Learn how to set up profile costs in PocketChef
The Costs tab in your profile is the foundation of pricing and financial control. Without these values, PocketChef cannot correctly calculate gas, electricity, labor, markup, and expenses on sales. This tutorial covers only that tab — not personal data, notifications, or billing details.
Why set up costs first?
The values on the Costs tab feed almost everything you do next:
- In pricing, the app uses gas, electricity, labor, and markup to suggest a price.
- Target COGS is the benchmark used to warn whether a recipe’s food cost is within your segment’s range.
- Variable expenses (percentages) go into the price calculation to cover delivery apps, taxes, and fees.
- Fixed expenses (money amounts) help you see how much the business needs to earn and appear in Cash Flow.
If the profile is incomplete, the home screen prompts you to fill in these costs before continuing.
How to open the Costs tab
- Open the side menu (three-line icon) and tap My Profile.
- At the top of My profile you will see tabs. Tap Costs.
- You will see the Production costs section and, further down, Variable expenses and Fixed expenses.
1. Production costs
Fill in the required fields in this section. They apply to the whole kitchen and are reused on every recipe.
Cost of gas and Type of gas
- In Cost of gas, enter what you pay for the cylinder or on the bill.
- In Type of gas, choose the matching type (for example, a standard cylinder). If you use piped gas, select that option and enter the price per cubic meter (m³) from the bill in Cost of gas.
Whenever the gas price changes, come back and update it. The app uses these values with the gas time on each recipe.
Electricity rate (per kWh)
In Electricity rate (per kWh), enter the kWh price from your electricity bill. That value is used when a recipe uses appliances with power and run time registered.
Desired profit per recipe (markup)
In Desired profit per recipe (markup), enter the profit percentage you want on top of total production cost. The app shows the matching multiplier beside the field (for example, 100% appears as x 2.0 — the suggested price starts at twice the cost).
This markup is the default suggestion on the pricing screen. You can still adjust each product’s price later.
Target COGS
In Target COGS, choose your business type from the list (bakery, restaurant, fast food, etc.). Each option shows the recommended range, for example "25% to 30%".
COGS (Cost of Goods Sold) is the share of the final price that corresponds to ingredients and base recipes. With the range you chose, the app indicates whether each recipe’s COGS is low, high, or within range.
Your labor rate (per hour)
In Your labor rate (per hour), enter how much you want to earn per hour worked. That is your “salary” built into the recipe cost, separate from gas, electricity, and supplies.
When you enter the value, the app shows an estimate such as: Working 8 hours a day and 5 days a week, this rate would give you a salary of… Treat that as a reference only; what goes into recipe cost is the hourly rate × the recipe’s work time.
2. Variable expenses
Scroll to Variable expenses. These are percentages applied to sales, such as delivery app commissions, taxes, and other fees.
- Tap Add variable expense.
- Fill in Description (for example, "Delivery commission").
- Fill in Value as a percentage (for example, 27 for 27%).
- Repeat for each fee. The app shows Total variable expenses as the sum of the percentages.
- To remove a row, use the trash icon next to it.
In pricing, these percentages are included so the final price already covers those fees. If you do not sell through apps and have no percentage taxes on sales, you can leave the list empty.
3. Fixed expenses
Next is Fixed expenses: recurring money costs (rent, internet, accountant, etc.) in your profile currency.
- Tap Add fixed expense.
- Fill in Description (for example, "Rent").
- Fill in Value as the monthly amount in your currency.
- In Due date, enter the day of the month when the bill is due (the field looks like "Every …th", for example every 10th).
- Repeat for each expense. The app shows Total fixed expenses.
- To remove a row, use its trash icon.
Fixed expenses help with planning (simulations, allocation in pricing, and Cash Flow entries). They do not replace the recipe’s production cost (supplies + gas + electricity + labor).
4. Save your changes
After filling the Costs tab, tap Save (confirmation icon at the top or the bottom button). The message Profile updated. confirms success.
You only need to revisit this setup when values change (new gas price, new electricity rate, new target markup, new marketplace fees, etc.). The home screen also warns if gas, electricity, or labor stay outdated for too long.
Next steps
- Register appliances and supplies.
- Register recipes with times and quantities.
- Set prices — see the pricing tutorial.
With the Costs tab filled in well, PocketChef can suggest prices and indicators (markup and COGS) based on your kitchen’s real numbers.
Do not wait — create your free account on PocketChef now!
Good work!