depends on your overhead, your labor model and your market. For one industry view, Mark Mills, writing for the dealer coaching group Exciting Windows, says you should aim for a 2.5-3x multiplier on window treatments. Treat that as a starting point to test against your own books, not a rule.
Why the job margin comes in lower than the multiplier says
The multiplier only covers what's in the price book. A real job has costs that never pass through it, and every one of them comes straight out of margin.
Example job, example numbers. Eight windows of faux wood and cellular shades. Product cost after your factor is $2,400. You sell at a 2.5 multiplier, so the product total is $6,000, a 60% product margin. Then the job itself adds:
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Product sold (2.5 × $2,400) | $6,000 |
| Product cost | −$2,400 |
| Installer pay for the day | −$400 |
| Freight from the manufacturer | −$90 |
| Gross profit | $3,110 |
| Job margin | 51.8% |
You set 60% and earned 51.8%. Nothing went wrong; install labor and freight just weren't in the multiplier. That's why some dealers price labor as its own line and others raise the multiplier to carry it. Either works if you do the arithmetic on purpose.
Discounts come straight off the top
Now give that customer 10% off to close in the room. The price drops from $6,000 to $5,400, but every cost stays the same. Gross profit falls from $3,110 to $2,510. The customer saved 10%, and your gross profit on the job dropped by 19%. The job margin is now 46.5%.
A discount always costs you a bigger share of profit than of price. At a 60% product margin, 10% off the price takes about a sixth of the product profit. At a 40% margin, the same 10% takes a quarter. The thinner your margin, the more a discount hurts, which is the best reason to put a cap on what reps can give.
Cost changes hit before the markup
A tariff surcharge, a price increase from the manufacturer or a lost early-pay discount changes your cost. If your selling price is cost times a multiplier, the price moves with it and your margin holds. If reps are working from an old printed price sheet, the price stays put and the margin shrinks without anyone noticing.
How to set markup so it holds up in the home
A few habits keep margin from leaking between your spreadsheet and the customer's living room.
- Decide on a target margin per product line, then convert it to a multiplier with the table above. Shutters, motorization and woven woods don't all need the same number.
- Put the multiplier in one place that every quote reads from, not in each rep's head.
- Keep cost and margin away from reps and customers. A rep who sees a 60% margin will discount down to it.
- Set the largest discount a rep can give without calling the office, and pick it knowing what it does to margin.
- Check margin by job, not only by product. Labor, freight, trip charges and remakes all land there.
How HeadRail handles markup and margin
In HeadRail, you set each manufacturer's price factor (your cost as a share of list) and then choose Multiplier or Margin % for your selling markup, under Admin › Pricing. The screen shows an example line, such as "a $1,000 list price costs you $300 and your reps sell it for $660," so you can check the math before a rep uses it. The owner setup guide walks through it.
Every quote applies the same factor and markup, plus upcharges, size limits and billing minimums from your price books. An ACH payment discount, or a discount or tariff per product line, changes your cost before the markup. Reps see the selling price only; cost and margin stay with the owner. You also set the largest discount a rep can give. If you're still working out what to charge in the first place, start with how much to charge for custom blinds, then put those prices on paper with the blinds quote template. Plans and prices are on the pricing page.
Frequently asked questions
Is a 50% markup the same as a 50% margin?
No. A 50% markup means you sell for 1.5 times cost, which is a 33.3% margin. A 50% margin needs a 100% markup, a 2.0 multiplier. On a blind that costs you $280, that's the difference between selling it for $420 and selling it for $560.
Is a 50% markup double the cost?
No. Doubling the cost is a 100% markup (a 2.0 multiplier), which gives a 50% margin. A 50% markup adds half of the cost on top: $280 becomes $420.
What is the markup on blinds?
It varies by dealer, product and market, and nobody publishes a standard. Many dealers think in multipliers on their cost after the manufacturer's factor. Exciting Windows suggests aiming for 2.5 to 3 times cost on window treatments, which is a 60% to 67% product margin. Check any multiplier against your own overhead and labor before you adopt it.
Should I price with markup or margin?
Use whichever you can apply the same way every time, and convert to margin when you judge results. Markup (or a multiplier) is easier to apply to a price book. Margin is how your profit and loss statement reads. The conversion is margin = 1 − 1 ÷ multiplier.
How do I convert margin to markup?
Markup % = margin ÷ (1 − margin) × 100. A 60% margin is 0.6 ÷ 0.4 = 1.5, so a 150% markup or a 2.5 multiplier. The table above has the common values worked out.