Inventory carrying cost (storage & capital)
Calculate storage cost, cost of capital and total carrying cost per month — optionally with a sales estimate via turns/year and a traffic light against the 5% target threshold.
Note: results are not made indexable via URL parameters. Canonical: https://tools.snapsoft.de/en/tools/lager-kapital
Who is this for?
- Ops/finance teams using carrying cost as an inventory guardrail
- Teams who need to make capital tie-up and cash decisions explicit
- E-commerce teams translating storage and write-off risk into repeatable KPI checks
Carrying cost: inventory costs money — even when nothing happens
Inventory is rarely “free”: storage space, handling, cost of capital and write-offs hit your unit economics every month — often invisible until cash becomes tight.
This tool calculates a simple monthly carrying-cost breakdown. Optionally enter turns/year to derive a sales estimate on a purchase-cost basis (COGS) and compare the ratio against a 5% target threshold.
Calculator
Max 6 inputs, clear outputs. Everything runs locally in your browser.
Inputs
Advanced options
Result
How it works
Average inventory value = avg inventory (units) × purchase price/unit.
Storage cost/month = avg inventory × storage cost €/unit/month.
Capital cost/month = inventory value × cost of capital p.a. / 12.
Write-off risk/month (optional) = inventory value × risk % p.a. / 12. Total carrying cost is the sum.
Optional (turns/year): monthly sales are modeled as a COGS estimate: inventory value × turns/year / 12. Carrying-cost ratio = total / sales. Signal: ≤ 5% green, 5–10% yellow, > 10% red.
Quick conclusion
- Carrying cost makes inventory costs visible — not just a “safety feeling” on the shelf.
- If the ratio is above target: reduce average stock or increase turns before cash becomes an issue.
- Document assumptions (rates, storage cost, risk) and update them regularly.
Sources & notes
- Investopedia: Carrying Costs of Inventory (definition)
- Shopify: inventory carrying costs (further reading)
Disclaimer: assumptions, fees and policies can vary and change. Always verify critical values in official sources (marketplace, supplier, payment provider).
FAQ
Why is turns/year optional?
You can compute monthly € costs without turns. But for the “% of sales” signal you need a sales estimate — which we derive via turns/year.
What does turns/year mean in this tool?
Turns/year is a simple inventory turnover metric. Here we use it on a purchase-cost basis (COGS): sales estimate ≈ avg inventory value × turns.
How do I choose a reasonable cost of capital?
Use a realistic internal rate (opportunity cost, credit line, WACC). The value affects capital costs linearly.
How do I estimate storage cost €/unit/month?
Use a simple average: (monthly warehouse/3PL cost incl. handling & fixed fees) ÷ avg units on hand. If you only know cubic/pallet rates: convert via package volume/weight and start with a conservative estimate.
Do you store inputs?
No. Everything runs locally in your browser.
Turn it into a repricing rule in SnapTrade
If you want carrying-cost guardrails (inventory, turns, capital tie-up) to live persistently per assortment/SKU: SnapTrade can document and monitor such rules automatically.