Free tool
Commission calculator: sales, tiered and split commission
Convertica's free commission calculator works out commission from a sale amount and a rate, or works backward to the rate or the sales you need, with base pay on top. Three more calculators handle tiered plans, a split between two people and affiliate commission from clicks. Every result shows its working, in any currency.
Short answer
A commission calculator works out the pay earned on a sale: commission = sale amount × commission rate. 40,000 in sales at a 5% rate earns 2,000. Convertica's free commission calculator also finds the rate from an amount paid, the sales needed for a target, base pay plus commission, tiered commission, a split and affiliate commission.
- Commission is the sale amount multiplied by the commission rate. Divide the commission by the sale amount to get the rate, or by the rate to get the sales needed.
- Base pay is added after the commission is worked out. It does not change the rate.
- A tiered plan can be read two ways: each rate on the sales inside its tier, or the reached tier's rate on all sales. The two can pay very different amounts.
- Check what the rate is a percentage of. Commission on revenue and commission on profit give different pay from the same sale.
- Affiliate commission is clicks × conversion rate × average order value × commission rate, so a higher conversion rate earns more from the same clicks.
Commission calculator
Free to use, no sign-up. Any currency. The result updates as you type.
Commission
2,000.00
40,000 × 5% = 2,000.00.
Left after commission: 40,000 - 2,000 = 38,000.00.
Total pay: 3,000 base pay + 2,000 commission = 5,000.00. Commission is 40.00% of it.
Formula
commission = sale amount * commission rate
commission rate = commission / sale amount * 100
sales needed = commission / commission rate
total pay = base pay + commissionWhat is the commission formula?
The commission formula is the sale amount multiplied by the commission rate: commission = sale amount × commission rate. A commission is pay tied to a sale, so a 5% commission means 5% of what was sold goes to the person who sold it. On 40,000 in sales, a 5% rate pays 2,000.
commission = sale amount * commission rate
commission rate = commission / sale amount
sale amount = commission / commission rate
total pay = base pay + commissionThe same three numbers answer three questions. Know the sale and the rate and you have the commission. Know the commission and the sale and you have the rate. Know the rate and the commission you want and you have the sales it takes.
How to use the commission calculator
- Pick what to solve for. The commission, the commission rate, or the sales needed to earn a commission.
- Enter the two numbers you know. Use your own rate and the amount your plan pays on: revenue, collected cash or profit.
- Add base pay if you have it. Use the base for the same period as the sales, and the result adds total pay.
- Read the working. Every result shows the arithmetic, so you can check it against a commission statement line by line.
The calculators show amounts before tax. Commission pay can be subject to tax and to contract terms, such as caps, draws and clawbacks, that a calculator does not know. Nothing on this page is tax or employment advice.
How to calculate commission: a worked example
To calculate commission, write the rate as a decimal and multiply it by the sale amount. A 5% rate is 0.05, so 40,000 in sales pays 40,000 × 0.05 = 2,000. The numbers below are the default values in the calculator, made up to show the arithmetic; they are not typical rates.
- Sales for the month: 40,000. Commission rate: 5%.
- Commission = 40,000 × 0.05 = 2,000.
- What the business keeps from those sales = 40,000 - 2,000 = 38,000.
- Base pay for the month: 3,000. Total pay = 3,000 + 2,000 = 5,000.
- Check: 2,000 / 40,000 × 100 = 5.00%, the rate again.
What is a given percentage commission on a sale?
