Restaurant tools · Free

How many covers before you make a dollar?

Enter four numbers you already know. You will see the daily covers your restaurant needs to cover its fixed costs, and how much room you have above that line today. Nothing is required to see your answer.

Showing a sample: a 60-seat neighborhood restaurant. Replace the numbers with yours.

Restaurant name

Monthly fixed costs

Rent, insurance, utilities, loan payments, software, and the core staff you schedule no matter how busy you are. Leave out tips paid through to staff. An average of your last three months smooths out lumpy bills like insurance.

Average spend per guest

Net sales before tips and tax, divided by guests served. Use the per-guest figure, not the average check per table or order. Your POS reports both.

Food and beverage cost

As a percent of sales.

Days open per month

Covers on an average open day today

Optional. Adds your cushion above break-even.

Fine-tune: other costs that rise with each sale

Card fees, to-go packaging, and other per-sale costs

As a percent of sales. Leave at 3% if you are unsure.

Your restaurant needs

0 covers a day

to break even on each open day.

Per month0

Each cover keeps$0

Break-even sales$0

0 covers Break-even Today

Break-even tells you the floor. It does not tell you which nights carry the week, whether your prime cost is where it should be, or which week cash gets tight. That is what the Financial Clarity Report shows.

Fifteen owners get their report free this fall. The founding group closes October 30.

Get my free Financial Clarity Report Rather not do the math? Send us your four numbers and Tina will run them and write back.

Mare + Co. Planning estimate based on the figures you enter. Not accounting or tax advice.