Your margin never drops below your rule
Your price is calculated from the supplier's current price with every price list. The supplier raises a price, and yours goes up by the same rule.
Purchasing and product department one of the departments in your AI company
Markup pricing for online stores: prices set by your rules
Markup pricing in an online store is the set of rules that turns a supplier's price into your selling price: markup, exchange rate, rounding, promotions.
- Markup
- Tiers
- Exchange rate
- Rounding
- RRP
- Wholesale
- Marketplaces
What automated pricing gives you
Automatic markup on products: selling prices calculate themselves, you only set the rules.
Prices update with every price list
The price list arrives on schedule, prices are recalculated and exports are rebuilt. No manual repricing.
Separate rules for suppliers and categories
Rules for a single price list, category or brand, plus a general markup ladder that applies to all price lists at once.
Rounding to “charm” prices
At the end of the chain the price is rounded: to whole numbers, to a step, or to an ending such as .99.
Supplier RRP next to your price
The recommended retail price (RRP, MSRP) from the price list sits next to your price, and a formula can keep your price within limits, for example never above RRP.
Dynamic pricing: prices recalculate themselves
When the supplier price, the exchange rate or your rule changes, prices on your website and marketplaces update without manual repricing.
- New supplier pricethe price list arrived on schedule
- Exchange rate or rulethe rate changed or you adjusted the markup
- Prices everywherecatalog, website and marketplaces update without you
How Elbuz calculates the selling price
The pricing software runs every product through the same chain: supplier price → exchange rate → markup by rule → rounding → price on your website and marketplace.
- $20.00supplier price
- × 0.92 €/$= €18.40
- + 25%= €23.00
- up to .99= €23.99 on your website
- + 10% for fees= €26.99 on a marketplace
Example only: you set your own exchange rate, markup, rounding and marketplace fee surcharge.
Need the arithmetic first? Try the markup and margin calculator.
Markup rules
Different markups for suppliers, categories and brands, plus tiered markup that depends on the product price.
One policy for all suppliers
A general ladder by category applies to all price lists at once, while individual supplier discounts stay in their own price lists.
A markup for each price list
Each price list has its own rules: for the whole list, a category or a manufacturer.
For categories and brands
Apply a category markup to all subcategories in one move, or give a brand its own.
Tiered: depends on the product price
Cheap products get a higher percentage, expensive ones a lower one. A single setting, “Markup at tier boundaries”, removes the price dip where two tiers meet.
Bulk repricing
To reprice hundreds of products, change one rule for a category, brand or the whole price list. New prices appear with the next price list, and the “Apply markup to products” button recalculates the list right away.
Several prices for one product
Prices for marketplaces, wholesale and customer groups, all from the same supplier price.
Retail, wholesale and customer groups
Wholesale and sale prices are set by rules for a category, brand, price range or customer group, and each group sees its own price.
A price for each marketplace
Each export template picks its own price field (regular, RRP or sale) or calculates it with a formula, for example with a surcharge for the marketplace's fees.
How prices reach your sales channels: product feeds.
A price formula when rules aren't enough
When you need a non-standard rule, write it as a formula.
A selling price formula in Elbuz is your own expression over product fields, for example “cost × exchange rate + 25%, round to .99”. It is recalculated with every price list. A formula can also use a competitor's price, but the rule is always yours: there is no “match competitors” button.
Where competitor prices come from: competitor price monitoring.
Protection from mistakes
A typo in a price list or exchange rate won't make your prices jump, and you can lock prices on key products.
- Fixed pricea checkbox in the product recordthe price list updates stock but leaves your price alone
- Stop rulesprice list errorssharp jumps and broken price lists never reach the catalog
- Rate +30%protection from spikesa sudden jump in the exchange rate is not applied automatically
- Cost + N%price floorthe “Don't drop the price below cost + N%” setting lifts any price that rules or formulas pushed lower back up to the floor
How to calculate markup by hand
Formulas, examples and the difference from margin.
If you need the arithmetic itself (what markup is, how to calculate it and what percentage to use), that is a separate topic. This page is about prices that calculate themselves.
Formulas and examples: markup and margin calculator; about margin: profit margin.
What it looks like in the app
Real Elbuz windows with demo data.
Markup pricing: frequently asked questions
What is markup pricing?
Markup pricing means adding a percentage to the cost of a product to get its selling price. In an online store the rules also cover exchange rates, discounts, shipping and rounding. With many suppliers and products you can't do it by hand, so the rules have to run on their own. In Elbuz you describe your pricing policy once, and prices are recalculated with every new price list.
What software calculates markup automatically for an online store?
One that takes the price from the supplier's price list, calculates yours by rules and sends it to your website and marketplaces on its own. In Elbuz that is one chain.
Can I set different markups for suppliers, categories and brands?
Yes: rules for each price list, category and manufacturer, plus a general ladder that applies to all price lists.
How do I make the markup depend on the product price?
With a ladder of price tiers: cheap products get a higher percentage, expensive ones a lower one.
How are exchange rates and rounding handled?
The exchange rate comes first (a jump of more than 30% is not applied automatically), rounding comes last.
What is a good markup percentage?
There is no single number: it depends on your niche, the product price, marketplace fees and what each sale costs you. How to calculate your own, with formulas and examples: Markup and margin calculator. In Elbuz you set the chosen percentage once as a rule, and use a ladder for different price ranges.
Is a 30% markup the same as a 30% margin?
No. Markup is calculated from the cost price, margin from the selling price, so for the same sale they are two different percentages. A product that costs €100 with a 30% markup sells for €130, and the margin is €30 / €130 ≈ 23%. Elbuz rules set the markup, an operation on the supplier's price. Details with examples: Markup and margin calculator and What profit margin is and how to raise it.
Can I have different prices on my website and on each marketplace?
Yes: each export template picks its own price field or calculates it with a formula, and the catalog stays the same.
How do I avoid selling below cost when a supplier raises prices?
Your price is calculated from the supplier's current price every time the price list loads, so when the supplier raises a price, yours goes up by the same rules. Turn on “Don't drop the price below cost + N%”, and with every catalog update the price stays at or above cost plus your percentage, even if a competitor undercuts you. Stop rules catch sharp jumps and price list errors. The exception is products marked “Fixed price”: their price does not follow the supplier.
How do I lock a product's price so the price list doesn't change it?
Tick “Fixed price” in the product record: the price list updates stock but not the price.
Can I tie my price to competitor prices?
Yes, with a formula on the “Price” field: from the lowest competitor price, the minimum of the “Competitor” group, or a specific competitor's price, for example the lowest competitor price minus 1%. The formula recalculates prices with every catalog update from price lists and leaves “Fixed price” products alone. Turn on “Don't drop the price below cost + N%”, and the price stays at or above cost plus your percentage even if a competitor undercuts you. More: competitor price monitoring.
How do I change the markup for hundreds of products at once?
Change one rule for a category, brand or price list, then recalculate the list with a button.
Can I have separate wholesale and retail prices?
Yes: wholesale and sale prices are set by rules, and each customer group sees its own.
What else your purchasing department does
14 days free
Set up your first markup today
The purchasing and product department comes with your AI company along with every other department. Get €50 on your balance after sign-up and 14 days to test the rules on your own price lists.