Move the decimal point two places to the left and multiply. The table does that for a range of rates and sale amounts, so "what is 5% commission on 200,000" is one lookup.
| Rate | On 1,000 | On 10,000 | On 200,000 | On 500,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1% | 10 | 100 | 2,000 | 5,000 |
| 2% | 20 | 200 | 4,000 | 10,000 |
| 2.5% | 25 | 250 | 5,000 | 12,500 |
| 3% | 30 | 300 | 6,000 | 15,000 |
| 5% | 50 | 500 | 10,000 | 25,000 |
| 6% | 60 | 600 | 12,000 | 30,000 |
| 7% | 70 | 700 | 14,000 | 35,000 |
| 10% | 100 | 1,000 | 20,000 | 50,000 |
| 15% | 150 | 1,500 | 30,000 | 75,000 |
| 20% | 200 | 2,000 | 40,000 | 100,000 |
| 30% | 300 | 3,000 | 60,000 | 150,000 |
How to calculate the commission rate, or the sales you need
To calculate a commission rate, divide the commission by the sale amount and multiply by 100. A 2,000 commission on 40,000 in sales is a 5.00% rate. To find the sales needed for a commission, divide the commission by the rate: 3,000 at 5% takes 60,000 in sales.
- Checking a payout. Set the calculator to solve for the commission rate, enter what you were paid and what you sold, and compare the result with the rate in your plan. A gap usually means a split, a bonus or a different sales figure than the one you used.
- Planning a target. Set it to solve for sales needed and enter the commission you want. If the target is total pay, take base pay off first: 6,500 in total on 3,000 of base pay is 3,500 of commission, which takes 70,000 in sales at 5%.
How is base salary plus commission calculated?
Base salary plus commission is the fixed pay for a period added to the commission earned in it: total pay = base pay + sale amount × commission rate. The base does not change the rate or the commission. With 3,000 of base pay and 40,000 in sales at 5%, total pay is 5,000, and 40.00% of it is commission.
| Sales in the period | Commission | Total pay | Share of pay that is commission |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 3,000 | 0.00% |
| 20,000 | 1,000 | 4,000 | 25.00% |
| 40,000 (the example) | 2,000 | 5,000 | 40.00% |
| 60,000 | 3,000 | 6,000 | 50.00% |
| 80,000 | 4,000 | 7,000 | 57.14% |
Match the periods before you add. A yearly salary and a month of sales do not belong in the same sum: divide the salary by 12 first, or use a year of sales.
How does tiered commission work?
Tiered commission pays a different rate for each band of sales, and a plan can mean one of two things by it. Either each tier's rate applies only to the sales inside that tier, or the rate of the highest tier reached applies to all sales. On the example tiers below, 40,000 in sales pays 1,900 the first way and 3,200 the second.
Tiered commission calculator
Up to five tiers, read either way. The result names the reading it used and shows what the other one would pay.
Commission, rate per tier
1,900.00
Each tier's rate applies only to the sales inside that tier.
The first 20,000 × 3% = 600.00.
From 20,000 to 30,000: 10,000 × 5% = 500.00.
From 30,000 to 40,000: 10,000 × 8% = 800.00.
Total: 600 + 500 + 800 = 1,900.00.
Effective rate: 1,900 ÷ 40,000 × 100 = 4.75% of sales.
Read the other way, with the reached tier's rate on all sales, the same tiers pay 3,200.00. Check which one your plan says.
Formulas
rate per tier = sum of (sales inside each tier * that tier's rate)
one rate on all sales = total sales * rate of the tier the sales reach
effective rate = commission / total sales * 100Tiered commission, worked both ways
The example plan has three tiers, and the month's sales are 40,000.
| Tier | Sales band | Rate | Sales inside the tier | Commission |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 to 20,000 | 3% | 20,000 | 600 |
| 2 | 20,000 to 30,000 | 5% | 10,000 | 500 |
| 3 | 30,000 and above | 8% | 10,000 | 800 |
- Each rate on the sales inside its tier: 600 + 500 + 800 = 1,900, an effective rate of 4.75% on all sales.
- The reached tier's rate on all sales: 40,000 is in the third tier, so 40,000 × 8% = 3,200.
