Keystone Pricing Calculator

Keystone pricing means setting the retail price at exactly double the unit cost — a 100% markup, which is always a 50% margin. It comes from pre-computer brick-and-mortar retail, where a simple universal rule beat per-item math. It survives because a 50% gross margin genuinely covers typical retail overhead in many categories.

Often, but not always. Keystone was calibrated for physical retail; online stores add paid acquisition, shipping subsidies, and marketplace fees that physical stores did not carry. If ads cost you 20% of revenue and shipping another 8%, keystone leaves roughly 22% before overhead. Many DTC brands price at 2.5–4× cost instead.

Price above keystone when you have brand strength, exclusivity, or high service costs — apparel and jewelry often run 2.5–3× cost. Price below it when the product is easily comparison-shopped: electronics and commodity goods rarely sustain 2×. Use keystone as the anchor, then adjust for how replaceable your product is in the buyer’s eyes.

Use the landed unit cost: factory or wholesale price plus inbound freight, duty, and packaging. Doubling only the bare product cost quietly gives away the freight and duty out of your profit. If marketplace or payment fees are predictable per unit, folding them in before doubling gives a more honest keystone price.