Audiology Clinic Break-Even Analysis: $81K Monthly Revenue Target

Fixed costs $67.0K/mo Monthly fixed base

Contribution margin 82.5% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $81.2K/mo Monthly target

Break-even timing Month 1 Launch month

Break-even calculator

Test whether monthly revenue covers variable expenses and the clinic's fixed monthly cost base.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Revenue is the pool that covers direct costs and then fixed overhead. $ Lower sales Higher sales Variable expenses These are the costs that move with patient volume and sales mix. $ Lower costs Higher costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $490,381 $582,400 revenue - $92,019 variable expenses

Margin ratio

84%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the overhead the clinic must cover every month. $ Lean overhead Higher overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which audiology clinic expenses are fixed, and which move with patient volume?

Cost classification

Separate fixed overhead from patient-driven spend because the clinic reaches break-even in Month 1 only if recurring costs are classified cleanly. Keep rent and hired payroll apart from hearing-aid, marketing, and payment-volume expenses.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Clinic Rent/Lease	Fixed	Use $8,000 per month as fixed overhead from Month 1 through Month 60.	Tying rent to visit count instead of capacity already leased.
General Audiologist payroll	Fixed	Treat hired salary as fixed once staffed; first year includes 2.0 FTE at $90,000 annual salary each.	Modeling clinician pay as variable when staff are on payroll before volume arrives.
Wholesale Cost of Hearing Aids	Variable	Apply 9.0% of related revenue in the first year, declining to 7.0% by the fifth year.	Blending hearing-aid product margin into general visit gross margin.
Cost of Accessories	Variable	Apply 0.5% of revenue across the full Month 1 to Month 60 model period.	Ignoring small add-on expenses because each item looks immaterial.
Marketing & Patient Acquisition	Variable	Use 6.0% of revenue in the first year, then step down to 5.0% by the fifth year.	Locking marketing as a flat monthly amount when the model defines it as revenue-based.
Payment Processing Fees	Variable	Apply 2.0% of revenue in the first year, falling to 1.5% by the fifth year.	Leaving card and payment fees out of contribution margin.
Utilities	Semi-variable	Start with the $800 monthly base, but watch usage as hours, rooms, and patient flow rise.	Treating utilities as fully fixed even when longer clinic hours raise consumption.
Equipment Maintenance & Calibration	Semi-fixed	Use $1,000 per month until added equipment or service capacity forces a higher service tier.	Spreading launch equipment purchases into monthly operating overhead.

How does break-even change from a lean launch to a full audiology clinic?

Scenario table

Break-even gets easier as the clinic scales because fixed overhead is spread across more monthly revenue and the CM ratio (revenue left after variable costs) improves. The base case looks balanced; the full clinic has the widest cushion if referrals and utilization hold.

Planning figures only; these scenarios are modeled assumptions, not guarantees.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean launch clinic	$2.895M	$507k	$670k	82.5%	$1.718M	Profitable, but the cushion still depends on steady referrals.
Base clinic	$8.158M	$1.289M	$995k	84.2%	$5.874M	Best balance of scale and control if hearing-aid conversion stays strong.
Full clinic	$19.26M	$2.696M	$1.458M	86.0%	$15.106M	Largest buffer, but only if provider utilization and referral flow hold.

What breaks the audiology clinic break-even plan?

Stress test

Here’s the quick math: $670K fixed overhead at an 82.5% contribution margin means about $812K break-even. The biggest stress points are slower patient flow, weaker hearing-aid conversion, higher supplier prices, and reimbursement delays.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$812K	$2,083K cushion	Baseline stays well above break-even.
Revenue shortfall	Revenue falls 20% to $2,316K.	$812K	$1,504K cushion	Slower patient flow trims profit, but the cushion remains strong.
Fixed-cost pressure	Fixed overhead rises 10% to $737K.	$893K	$2,002K cushion	Overhead creep pushes the break-even line higher.
Margin pressure	Variable expenses rise 5 points to 22.5%.	$865K	$2,030K cushion	Supplier or payment-fee pressure erodes margin fast.
Combined pressure	Revenue falls 20%, fixed overhead rises 10%, and variable expenses rise to 22.5%.	$951K	$1,365K cushion	This is the warning case: slower flow, lower conversion, price pressure, and reimbursement delays stack up.

What should an audiology clinic founder verify before signing the lease and buying equipment?

Founder checklist

Do the volume, payroll, and cash checks before you commit. If referrals, staffing, and launch funds cannot support the modeled first-year load, the rent and equipment will hit before the clinic has breathing room.

1Referral Load600% / 500%

Check that referral sources can fill the modeled first-year demand mix: 600% general audiology, 500% hearing-aid specialist, 500% vestibular, 550% pediatric, and 400% clinical director.

2Staffing Ramp8 FTE

Confirm you can hire and fund the Year 1 team at 8 FTE, because payroll runs about $55K a month.

3Contribution Mix82.5% CM

Use the Year 1 cost mix to confirm an 82.5% contribution margin (CM, revenue left after variable costs); if service mix shifts lower, break-even moves fast.

4Overhead Load$20K/mo

Make sure the clinic can carry about $20K a month in fixed overhead, including the $8K rent, while patient volume ramps.

5Cash Cushion$863K

Keep at least $863K of launch cash, because the model’s minimum cash hits in Month 1 and the build-out is heavy.

6Go-Live StackPre-open

Have billing, licensure, insurance, demo inventory, electronic medical record (EMR) setup, and local marketing ready before opening, or the first visits will not convert.