The gap here is 1,300 on the same sales and the same rate card. Plans use words like graduated, marginal, cumulative and retroactive for these two readings, and not always the same way, so go by the arithmetic your plan describes and not by its label. The second reading also puts a step at every threshold: at 29,999 in sales it pays 1,499.95, and at 30,000 it pays 2,400.00, so the one unit of sales that crosses the line is worth 900.05. Under the first reading the same unit is worth 0.05.
| Sales | Each rate inside its tier | Effective rate | Reached rate on all sales | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10,000 | 300.00 | 3.00% | 300.00 | 3.00% |
| 20,000 | 600.00 | 3.00% | 1,000.00 | 5.00% |
| 29,999 | 1,099.95 | 3.67% | 1,499.95 | 5.00% |
| 30,000 | 1,100.00 | 3.67% | 2,400.00 | 8.00% |
| 40,000 (the example) | 1,900.00 | 4.75% | 3,200.00 | 8.00% |
| 60,000 | 3,500.00 | 5.83% | 4,800.00 | 8.00% |
Which commission structure does your plan use?
Most commission plans are one of a few structures, and each one changes what the rate multiplies. Find yours in the table to see how to enter it. Where a plan combines two, such as base pay with tiers, the tiered calculator takes both.
| Structure | What the rate applies to | How to enter it |
|---|---|---|
| Straight commission | Every sale, at one rate | Commission calculator, base pay left empty |
| Base salary plus commission | Every sale, on top of fixed pay | Commission calculator, with base pay for the same period |
| Tiered, rate per tier | The sales inside each tier | Tiered calculator, first option |
| Tiered, one rate on all sales | All sales, at the rate of the tier reached | Tiered calculator, second option |
| Accelerator above a quota | Sales above the quota, at a higher rate | Tiered calculator, first option: tier 2 starts at the quota |
| Capped commission | Sales up to the cap | Tiered calculator, first option: a last tier at 0% where the cap starts |
| Commission on gross profit | The sale amount minus its costs | Commission calculator, with the profit as the sale amount |
| Split commission | One commission shared between two parties | Split calculator |
| Draw against commission | Commission earned, less pay already advanced | Work out the commission, then subtract the draw yourself: the calculators do not hold a balance |
How to split a commission
To split a commission, multiply the total by each party's share. A 2,000 commission split 60% and 40% pays 1,200 to one party and 800 to the other. The shares always add up to the whole commission, so the second is simply what is left after the first.
Commission split calculator
Two reps on one deal, or an agent and a broker. Add the sale amount to see each share as a percentage of the sale.
Your share of the commission
1,200.00
Your share: 2,000 × 60% = 1,200.00.
The other party: 2,000 - 1,200 = 800.00 (40%).
On a sale of 40,000, the whole commission is 5.00% of the sale: 3.00% to you and 2.00% to the other party.
Formula
your share = total commission * your share %
other party share = total commission - your shareA real estate commission example, with two splits
Property sales often split a commission twice: between the two sides of the sale, then between an agent and the brokerage. The numbers here are made up to show the arithmetic. The rate and both splits are whatever your own agreements say, and this page does not publish typical ones.
- Sale price: 300,000. Commission rate in the agreement: 4%. Total commission = 300,000 × 4% = 12,000. The seller is left with 288,000 before any other costs.
- The two sides split it evenly: 12,000 × 50% = 6,000 each.
- One agent keeps 70% of their side and the brokerage keeps 30%: 6,000 × 70% = 4,200 to the agent and 1,800 to the brokerage.
- Against the sale price, the agent's 4,200 is 1.40%, not 4%.
Run the split calculator once for each step: enter the total commission and the side's share, then enter that result as the total and the agent's share.
Is commission paid on revenue or on profit?
Commission is paid on whatever the plan names: revenue, cash collected or gross profit. The base changes the pay. On a 150 sale of a product that cost 90, a 10% commission on revenue is 15, and 10% of the 60 gross profit is 6. It takes a 25% rate on profit to pay the same 15.
A plan that pays on profit gives the seller a reason not to discount, because a discount comes straight out of the number the commission is taken from. To use the calculator for one, enter the profit as the sale amount.
What is a good commission rate?
A good commission rate is one the sale can carry and the seller will work for, and both depend on your own numbers. This page publishes no typical rates by industry or role: an average across businesses with different margins cannot tell you what yours can pay. The margin on the sale can.
