Commission Calculator

Enter the sales and the commission tiers to calculate the commission with the tiered or the whole-amount method, with a breakdown by tier.

Method

Sales

Tier table (1 to 10 rows. A tier starts at "this amount or more" and ends where the next one starts. The first tier starts at 0. Empty rows are ignored)

A lower limit means "this amount or more". Sales exactly equal to a limit fall in the higher tier. Each limit must be greater than the one in the row above.

Rounding (to 2 decimal places, once, on the whole commission)

Commission —

Total of the breakdown (exact, before rounding)—

Effective rate (commission ÷ sales)—

For reference: with the other method—

The amounts in the breakdown are exact, not rounded (they divide exactly at 6 decimal places). The commission is the total of the unrounded breakdown, rounded once at the end to 2 decimal places. The effective rate is the exact, unrounded commission divided by the sales, rounded to 2 decimal places.

The number copied is the commission, without commas.

The two methods

Tiered (marginal) method. Only the part of the sales that falls in each tier is multiplied by that tier's rate, and the results are added up. The commission grows smoothly as sales cross a limit.
Whole-amount method. The rate of the tier the sales reach is applied to the whole sales amount. The commission jumps at each limit.

Both are common ways to write a commission plan, but plans differ. Check which method your plan uses; this tool does not decide for you.

Example

Tiers: 0 and up at 2%, 10,000 and up at 5%, 20,000 and up at 8%. Sales of 25,000:

Method	Calculation	Commission
Tiered (marginal)	10,000 × 2% + 10,000 × 5% + 5,000 × 8% = 200 + 500 + 400	1,100.00
Whole amount	25,000 × 8% (the highest tier reached)	2,000.00

How the numbers are handled

Sales and limits are entered in your currency, with up to 2 decimal places. The currency is not fixed and no tax is applied.
The breakdown is exact. The commission is rounded once, on the total, in the way you choose.
The first limit must be 0. Rates are from 0 to 100% with up to 2 decimal places. Up to 10 tiers.

What is not included

Quotas, accelerators that apply to the year, clawbacks, caps, bonuses, splits between people and payment timing are not covered.
Taxes and withholding are not calculated.
A real plan or contract decides how commission is paid. Use this as a worked estimate.

Sources

This is a general calculation based on the usual definitions of the two methods. No source was checked for it, and no commission plan is assumed.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between marginal and whole-amount commission?

The marginal method applies each rate only to the sales within its tier. The whole-amount method applies the rate of the highest tier reached to all the sales.

What happens when sales equal a limit exactly?

They fall in the higher tier.

Can I use a different currency?

Yes. The tool does not use a currency.

Why can the commission jump?

With the whole-amount method, crossing a limit changes the rate for all the sales at once.