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Updated April 20, 2026 · Business & Startup · Educational use only ·

EBITDA Calculator

Operating profitability metric.

Calculate EBITDA and EBITDA margin from revenue, COGS, operating expenses, depreciation, and amortisation — the headline operating-profit metric.

What this tool does

This calculator computes EBITDA—earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation—by taking your revenue and subtracting cost of goods sold and operating expenses, then adding back depreciation and amortisation charges. The result shows your EBITDA figure alongside the EBITDA margin, expressed as a percentage of revenue. Revenue and operating expenses are the primary drivers of the outcome. A typical use case involves comparing operational performance across periods or between businesses by isolating the earnings generated from core operations before financing structure and accounting treatments affect the picture. The calculation assumes that all inputs are accurate and complete; it does not account for one-off items, exceptional gains or losses, or changes in working capital. Results are presented for educational illustration of how the metric is derived.


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Formula Used
Revenue
COGS
Operating expenses
Depreciation
Amortization

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Disclaimer

Results are estimates for educational purposes only. They do not constitute financial advice. Consult a qualified professional before making financial decisions.

EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization) measures operating profitability before capital structure and non-cash charges distort the picture. It's used to compare businesses with different debt levels and different depreciation schedules, and is the most common base for private-company valuations (EBITDA × multiple).

10M revenue with 4M COGS, 3M operating expenses, 500k depreciation, and 100k amortization produces 3M EBITDA. EBITDA margin is 30%, which is healthy for most service businesses and excellent for manufacturing. Software businesses typically target 30-40% EBITDA margin; restaurants 10-20%.

EBITDA has critics. It excludes real costs: interest must be paid, assets do wear out, tax is real. A business with 30% EBITDA and 5% net margin is a cash-losing machine dressed up as profitable. Always pair EBITDA with free cash flow to spot the difference between operational profit and real money in the bank.

Run it with sensible defaults

Using revenue of 10,000,000, cost of goods sold of 4,000,000, operating expenses of 3,000,000, depreciation of 500,000, the calculation works out to 3,600,000.00. The defaults are meant as a starting point, not a recommendation.

The levers in this calculation

The inputs — Revenue, Cost of Goods Sold, Operating Expenses, Depreciation, and Amortization — do not pull with equal force. Not every input has equal weight. Adjusting one input at a time toward extreme values shows which ones move the result most.

How the math works

Gross profit = revenue - COGS. Operating profit = gross profit - opex. EBITDA = operating profit + D + A. Margin = EBITDA ÷ revenue.

What the score tells you

Headline financial numbers — income, savings, debt — each tell part of the story. This calculation stitches several together into a single read you can track over time. The value is in the direction, not the absolute number.

What this doesn't capture

The score is a composite of the inputs you provide. Life context — job security, family obligations, health, housing — doesn't appear in the math but shapes the real picture. Use the number as a prompt, not a verdict.

Example Scenario

££10,000,000 revenue - ££4,000,000 COGS - ££3,000,000 opex + ££500,000 D + ££100,000 A = 3,600,000.00.

Inputs

Revenue:£10,000,000
Cost of Goods Sold:£4,000,000
Operating Expenses:£3,000,000
Depreciation:£500,000
Amortization:£100,000
Expected Result3,600,000.00

This example uses typical values for illustration. Adjust the inputs above to match a specific situation and see how the result changes.

Sources & Methodology

Methodology

This calculator computes EBITDA by taking revenue and subtracting cost of goods sold and operating expenses, then adding back depreciation and amortization charges. The formula is: EBITDA equals revenue minus cost of goods sold minus operating expenses, plus depreciation, plus amortization. EBITDA margin is then calculated by dividing the resulting EBITDA figure by total revenue, expressed as a percentage. The model treats depreciation and amortization as non-cash charges that reduce accounting profit but do not represent actual cash outflows, making EBITDA useful for comparing operating profitability across businesses. The calculation does not account for interest expense, tax liability, capital expenditure, working capital changes, or differences in asset valuation methods between entities.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why add back depreciation?
Depreciation is a non-cash accounting charge spreading historical asset purchase costs over useful life. Adding it back approximates operating cash generation - useful for comparing businesses with different asset bases or age profiles.
When does EBITDA mislead?
Asset-heavy businesses (airlines, shipping, manufacturing) need constant reinvestment. Their real sustainable cash flow is much closer to EBIT than EBITDA. Warren Buffett called EBITDA 'bullshit earnings' for exactly this reason.
How does EBITDA relate to valuation?
Private businesses often trade at 4-12× EBITDA depending on industry and growth. A 3M EBITDA business at 6× = 18M enterprise value. This multiple method is the default for small-to-mid business sales.
What's a good EBITDA margin?
Software: 25-40%+. Manufacturing: 10-20%. Retail: 5-10%. Restaurants: 8-15%. Consulting: 15-25%. Compare within industry; cross-industry comparisons mislead.

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