Financial Calculator User Guide
COST · Cost and margin
Choose an instruction to see the matching keys and values. Practice separately in the real calculator.
Open financial calculator ↗Worked examples
Know the mode controls
Store any two of CST, SEL and MRG, then select the third and SOLVE. MRG is profit as a percentage of selling price, rather than markup on cost.
Review these controls before choosing a case. Keystroke steps show menus opening, selection and closure.
MRG · Open lesson
MRG · Gross Margin Percentage — Profit divided by selling price, times 100. Cost 40 and selling price 100 give 60%. This is not markup divided by cost; negative margins indicate a loss.
1. Organize the inputs
Find margin from cost and price
Cost CST=40 and selling price SEL=100. Find margin MRG.
| Variable | Input | Action |
|---|---|---|
| CST | 40 | EXE |
| SEL | 100 | EXE |
| MRG | Unknown | Select → SOLVE |
2. Follow the keystrokes
Steps 1–5
3. Show answer and interpretation
%
Margin=(100−40)÷100=60%, using selling price as denominator. Markup uses cost and would be 150%.
4. Avoid these mistakes
- Do not confuse margin with markup. To solve cost or selling price, store the other two known values first.
- Finish input with EXE before solving. Clear or changed inputs/settings invalidate earlier results; calculate again.
5. Practice it yourself
The link opens a separate calculator tab. It does not fill, clear or change your calculator's inputs; follow the settings and rows above.
Practice in the financial calculator (new tab) ↗CST · Open lesson
CST · Cost — The nonnegative cost in your chosen currency. Store selling price and margin to solve it.
1. Organize the inputs
Cost — manual workflow
Recover the unknown from a product’s cost, price and gross margin. Given SEL=100 · MRG=60, use the settings below to find CST manually.
| Variable | Input | Action |
|---|---|---|
| SEL | 100 | EXE |
| MRG | 60 | EXE |
| CST | Unknown | Select → SOLVE |
2. Follow the keystrokes
Steps 1–5
3. Show answer and interpretation
amount
Cost: 40. The nonnegative cost in your chosen currency. Store selling price and margin to solve it.
4. Avoid these mistakes
- Do not confuse margin with markup. To solve cost or selling price, store the other two known values first.
- Finish input with EXE before solving. Clear or changed inputs/settings invalidate earlier results; calculate again.
5. Practice it yourself
The link opens a separate calculator tab. It does not fill, clear or change your calculator's inputs; follow the settings and rows above.
Practice in the financial calculator (new tab) ↗SEL · Open lesson
SEL · Selling Price — A positive selling price in the same currency as cost. A 100% margin cannot determine a positive selling price from cost.
1. Organize the inputs
Selling Price — manual workflow
Recover the unknown from a product’s cost, price and gross margin. Given CST=40 · MRG=60, use the settings below to find SEL manually.
| Variable | Input | Action |
|---|---|---|
| CST | 40 | EXE |
| MRG | 60 | EXE |
| SEL | Unknown | Select → SOLVE |
2. Follow the keystrokes
Steps 1–5
3. Show answer and interpretation
amount
Selling Price: 100. A positive selling price in the same currency as cost. A 100% margin cannot determine a positive selling price from cost.
4. Avoid these mistakes
- Do not confuse margin with markup. To solve cost or selling price, store the other two known values first.
- Finish input with EXE before solving. Clear or changed inputs/settings invalidate earlier results; calculate again.
5. Practice it yourself
The link opens a separate calculator tab. It does not fill, clear or change your calculator's inputs; follow the settings and rows above.
Practice in the financial calculator (new tab) ↗Supported results and operating manual
Targets across the lessons: MRG · CST · SEL
COST · Operating manual
- CST is cost, SEL selling price and MRG margin percentage.
- Enter two and SOLVE the unknown.
- Margin divides by selling price, not cost: CST=40 and SEL=100 yield MRG=60%.
Keys and settings
Keys and workflow
- ↑↓ selects the active row. The highlighted row is the variable you are editing.
- Enter a number or expression (500*6 or 10000*(1.05)^10), then EXE to evaluate, store and advance. Dates use date input instead of expressions.
- SOLVE calculates the selected unknown/output from the other known values. MATH uses EXE only.
- CLR clears the draft while editing; otherwise it clears only the selected stored variable. Backspace recalls a stored value and deletes its last character, then EXE stores the change. Escape cancels a draft and restores the original value. After EXE advances, select the field you want to change. Clearing a stored input invalidates dependent results. Selecting a read-only result or history row leaves it untouched; settings and MATH history are preserved. MENU offers current-mode clear and calculator reset.
MENU → Fill Example provides working inputs for the current mode. N/A or an error means the inputs/settings do not support a valid result; check the highlighted field and domain restrictions.
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