Commission paid on revenue comes out of gross margin, point for point. The 150 product above has a 40% gross margin. After a 10% commission, 45 is left, a 30% margin, and the commission has taken 25% of the gross profit. A commission rate equal to the gross margin leaves nothing.
If you set prices from a cost, the markup calculator shows the margin a markup leaves for a commission to come out of. To judge a channel that is paid by commission, such as an affiliate program, against what it brings in, use the ROI calculator. See all free tools and how they fit together.
How to calculate affiliate commission
Affiliate commission is the clicks you send to a merchant, multiplied by the share of those clicks that buy, the average order value and the commission rate. 1,200 clicks at a 4% conversion rate is 48 orders. At an average order of 120 and a 6% commission rate, that pays 345.60.
Affiliate commission calculator
Use the clicks and orders from your network or merchant report, and your own program's rate.
Affiliate commission
345.60
1,200 clicks × 4% conversion rate = 48 orders.
48 orders × 120 average order value = 5,760.00 in sales.
5,760 × 6% commission rate = 345.60.
Commission per order: 7.20. Earnings per click: 345.60 ÷ 1,200 = 0.288.
Earnings per visitor: 345.60 ÷ 10,000 page visitors = 0.0346. Click-through rate to the merchant: 12.00%.
At a 5% conversion rate, one more order from every 100 clicks, the same clicks would earn 432.00.
Formula
affiliate commission = clicks * conversion rate * average order value * commission rate
earnings per click = affiliate commission / clicks
earnings per visitor = affiliate commission / page visitorsThe program sets the commission rate, and the merchant's products set most of the order value. What an affiliate site can change is how many visitors click and which visitors click: a reader who has already chosen a product is more likely to buy. Here is the same review page, with the same 1,200 clicks from 10,000 visitors, at different conversion rates.
| Conversion rate | Orders | Sales | Commission | Earnings per click |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3% | 36 | 4,320 | 259.20 | 0.216 |
| 4% (the example) | 48 | 5,760 | 345.60 | 0.288 |
| 5% | 60 | 7,200 | 432.00 | 0.36 |
| 6% | 72 | 8,640 | 518.40 | 0.432 |
Going from 4% to 5% adds 86.40 from traffic the page already has. That is the pattern in Convertica's 10Beasts case study: on the pages where a new comparison table won, orders rose 30% on only a small increase in clicks, and ad fees, Amazon's name for commission, rose 55.1% (winning pages only, Amazon reports, test 1, 21 December to 4 January). Results on your pages will differ: in the same test, the new table lowered revenue on four of the ten pages it ran on.
The guide to affiliate marketing conversion rates covers the two rates a publisher has and how to measure each, and the conversion rate calculator works either one out. To find what is holding a page back, Convertica's free CRO audit checks it and ranks the fixes by likely impact.
How to calculate commission in Excel or Google Sheets
To calculate commission in Excel or Google Sheets, put the sale amount in A2 and the rate in B2, formatted as a percentage, and enter =A2*B2. The same formulas work in both programs. In the table, C2 holds a commission amount and D2 holds base pay. The tiered formulas use this page's example tiers: swap in your own thresholds and rates.
| To get | Formula | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Commission | =A2*B2 | With 40,000 in A2 and 5% in B2, returns 2,000 |
| Commission rate | =IF(A2=0,"",C2/A2) | Format the cell as a percentage. Empty rows stay blank |
| Sales needed for a commission | =C2/B2 | The commission you want, divided by the rate |
| Base pay plus commission | =D2+A2*B2 | Base pay and sales for the same period |
| Tiered, each rate inside its tier | =SUMPRODUCT((A2>{0,20000,30000})*(A2-{0,20000,30000})*{0.03,0.02,0.03}) | The first list holds where each tier starts. The second holds how much the rate rises at each start. Returns 1,900 for 40,000 |
| Tiered, reached rate on all sales | =A2*LOOKUP(A2,{0,20000,30000},{0.03,0.05,0.08}) | Looks up the rate of the tier the sales reach. Returns 3,200 for 40,000 |
| Your share of a split | =C2*0.6 | Replace 0.6 with your share. The other party gets =C2-C2*0.6 |
| Commission across many rows | =SUMPRODUCT(A2:A100,B2:B100) | Each sale at its own rate, added up |
The per-tier formula takes rate rises, not rates. With tiers at 3%, 5% and 8%, the rises are 3, 2 and 3 points, because each tier adds its extra rate to every unit of sales above its start. Check any tiered formula against the calculator at a sales figure just above each threshold before you rely on it. A spreadsheet set to a decimal comma uses different separators inside the braces.
