GuidesEverywhereUpdated 9 October 2026
Food cost, for the month and per dish.
What you use up in goods compared with what you sell: the figure that tells you whether your prices hold. The formula for the month, and for a dish.
In three lines
- 1.Usage for the month = opening stock + purchases − closing stock, all excluding VAT.
- 2.Food cost = usage ÷ revenue excluding VAT × 100. Example: CHF 18,400 used for CHF 62,600 of sales, so 29.4%.
- 3.For a dish: selling price excluding VAT = portion cost ÷ target rate. A CHF 6 portion with a 30% target sells for CHF 20 excluding VAT.
Getting it right
Why stock matters
A month’s purchases aren’t the month’s usage: a big order at the end of the month skews everything. Without a stock count, calculate over a quarter instead.
Kitchen and drinks separately
Their rates differ. Track them separately to see which one is slipping.
The multiplier
It’s the inverse of the rate: selling price excluding VAT ÷ cost. A 30% food cost gives a multiplier of 3.3.
VAT for restaurants in Switzerland
In 2026: 8.1% as soon as there is somewhere to eat on site (table, shelf, counter); 2.6% for food and non-alcoholic drinks to take away, if the receipt says so; alcohol stays at 8.1%. Our CHF 20 dish excluding VAT sells for CHF 21.62 on site.
A benchmark
In Swiss restaurants, purchases (goods, materials, services and energy) made up 31.6% of revenue in 2024 (FSO, provisional). The cost of goods alone is lower.
In Novteam: “Suppliers & margins” tracks every purchase price from your invoices and calculates the margin on each item.
In Novteam
In “Finance”, your purchases are set against revenue every month and compared with last year. In “Suppliers & margins”, every purchase price is tracked and increases stand out straight away.
Suppliers & marginsQuestions
Are food cost and gross margin the same?
No: gross margin is what’s left of revenue once goods are paid for. With a 30% food cost, the gross margin is 70%.
Do I need a stock count every month?
For an accurate monthly figure, yes, at least for the items that weigh the most. Otherwise, calculate over a quarter.
Is the calculated price the right price?
It’s the price that meets your cost target. The market, the competition and your other costs then tell you whether it holds.
Sources
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