Quick answer: Beverage cost percentage is what you spent on the drink ingredients and packaging you used, divided by drink sales. Food cost percentage is the same calculation for food. Use (beginning inventory + purchases − ending inventory) ÷ sales × 100 for each category, over the same period. Track them separately because coffee drinks and pastries usually carry very different margins, and a blended number hides problems.
Key takeaways
- Same formula, separate categories.
- Drinks usually have lower cost percentages than food.
- Include cups, lids and sleeves in beverage cost.
- Watch trends, not just one month.
The formula
Cost of goods used = beginning inventory + purchases − ending inventory
Cost percentage = cost of goods used ÷ sales × 100
Run it twice: once for beverage inventory and sales, once for food.
A worked example
Illustrative month:
| Beverage | Food | |
|---|---|---|
| Beginning inventory | $3,200 | $900 |
| Purchases | $7,800 | $4,600 |
| Ending inventory | $3,000 | $700 |
| Cost used | $8,000 | $4,800 |
| Sales | $32,000 | $12,000 |
| Cost % | 25% | 40% |
| Blended | 29.1% |
The blended number (29.1%) looks fine. But if food creeps from 40% to 48% because of pastry waste, the blended figure moves only about two points, and you might not notice.
What goes in each bucket
Beverage: coffee, milk and plant milks, syrups, sauces, powders, tea, ice (if purchased), and the cups, lids, sleeves and straws that leave with the drink.
Food: pastries, baked goods, sandwiches, grab-and-go, plus pastry bags and boxes that leave with food.
Neither (usually operating supplies): cleaning chemicals, towels and smallwares.
Decide once, write it down, and stay consistent so month-to-month comparisons are fair.
Why categories behave differently
Espresso drinks are built on relatively inexpensive ingredients with a lot of labor and skill on top, so they usually carry lower ingredient cost percentages. Food, especially bought-in pastries, often carries higher percentages and more waste risk. That doesn't make food bad; it makes it different. Price and manage each on its own terms.
Turning numbers into action
- Beverage cost rising? Check portioning (shot weights, milk waste, syrup pumps), price changes on milk and coffee, and packaging costs. Our cost per drink guide breaks it down per recipe.
- Food cost rising? Check waste logs, order quantities and supplier prices. Reduce par levels for slow sellers.
- Both? Revisit prices; see our menu pricing guide.
The menu engineering matrix, which sorts items by popularity and contribution margin, helps decide what to promote, reprice or drop in each category.
Good habits
- Count on the same day each month, ideally after close.
- Separate invoices by category as they arrive.
- Log waste daily by category.
- Compare to your POS theoretical cost when possible.
For the bigger picture, see our coffee shop COGS guide and inventory management guide.
Make packaging costs predictable
Cups, lids and sleeves are part of beverage cost. Affogato Bean offers branded packaging with steady recurring pricing through Affogato Reserve. See products.
General information, not accounting advice.
Frequently asked questions
What is beverage cost percentage?
Beverage cost percentage is the cost of the beverage ingredients and packaging you used in a period divided by beverage sales in that period, times 100.
How do you calculate food cost percentage for a café?
Food cost percentage = (beginning food inventory + food purchases − ending food inventory) ÷ food sales × 100. Use the same period for purchases, inventory and sales.
Why track food and beverage costs separately?
Drinks and food usually have very different cost percentages. Blending them can hide a problem, such as rising pastry waste masked by strong drink margins.
Sources
Sources checked October 2026. Statistics are reported as published by each source.