Quick commerce margin calculator
This free calculator shows what a unit sold through Blinkit, Zepto or Swiggy Instamart actually earns you once the platform's margin, your ad spend, damages and per-unit charges come off the MRP. It works for all three because they run the same purchase-order model: the platform buys your stock at MRP minus an agreed margin, sells it to the customer, and charges you separately for ads and a few operational lines. Enter your own margin, because none of the three publishes a rate card, and read net realisation, contribution and the ad percentage at which a unit stops making money. Everything runs in your browser as you type. Platform-by-platform detail is in our guides to Blinkit seller fees, Zepto seller fees and Swiggy Instamart seller fees, all checked in September 2026.
Why do you have to enter the platform margin yourself?
Blinkit, Zepto and Instamart are buyers, not marketplaces charging a listed commission. Each Category Manager negotiates a margin on MRP per brand and category when the purchase-order agreement is signed, and the number is not public. What is public is the range third parties report: roughly 2% to 22% for Blinkit, 8% to 25% for Zepto and 15% to 28% for Instamart, with packaged snacks and beverages usually in the mid-teens and beauty or personal care higher. Swiggy's own reporting puts Instamart's blended take rate above 15% with a stated target of 20% to 22%, which tells you the direction of travel. The calculator's 18% default is the middle of the snack range; replace it with the figure in your agreement.
What does each line in the calculator mean?
- MRP. The shelf price. Margins and ad spend are quoted on MRP, so this is the base for every percentage.
- Platform margin. The percentage below MRP at which the platform buys. MRP minus margin is your PO invoice value, before GST on the goods.
- Ad spend. Sponsored placements are a separate invoice, quoted as a percentage of MRP sales. Brand-side guides suggest 8% to 15% for a listing that is being pushed; Zepto's FY26 filings show ads of Rs 1,635.7 crore from 2,468 brands, so it is a core cost line, not an option.
- Damages, returns and shortfall allowance. Quick commerce pays on quantity accepted at inwarding, and damaged, expired or short units come off later. A 2% allowance is common; fragile or short-shelf-life products need more.
- Inwarding, packaging, storage. Per-unit charges that appear in some agreements and not others; reported figures are around Rs 3 to Rs 5 for inwarding and Rs 3 for packaging. Many brands negotiate them to nil.
- Cost of goods. Your landed cost per unit including primary packaging and freight to the platform's warehouse.
- GST on services. 18% on ads and operational charges, shown separately because a registered brand claims it back; it is a cash-flow cost, not a margin cost.
How do you read the results?
Net realisation is what a unit leaves in your hands after the platform and ads: PO value minus ad spend, allowance and per-unit charges. Contribution is net realisation minus cost of goods, and it has to cover your overheads and profit. Break-even ad spend is the ad percentage at which contribution hits zero at your current margin and cost; if a Category Manager asks you to fund a promotion above that number, every extra unit loses money. Run the tool three times, once with each platform's margin, and you have a per-unit comparison that most brands never do before signing.
Worked example: an MRP Rs 100 snack pack
Assumptions: MRP Rs 100, landed cost Rs 45, platform margin 18%, ads 10% of MRP sales, 2% allowance, Rs 5 inwarding. None of these rates is published by any platform; they are the defaults in the tool.
| Line | Amount | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| MRP | Rs 100.00 | Shelf price |
| Platform margin | Rs 18.00 | 18% of MRP |
| PO invoice value | Rs 82.00 | What you bill |
| Ads | Rs 10.00 | 10% of MRP sales |
| Allowance | Rs 2.00 | 2% of MRP |
| Inwarding | Rs 5.00 | Per unit |
| Net realisation | Rs 65.00 | 65% of MRP |
| Cost of goods | Rs 45.00 | Your number |
| Contribution | Rs 20.00 | 20% of MRP |
| Break-even ad spend | 30% | (82 - 2 - 5 - 45) / 100 |
Move the margin to 22% and contribution falls to Rs 16. Push ads to 15% and it is Rs 15. Add Rs 3 of storage on a slow SKU and it is Rs 12. A brand with less than about 50% gross margin on MRP has almost no room once ads start, which is why the margin line is the one to negotiate hardest and why velocity, not listing count, is the metric that earns better terms at renewal.
Matching every purchase order to its goods receipt note, every payout to its invoices and every ad invoice to its campaign report is how we find deductions that should not be there. It is part of our quick commerce account management service.
FAQ
Does this calculator work for Blinkit, Zepto and Instamart? Yes. All three buy on purchase orders at a margin below MRP and bill ads separately, so the same arithmetic applies; only the margin and charges you enter differ.
Why is there no default commission rate? Because none of the platforms publishes one. Margins are negotiated per brand and category. The 18% default is a mid-range third-party estimate for packaged snacks, not a platform figure.
What is break-even ad spend? The percentage of MRP you can put into ads before contribution per unit reaches zero at your current margin and cost. Above it, extra volume loses money.
Is GST included in net realisation? No. GST on ads and services is shown as a separate cash line because registered brands recover it as input credit. GST on the goods themselves is outside the tool.
What about listing fees or deposits? Brand-side guides report a refundable deposit of about Rs 25,000 on Zepto for some new brands and monthly ad minimums; these are one-off or fixed, so they are not in a per-unit calculator.
Get your quick commerce terms reviewed
If you want your agreements benchmarked, your hero range and velocity presented so the next offer is better, and every deduction reconciled, book a free audit through our quick commerce account management page.