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Does this calculate net profit?
No. Only ingredients are deducted. A below-average contribution can still be positive; a high relative contribution can still be negative.
Menu Engineering Calculator
See which dishes sell most and which contribute more after ingredient costs. Compare one menu category and identify items that deserve attention.
Your menu analysis
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Total sales revenue
Ingredients sold
Contribution after ingredients
Rent, staff, packaging, commissions and other variable or fixed costs are excluded. Contribution is not net profit.
- Portions sold
- Weighted contribution / portion
- Popularity threshold
Compare popularity and contribution per portion, then review each dish’s total contribution and cautions before taking action.
Popularity and contribution matrix
Sales and contribution are compared with this category’s calculation thresholds.
Explore the chart
Contribution / portion (EUR)
Share of portions sold (%)
Dish details
Pasta Outsells Steak — But Which Contributes More?
The pasta sells twice as often as the steak, but the steak contributes more after ingredients. Learn to read the full menu engineering matrix before changing dishes.
Read articleHow the matrix works
Contribution per portion = net price − ingredient cost. Weighted contribution = total contribution ÷ portions sold. Popularity = dish portions ÷ all portions. The popularity threshold is 70% ÷ number of complete dishes, including dishes with zero sales. Equality belongs to the high group. Classification uses exact comparisons before display rounding.
Results cover only the dishes entered in one comparable category. One price and cost per dish give an estimate if prices changed during the period.
Stars
Maintain quality and availability. Investigate changes before adjusting the price.
Plowhorses
Review ingredient costs, purchasing terms, portion size and price. Consider the total contribution; high sales can make this dish valuable.
Puzzles
Review the name, description, photo, visibility and menu placement. Increased sales are not guaranteed.
Low performers
Review the dish’s role, particular guests’ needs and costs. Do not remove it automatically.
Questions about the calculation
What do the four groups mean?
Stars have high popularity and contribution; plowhorses have high popularity and lower contribution; puzzles have low popularity and high contribution; low performers fall below both thresholds. These are relative groups, not quality ratings.
Why are some results unavailable?
One dish has no comparative matrix. With no portions sold, popularity and the weighted contribution are unavailable. Zero-priced dishes have no Food Cost percentage. Two or three dishes provide only a limited comparison.
What does “near a boundary” mean?
Popularity is within ±10% of its threshold, or contribution is within the greater of 5% of the absolute weighted average and 0.01 currency units. This is a caution, not a statistical confidence interval.