Pricing and profit guides for sellers

SellerMaths Guides

Use this page when you need the rule before the number. SellerMaths guides help with product pricing, fee-aware pricing, net profit, shipping, handmade cost structure, and digital-product pricing.

Last updated: 2026-03-25

Jump to the right guide path

Use these shortcuts when you already know the pricing problem you need to solve.

Price from scratchStart with core product pricing and net profit logicPrice after feesHandle platform charges, margin leakage, and what you keepHandmade or digitalUse product-type logic when cost structure changes the mathShipping in pricingFix price floor issues caused by delivery costApply the ruleMove from explanation into a live calculator or template

Start with your question

Most visitors do not need every guide. They need the next right one.

I need to set a price from scratch

Start with the broad guide for price floor, margin target, and break-even logic.

Open the pricing guide

I need to price after fees

Use the fee-aware guide when marketplace or processor fees are squeezing margin.

Open the fee-aware guide

I need to clean up profit math

Go here when sales, costs, and expenses are mixed together.

Open the net profit guide

I think I am underpricing

Use this path when your current price is below the real cost floor or minimum viable price.

Open the underpricing guide

Shipping is distorting my price

Fix cost structure issues caused by delivery cost and free-shipping pressure.

Open the shipping guide

My product type changes the math

Choose the handmade or digital guide when labor, format, or storefront model changes the economics.

Open the handmade guide

Live guides

Open a guide by problem type and move straight to the page that matches your exact pricing or profit question.

What to open after the guide

Once the pricing rule is clear, move into a calculator or template to test the same logic with your own numbers.

Source note

SellerMaths guide pages are built from public pricing references, IRS recordkeeping and gross-receipts guidance, and small-business break-even logic. Use the trust pages below when a pricing decision is high stakes, country-specific, or tax-sensitive.

What this page helps you do

This hub helps you choose the right guide before you change a price, rebuild a spreadsheet, or make a margin decision based on incomplete math.

  • Find the right guide without guessing from URLs.
  • Understand the pricing rule before using a calculator.
  • Move from one-off confusion to a repeatable pricing process.

Choose by pricing problem, not by platform

Most pricing mistakes start before platform-specific details matter. Start with the broad guide that matches the real business problem, then move to platform-specific tools later if needed.

  • Use general pricing guides for price floor, margin target, break-even logic, and cost structure decisions.
  • Use fee-aware guides when marketplace or processor charges are creating margin leakage or changing what you keep from the sale.
  • Use shipping or product-type guides when delivery cost, labor, or storefront model changes the economics.

What the current guides cover

The live guide set already covers the main seller pricing decisions: setting a price, checking net profit, pricing after fees, avoiding underpricing, handling shipping, and pricing handmade or digital products.

  • Start with How to Price a Product for a clean pricing framework.
  • Open How to Calculate Net Profit when sales, costs, and expenses are mixed together.
  • Use How to Price Products After Fees when the target is what stays after the platform takes its cut.

When to use a guide instead of a calculator

Use a guide first when you still need to understand the model. Use a calculator after the logic is clear and you want a faster answer for one case.

  • Read a guide when you do not yet know which inputs belong in the pricing model.
  • Use a calculator when the rule is already clear and you need a quick estimate.
  • Move to a template when you want to repeat the same logic regularly.

Most useful guide paths

Most visitors do not need every guide. They need the next right one.

  • Start with How to Price a Product if you are building pricing from scratch.
  • Use How to Price Products After Fees if platform charges are squeezing margin.
  • Open How to Calculate Net Profit if your numbers look messy after costs and expenses.
  • Use the handmade or digital guide when product type changes the economics.
  • Open the shipping guide when delivery cost changes your price floor.

Check methodology or sources when the decision is high stakes

Before changing prices across your catalog, verify the assumptions behind the guide if your case is country-specific, tax-sensitive, or operationally important.

  • Use Methodology to see how source rules become page assumptions and formulas.
  • Use Sources when you want to verify the official document family behind a pricing or profit claim.
  • Treat private invoices, tax treatment, and account-specific settings as separate from what a public guide can prove.

What this page does not cover

This hub lists live guides only. Each guide still has its own scope, assumptions, and limits by country, platform, shipping model, or seller setup.

  • A guide can still be narrow in scope even when the hub around it is broad.
  • No guide here replaces legal, tax, or accounting advice for your business.
  • If your case falls outside the stated assumptions, trust the official source first and treat SellerMaths as incomplete for that scenario today.

Use the trust layer with the live pages

Use these trust routes when you want the routing page and the trust pages to work together, not separately.

How SellerMaths builds guide logic

Open the methodology page when you want to understand how page scope becomes visible logic.

Open methodology

See the source families behind guide pages

Open the sources page when you want to verify which source family supports this kind of page.

Open sources

Check the safe-use limits before acting on a guide

Open the disclaimer when you need the boundary between a useful page and a real-world business decision.

Open disclaimer

Related pages

Assumptions

  • This hub links only to live guide pages that already exist in the current working set.
  • Guide pages explain pricing and profit logic, but some still depend on country, platform, shipping, or seller-type assumptions.
  • A guide page is explanatory and does not replace platform invoices, bookkeeping records, or professional advice.
  • Templates and calculators are linked here only when they help a guide user move from explanation into repeatable action.

FAQ

What is the difference between a guide and a calculator on SellerMaths?

A guide explains the rule and the decision logic. A calculator estimates one scenario once the inputs and assumptions are already clear.

Which guide should I start with if I am not sure?

Start with How to Price a Product if the problem is broad, How to Price Products After Fees if fees are squeezing margin, or How to Calculate Net Profit if the issue is messy books or unclear cost tracking.

How do I price handmade products without underpricing my time?

Start with the handmade pricing guide, then move to a calculator that lets you test break-even price, post-fee margin, or a target-profit scenario.

How do I price products after fees?

Use the fee-aware pricing guide first so you know which fees belong in the model, then apply the same logic in a calculator for a live estimate.

Do the guides replace bookkeeping or tax advice?

No. They are practical explainers built from public source material and should not be treated as legal, tax, or accounting advice for your business.

Where can I verify the official sources behind the guides?

Use the Sources page for the source families and the Methodology page for how SellerMaths turns those sources into assumptions, formulas, and page scope.

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Sources

Read How to Price a ProductBrowse all calculatorsSee SellerMaths sources