Commission calculator FAQ
How does the commission calculator work?
The commission calculator multiplies the sale amount by the commission rate and shows the working. Pick what to solve for: the commission, the rate, or the sales needed for a commission you want to earn. Add base pay to see total pay. With 40,000 in sales at 5% and 3,000 of base pay, it returns 2,000 of commission and 5,000 in total.
How do you calculate commission?
Multiply the sale amount by the commission rate written as a decimal. For a 5% rate, the decimal is 0.05: 40,000 × 0.05 = 2,000. On a tiered plan, work out each tier separately and add the results, unless the plan says the highest rate reached applies to all sales.
What is 5% commission on 200,000?
A 5% commission on 200,000 is 10,000: 200,000 × 0.05 = 10,000. A 5% commission means 5 of every 100 in sales is paid as commission. After it is paid, 190,000 of the sale is left.
How do I calculate the commission rate?
Divide the commission by the sale amount and multiply by 100. A commission of 2,000 on 40,000 in sales is 2,000 / 40,000 × 100 = 5.00%. Use the same period for both numbers, and check whether the commission included a bonus or a split before you read much into one result.
How much do I need to sell to earn a target commission?
Divide the commission you want by the commission rate. To earn 3,000 at 5%, you need 3,000 / 0.05 = 60,000 in sales. If the target is total pay, take the base pay off first: 6,500 in total on 3,000 of base pay means 3,500 of commission, which takes 70,000 in sales.
How is base salary plus commission calculated?
Work out the commission, then add the base pay for the same period: total pay = base pay + sale amount × commission rate. With 3,000 of base pay and 40,000 in sales at 5%, that is 3,000 + 2,000 = 5,000. The base pay is the same whatever you sell; only the commission moves with sales.
How does tiered commission work?
A tiered plan sets a different rate for each band of sales. Read one way, each rate applies only to the sales inside its tier. Read the other way, the rate of the highest tier reached applies to all sales. On this page's example tiers, 40,000 in sales pays 1,900 the first way and 3,200 the second.
How do you split a commission?
Multiply the total commission by each party's share. A 2,000 commission split 60/40 is 2,000 × 60% = 1,200 for one party and 800 for the other. Where a commission is split twice, for example between two brokerages and then between an agent and a broker, apply the second split to the share left after the first.
Is commission calculated on revenue or on profit?
It depends on the plan, and the two give different pay. On a sale of 150 that cost 90, a 10% commission on revenue is 15, and a 10% commission on the 60 of gross profit is 6. To use the calculator for a plan that pays on profit, enter the profit as the sale amount.
Is a 30% commission a lot?
It depends on what the 30% is a share of and what is left after it. 30% of a 1,000 sale is 300. If the seller's gross margin on that sale is 40%, the commission takes 75% of the gross profit. Compare a rate with the margin it comes out of, not with another business's rate.
How do I calculate commission in Excel or Google Sheets?
Put the sale amount in A2 and the rate in B2, formatted as a percentage, and enter =A2*B2. For the rate from an amount paid in C2, enter =C2/A2. For base pay in D2 plus commission, enter =D2+A2*B2. Tiered plans need SUMPRODUCT or LOOKUP: both formulas are in the table on this page.
How do I calculate affiliate commission?
Multiply the clicks you send to the merchant by the merchant's conversion rate, the average order value and the commission rate. 1,200 clicks × 4% × 120 × 6% = 345.60. Divide that by the clicks for earnings per click, here 0.288.