metricvalley Spreadsheet tools for small agencies

Help · Maker Pricing Calculator

Set up the Maker Pricing Calculator

Updated

This guide covers version 1.0.0, the version you download today. Estimate: setup takes about 10 minutes, plus about 3 minutes per product.

Before you start

  • You need Excel 365 on a Windows desktop computer. That is where this version was tested. Other apps are listed on the compatibility page.
  • Have your hourly rate, your monthly overheads (studio rent, software, insurance), what you pay for each material and pack size, and the fees of each place you sell, from your own account.
  • Sheet names and column labels below are quoted exactly as they appear in the version 1.0.0 file.

Yellow cells: you type. Leave every other cell to the workbook.

1. Download the ZIP file

About 2 minutes.

  1. After payment, Payhip shows a download link on the confirmation page and sends the same link by email.
  2. Click the link and save the ZIP file (about 257 KB) somewhere you will find it again, such as a "Metricvalley" folder in Documents.

Can't find the email? Search your inbox and spam folder for "Payhip". If it isn't there, email [email protected] with the address you used at checkout and we'll resend the link.

2. Unzip it

About 1 minute.

Excel can open a file from inside a ZIP, but it opens a temporary read-only copy, and your changes may be lost. Extract the files first.

  • Windows: right-click the ZIP file, choose Extract All, then Extract.
  • Mac: double-click the ZIP file. The files appear in a new folder beside it.

You now have ten files:

File What it is
maker-pricing-calculator-v1.0.0-blank.xlsx The workbook for your own products
maker-pricing-calculator-v1.0.0-worked-example.xlsx The same workbook with a fictional candle and soap studio's data
START-HERE.html Open this first: every file and where to begin
quick-start.md Setup steps, a three-record test and how to read the results
metric-dictionary.md Every field and calculation defined
support-and-compatibility.md Where it's tested, and how to get help
license.md License terms for both licenses
release-notes-v1.0.0.md What is in this version
money-back-guarantee.md The 30-day money-back guarantee
MANIFEST-maker-pricing-calculator-v1.0.0.sha256 SHA-256 checksums, so you can check every file arrived intact

START-HERE.html opens in any browser. The .md files open in any text editor, such as Notepad or TextEdit.

3. Open the worked example, then save your own copy of the blank file

About 2 minutes.

  1. Open maker-pricing-calculator-v1.0.0-worked-example.xlsx to see a finished Dashboard for a fictional candle and soap studio. Its fees are sample figures, and the status reads SAMPLE until the sample rows are cleared. It counts days from a fixed date, 19 Oct 2026, so it reads the same whenever you open it.
  2. Open maker-pricing-calculator-v1.0.0-blank.xlsx. Excel may show a yellow Protected View bar that says the file came from the internet. This is normal for any downloaded file. Click Enable Editing. The file has no macros, so you will not see a macro or content warning.
  3. Choose File > Save As and save a copy with your business name in the file name. Keep the format as Excel Workbook (.xlsx).
  4. Keep the original download untouched in its folder. It is your clean copy if you ever need to start again.

The workbook has seven sheets: Start Here, Dashboard, Products, Recipes, Materials, Channels and Guide. It opens on Start Here. The Guide sheet explains every input, calculation and check, so you can work without this page.

Every sheet is protected without a password, so a formula can't be overwritten by accident. You never need to unprotect a sheet to enter data. If you want to change the workbook itself: Review > Unprotect Sheet.

4. Fill in the Setup block on Start Here

About 3 minutes.

  1. Choose your currency. Every amount in the file is in this one currency.
  2. Type your hourly rate: what you want to earn for an hour of making. A rate of zero is allowed, and the Dashboard flags it.
  3. Type your monthly overheads and the items you make in a month. Each item carries an even share: overheads divided by items.
  4. Set your pricing targets: the wholesale margin (50% to start), the retail multiple (2.00 to start) and the rounding step (1.00 to start).

5. List your materials on Materials

About 1 minute per material.

One row per material you buy: its unit (oz, each, yard), what a pack costs, the shipping you paid on the pack, how many units are in the pack and any waste. The cost per unit is worked out for you.

6. Add each place you sell on Channels

About 2 minutes per channel.

One row per channel: a marketplace, a market or fair, your own website, wholesale to shops. Type whether it sells at retail or wholesale, its fees from your own account, the shipping you charge and the postage you pay per order, the average items per order, any monthly cost such as a booth fee, and the date you checked the fees. No fee figures are built in, and fees older than 180 days are flagged on the Dashboard.

Type dates with the month as a word, for example 30 Sep 2026. Excel reads that the same way on US, UK and Australian settings.

7. Add your products and their recipes

About 3 minutes per product.

  1. On Products, one row per product as you sell it: items per batch, making time per batch, packaging, your own prices if you have them, and the main channel. Each size, scent or color is its own row. For a one-off piece, set the items per batch to 1.
  2. On Recipes, one line per material in one batch of each product: the product, the material and the quantity.

8. Read the Dashboard

About 2 minutes.

  1. Check the status in row 3. OK means every check passes. CHECK (n) names how many fail; the Checks block says what to do. SAMPLE means sample rows remain. A row with a problem reads Review and stays out of the key figures until you fix it.
  2. Read the four key figures: products priced, the lowest margin, products losing money and products priced below the suggested retail price.
  3. Pick a product to see it in detail: its cost build-up, its prices and what each channel leaves per item, with the lowest price that covers your costs.

Left after costs is what remains after materials, packaging, fees, postage, your share of overheads and your time at your hourly rate.

9. Clearing the worked example

Only if you want to reuse that file:

  1. Save a copy of the worked example under a new name first.
  2. Click the Name Box, the box left of the formula bar that shows the cell address.
  3. Choose MV_Clear_Recipes and press Delete. Then do the same for MV_Clear_Products and MV_Clear_Materials.
  4. Check the Dashboard: the Sample data check and the status read OK. Setup and Channels are kept: replace the sample settings, fees and dates with your own.
  5. In the worked example, Today (Channels, Fixed values) is the fixed date 19 Oct 2026, so its days since fees were checked and its fee-age signal never change. To keep working in this file, choose Review > Unprotect Sheet on Channels and type =TODAY() in that cell. The blank file uses your computer's date.

Getting help

Email [email protected]. Support replies within 1 business day (Monday to Friday, Australian Eastern time). Include the version (1.0.0, on Start Here), your Excel version, the sheet and row, and what you saw. Send made-up or redacted figures only.

The Google Sheets edition is free for every buyer when it ships, delivered through your Payhip download link. Don't import the .xlsx files into Google Sheets.