Markdown Calculator
Every Sale Sign Is Just a Markdown Percentage
A "30% off" sticker is a markdown calculation running in the background of every retail promotion. Knowing the exact sale price — not an estimate rounded to the nearest dollar — matters for both the shopper deciding whether the deal is worth it and the retailer setting margins on the discounted item.
The Formula
Sale Price = Original Price − Amount Saved
Markdown at a Glance
Because markdown scales linearly with original price, the percentage-to-savings relationship is identical regardless of the item's actual price — only the dollar amounts change.
| Markdown | Amount saved | Sale price |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | $10.00 | $90.00 |
| 20% | $20.00 | $80.00 |
| 25% | $25.00 | $75.00 |
| 30% | $30.00 | $70.00 |
| 40% | $40.00 | $60.00 |
| 50% | $50.00 | $50.00 |
For any other original price, scale these figures proportionally — a 25% markdown always removes a quarter of the original price, regardless of the starting amount.
Where This Calculation Matters
- Retail promotions — setting sale prices that hit an exact target discount.
- Clearance planning — retailers stacking markdowns on aging inventory need to track the cumulative effect on margin.
- Shopper decisions — verifying that an advertised percentage-off deal produces the price actually posted at checkout.
- Margin protection — checking that a markdown still leaves enough margin above the item's cost.
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter the Original Price ($).
- Enter the Markdown (%) being applied.
- Select Calculate to see the amount saved and the final sale price.
Related Calculations
Set the original price itself with the Markup Calculator, or check the resulting margin on the discounted price with the Profit Margin Calculator.