What is the difference between selling price and variable cost?
Andrew Campbell
Updated on January 03, 2026
Sales Price And Variable Cost Sales price is the amount received or to be received from sale of goods or services while variable cost are the costs incurred that are not constant when there are changes in the volume of activity.
Is selling price a variable cost?
Fixed costs are costs that do not change with varying output (e.g., salary, rent, building machinery). Sales price per unit is the selling price (unit selling price) per unit. Variable cost per unit is the variable costs incurred to create a unit.
Is variable cost the same as price?
Companies incur two types of production costs: variable costs and fixed costs. Variable costs vary based on the amount of output produced. Fixed costs remain the same regardless of production output. Fixed costs may include lease and rental payments, insurance, and interest payments.
How do you calculate selling price with variable cost?
Once you have found the total variable costs, divide it by the number of units produced during that same time period. For example, if you made 500 scarves in one month and your total variable costs were $2,500, your variable cost per unit would be $5.
Are variable costs dependent on sales volume?
Unlike direct costs, variable costs depend on the company’s production volume. When a company’s production output level increases, variable costs increase. The raw materials used to make the product would also be variable costs since the cost of materials would rise and fall depending on sales volume of the product.
What happens when sales volume increases?
Increasing Sales Volume Increased production will reduce the amount of fixed costs that need to be applied to each unit produced, which will reduce the company’s cost per unit.
What happens to variable cost if sales increase?
As your sales grow, your variable costs increase. As your sales fall, your variable costs decrease. If you raise or lower your sales price, the new selling price must be enough to cover your variable costs and fixed costs in order to break even.
Is employee salary a fixed cost?
Any employees who work on salary count as a fixed cost. They earn the same amount regardless of how your business is doing. Employees who work per hour, and whose hours change according to business needs, are a variable expense.
How does variable cost affect profit?
Fixed costs are expenses that do not change based on production levels; variable costs are expenses that increase or decrease according to the number of items produced. Both fixed and variable costs have a large impact on gross profit—an increase in expenses to produce goods means lower gross profit.