Food cost calculator for UAE restaurants
Check your food cost percentage for a month or a week, or cost a recipe and set a menu price that includes 5% VAT. Built for restaurants, cafés and cloud kitchens.
Food cost in four lines
- Food cost
- Opening + purchases − closing
- Food cost %
- ÷ food sales excl. VAT
- Often-quoted band
- 25% to 35%
- Menu price shown to diners
- Includes 5% VAT
The 25% to 35% band is general industry guidance, not a rule. Menu prices: VAT Executive Regulation, Art. 27
How it works
Two modes: the period calculation for your actual food cost, and recipe costing to price a dish.
-
Work out the period's food cost
Opening stock plus purchases, less closing stock, gives the cost of the food you used. Transfers in are added, and staff meals and transfers out are taken off if you book them elsewhere.
-
Divide by food sales before VAT
Output VAT belongs to the FTA, so the percentage is worked on sales excluding VAT. If your till total includes VAT, tick the box and the tool divides it by 1.05.
-
Cost the recipe
Enter each ingredient's pack price and size, the quantity one batch uses and the yield after trimming or cooking loss. The tool converts kg and g, or L and ml, and adds an allowance for oil, salt and garnish.
-
Price the dish
Plate cost divided by your target food cost % gives the price before VAT. The tool adds 5% VAT, because menu prices shown to diners must include it, then rounds up to your chosen step.
-
Check it still meets the target
Because the VAT inside a price is rounded to the fils, rounding up can leave the price a fraction short. The tool steps up again until the actual food cost % is at or below the target, and says so in the working.
Three worked examples
The figures below come from the calculator above, using the inputs described.
-
A month's food cost
Opening stock AED 20,000, purchases AED 85,000 before VAT, closing stock AED 18,000 and food sales of AED 300,000 before VAT.
- Food cost (20,000 + 85,000 − 18,000)
- AED 87,000.00
- Food sales excl. VAT
- AED 300,000.00
- Gross profit on food
- AED 213,000.00
Food cost % 29.00%Inside the often-quoted 25% to 35% band. The right figure for you depends on the concept and the menu mix.
-
Pricing a chicken and rice plate
Bone-in chicken thigh at AED 28 a kg (180 g, 75% yield), basmati rice at AED 50 for 5 kg (120 g), salad at AED 10 a kg (250 g) and 2 eggs from a tray of 30 at AED 15. Target 30%, rounded up to the next AED 1.
- Plate cost
- AED 11.42
- Price incl. VAT at exactly 30%
- AED 39.97
- VAT inside AED 40.00
- AED 1.90
- Actual food cost % at AED 40.00
- 29.97%
Menu price incl. 5% VAT AED 40.00This is the recipe behind the calculator's "Try an example" button.
-
Taking VAT out of the till total
The same month as the first example, but the till report shows food sales of AED 315,000 including VAT.
- Till total incl. VAT
- AED 315,000.00
- Less VAT (315,000 × 5 ÷ 105)
- − AED 15,000.00
- Food sales excl. VAT
- AED 300,000.00
Food cost % 29.00%Dividing AED 87,000 by the VAT-inclusive AED 315,000 would show 27.62% and flatter the kitchen by more than a point.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers about the food cost calculator and the rules behind it.
Ask us on WhatsAppHow do I calculate food cost percentage?
Add opening stock and purchases, take off closing stock, and divide the result by food sales excluding VAT. AED 87,000 of food used against AED 300,000 of food sales is a food cost of 29%. Count stock at cost on the last day of the period.
What is a good food cost percentage for a restaurant?
A band of 25% to 35% is often quoted, but it is general industry guidance, not a standard or a promise. A fine-dining room, a burger bar and a bakery sit at different points, so compare your own figures month by month and set a target that fits your menu mix.
Should menu prices in the UAE include VAT?
Yes. Prices published to consumers must include VAT (VAT Executive Regulation, Article 27), so the calculator's headline figure is the VAT-inclusive menu price. The VAT inside it is the price × 5 ÷ 105.
Should I enter ingredient costs with or without VAT?
If the business is VAT-registered, enter costs before VAT, because you reclaim the input VAT on your return. If it is not registered, include the VAT you paid, because it is a real cost to you.
What is yield, and why does it matter?
Yield is the share of what you buy that ends up on the plate after trimming, boning or cooking loss. Bone-in chicken at a 75% yield means 1 kg bought gives 750 g you can serve, so the real cost of each usable gram is a third higher than the pack price suggests.
Does the calculator include municipality fees or service charges?
No. Municipality fees, tourism fees and service charges depend on the emirate and the type of outlet, so they are left out. Leave drinks, delivery fees and service charges out of food sales too, so the percentage measures food only.
Other free calculators
Gratuity calculator
End of service gratuity from real dates and the last basic salary, with unpaid leave removed and the two-year cap applied.VAT calculator
Add or remove 5% VAT, or estimate a VAT return with blocked VAT, reverse charge and the 28-day deadline.Corporate tax estimator
Taxable income from your profit, the common add-backs, the 75% loss cap, Small Business Relief and the 9-month deadline.Free zone 0% checker
Test the QFZP conditions and the de minimis rule, and see what losing the 0% rate would cost over five periods.
About these results
This calculator gives an indicative figure only. It is not tax or financial advice. Results depend on an accurate stock count and on purchases being booked to the right period. It covers food only, not drinks, labour or prime cost, and its VAT option assumes every ingredient price either includes or excludes 5% VAT. Municipality fees, tourism fees and service charges are not included. The figures you type are not sent anywhere unless you send them to us.
Rules last checked against the primary sources on 7 October 2026.
Want your food cost and margins reported every month?
DirhamWise keeps the books for restaurants and cafés in Dubai and reports food cost, gross margin and VAT each month. Send your figures on WhatsApp or through the form for a free consultation.
