Restaurant Labor Cost Calculator

Find out exactly what you're spending on staff — and whether your labor costs are eating into your profits.

Labor is usually the biggest expense in any restaurant. This free calculator helps you add up wages, overtime, benefits, and taxes to get your total labor cost and labor cost percentage — all in one place.

CALCULATE TOTAL LABOR COST

FIND YOUR LABOR COST %

TRACK OVERTIME SPEND

MONITOR BENEFITS & TAXES

IMPROVE STAFF SCHEDULING

Labor Cost Calculator

Choose a method: build a full employee roster, or enter a quick summary of your costs.

Add each employee and their details. Weekly cost is auto-calculated.

Name / Role	Hours/Week	Hourly Rate ($)	OT Hours	OT Rate ($)	Weekly Cost

Benefits / Week

Payroll Taxes / Week

Total Weekly Revenue *

Ready to calculate

Enter your figures above to see your labor cost breakdown.

How to Use This Calculator

Employee Roster (Most Detailed)

Add each team member's name, weekly hours, and hourly rate. The calculator automatically works out each person's weekly cost, including overtime at 1.5× rate. Then add benefits and taxes to get the full picture.

Quick Summary (Already Have Totals?)

If you already have payroll summaries, just enter your total wages, overtime, benefits, and tax figures for the period. It works for any time frame — weekly or monthly.

Labor % Check (Fastest)

Know your total labor spend but want to check if your percentage is healthy? Just enter total labor cost and your revenue and get an instant benchmark comparison.

The Labor Cost Formula

Labor Cost % = (Total Labor Cost ÷ Total Revenue) × 100

Total Labor Cost = Wages + Overtime + Benefits + Payroll Taxes Example: $18,000 wages + $2,000 overtime + $2,500 benefits + $2,000 taxes = $24,500 Revenue = $80,000 Labor Cost % = (24,500 ÷ 80,000) × 100 = 30.6% — within the healthy range.

What Counts as Labor Cost?

Regular Wages & Salaries

Overtime Pay (1.5× Standard)

Health & Dental Insurance

Employer Payroll Taxes (FICA)

Staff Meals & Uniforms

Workers' Compensation

Paid Time Off & Sick Days

Training & Onboarding Costs

Industry Benchmarks

Labor Cost %StatusWhat It Means

< 20%Very LowCheck if staff are being paid fairly — may signal understaffing

20% — 29%ExcellentHighly efficient — strong cost control in place

30% — 35%GoodIndustry sweet spot for most restaurant formats

36% — 40%BorderlineWorth reviewing schedules and overtime spend

> 40%HighLikely hurting profitability — take action quickly

Why Monitor Your Labor Cost?

Labor Is Typically the Largest Expense — Usually 30–35% of Revenue.

Uncontrolled Labor Cost Directly Reduces Your Net Profit Margin.

Helps Identify Overtime Issues and Scheduling Inefficiencies.

Essential for Informed Menu Pricing and Staffing Decisions.

Labor Cost vs. Prime Cost

Prime Cost = Food Cost (COGS) + Total Labor Cost

Target: Prime Cost should be 55%–65% of total revenue for a healthy operation. Example: Food Cost = $30,000 | Labor Cost = $24,500 | Revenue = $80,000 Prime Cost = $54,500 ÷ $80,000 × 100 = 68.1%