Business Finance
Commission Calculator
Calculate flat-rate or tiered sales commission earnings, with optional base salary, to find your total pay for any period.
🔒 All calculations happen instantly in your browser. No data is sent to any server.
How the calculation works
Flat Commission = Sales Amount × (Commission Rate ÷ 100)
Tiered Commission — each dollar of sales is taxed at the rate for its bracket (like progressive income tax). Higher brackets apply only to sales above the threshold.
Total Pay = Base Salary + Commission Earned
Example (flat): $15,000 sales at 10% = $1,500 commission.
Example (tiered): First $10k at 5% ($500) + next $5k at 8% ($400) = $900 commission.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Flat commission applies a single rate to all sales. Tiered commission uses different rates for different sales bands — higher sales unlock higher rates on the amounts above each threshold, incentivising overachievement.
- Like progressive tax brackets, each dollar of sales is taxed at the rate for its band. If the first $10,000 is at 5% and sales above are at 8%, a $15,000 salesperson earns $500 (on the first $10k) + $400 (on the next $5k) = $900.
- In most countries, commission is taxed as ordinary income, the same as salary. The withholding method may differ (some employers withhold at a flat supplemental rate), but at year-end it's all combined on your tax return.
- Rates vary widely: retail 1–5%, real estate 2.5–3% per side, insurance 5–15%, SaaS software 8–12%, financial products 20–30%. Benchmark against your industry and ensure the OTE (on-target earnings) is competitive.
- OTE = Base Salary + Commission at 100% quota achievement. It represents what a rep earning their full quota makes. Most reps achieve 60–80% of quota, so realistic earnings are typically 60–80% of OTE.