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Supplier Price Comparison Calculator
Cost per unit = (pack price + fees) ÷ amount in the pack. Enter what each supplier charges for the pack they sell, and see who is cheapest per pound, ounce, gallon or each, and what switching saves you in a year. Free, and nothing you enter leaves your browser.
Where
Pack price ($)
Pack size
Unit
Fees ($)
Per lb
$1.80
$1.40
$3.00
Warehouse club, in store is 22% cheaper
$1.40/lb vs $1.80/lb now · $208 a year on Creamy peanut butter
The formulas
Cost per unit = (pack price + fees) ÷ pack size in that unit
Percent cheaper = (now − cheapest) ÷ now × 100
Yearly savings = (now − cheapest) × weekly use × 52
Worked example: a 35 lb tub of peanut butter
A smoothie shop had been ordering a 35 lb tub of creamy peanut butter online for $63.00. The same 35 lb tub had a $48.99 shelf tag at a Costco Business Center in October 2026. The shop goes through about 10 lb a week.
$208 a year on one item is worth a trip if the trip is already happening. The owner's next move was the right one: check the five most expensive items on the inventory sheet while in the store. A 40 oz grocery jar at $7.49 works out to $3.00/lb, so the small pack is the most expensive way to buy it.
Which items to compare first
List every item with its weekly use and current cost per unit. A restaurant inventory template or your last invoices have both.
Multiply weekly use × cost per unit × 52 for yearly spend.
Sort by yearly spend and price the top five at every supplier you can reach.
Switch only where the savings beat the extra trip, minimum order or delivery fee.
What the cheapest unit price leaves out
Trips and delivery. Put fuel, time or a delivery fee in the Fees column, split across the packs you buy on that run.
Shelf life. A bigger pack is only cheaper if you use it before it expires. Divide the pack size by weekly use to see how many weeks it lasts.
The same spec. Compare the same grade, brand or yield. A cheaper product that changes the recipe isn't the same item.
Keep every supplier's pack and price on each item, and order from the right one with LineNow's restaurant purchasing software. Free for 90 days, $100/month per business unit after.
Questions about comparing supplier prices
Convert every quote to the same unit first. Add any fees to the pack price, then divide by the amount in the pack: a 35 lb tub at $48.99 is $1.40 a pound. Compare the per-unit numbers, not the pack prices.
Enter each pack as sold. A case of 6 × 5 lb is 30 lb, and a 40 oz jar is 40 oz. The calculator converts pounds, ounces, kilograms and grams to one another, and gallons, quarts, fluid ounces, liters and milliliters to one another.
Sometimes. Warehouse clubs often win on shelf-stable items sold in bulk, and distributors often win on proteins and produce at volume. Count your trip time and fuel as a fee, and check that you can use the bigger pack before it expires.
The ones you spend the most on in a year: weekly use × cost per unit × 52. A few cents per unit on an item you buy every week is worth more than dollars on a spice you buy twice a year.
Recheck your top items whenever a supplier changes a price, and at least once a quarter. Fresh produce and proteins can move every week or two.
