Multiplex Cinema Break-Even Point: About $116K Monthly Revenue

Fixed costs $58.1K Core monthly base

Contribution margin 68% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $85.4K Monthly target

Break-even timing Month 1 Launch month

Break-even calculator

Test monthly revenue, variable expenses, and fixed costs to see how far a multiplex cinema is from break-even.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Higher revenue adds more margin for rent, payroll, and other fixed costs. $ Light traffic Packed slate Variable expenses These are direct film, concession, and payment costs that rise with sales. $ Lean costs Heavy fees

Money available to cover fixed costs $482,822 $592,542 revenue - $109,720 variable expenses

Margin ratio

81%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly overhead the cinema must cover before profit starts. $ Tight overhead Bigger payroll

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which multiplex cinema expenses are fixed, and which move with attendance?

Cost classification

Break-even is only useful if each cost behaves the way the model says. Fixed rent and managers set the monthly floor, while ticket fees, payment fees, concession inputs, and stepped staffing move as attendance changes.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Lease Payments	Fixed	Hold at $35,000 per month in the break-even floor.	Spreading rent per ticket and assuming slow months reduce it.
Utilities	Fixed	Use $6,000 per month in this model, then watch usage spikes as hours and attendance rise.	Treating power and climate control as fully variable.
Film Exhibition Costs	Variable	Apply 14.0% of ticket revenue in the first year, stepping down to 12.0% by the fifth year.	Modeling film fees as a flat monthly booking charge.
Payment Processing Fees	Variable	Apply 1.5% of revenue in the first year, stepping down to 1.1% by the fifth year.	Ignoring fees on concession sales and private rentals.
Concession Item Costs	Variable	Subtract $3.50 per concession transaction in the first year, falling to $3.10 by the fifth year.	Treating concessions as pure profit after staffing.
Cinema Manager payroll	Fixed	Include the $85,000 annual salary as fixed operating overhead across the planning range.	Treating all payroll as variable with attendance.
Guest Services and Concessions Staff	Semi-fixed	Add labor in staffing steps: guest services rises from 3.0 to 5.0 FTE, and concessions from 2.0 to 4.0 FTE.	Treating all frontline payroll as fixed every month.
Cleaning Services	Semi-variable	Start with the $2,200 monthly base, then test added cleaning coverage when higher attendance creates more auditorium turns.	Keeping cleaning flat even when traffic and showtimes rise.

How does break-even shift across lean, base, and full cinema scenarios?

Scenario table

Here’s the quick math: lean sits close to the line, base clears it at about $144,000 EBITDA a month, and full adds a much wider cushion. Fixed costs set the floor, so lease and staffing choices matter most.

These are planning assumptions, not guarantees; actual results will move with attendance, film mix, and labor.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean opening mix	$120,000	$35,000	$80,000	70.8%	$5,000	Barely above break-even, so a small attendance miss turns it negative.
Base operating case	$297,500	$61,900	$91,500	79.2%	$144,100	Comfortably above the $115,600 line, so the current mix covers fixed costs.
Full build-out	$809,000	$168,500	$109,400	79.1%	$531,100	Large cushion here, but labor and film costs still need tight control.

What breaks the multiplex cinema break-even plan?

Stress test

The plan starts with about $297,500 a month of revenue against roughly $115,600 of break-even revenue, so it has a wide cushion. The real risk is not day-one break-even; it is weaker admissions, fixed-cost creep, and margin loss from film fees or rent.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$115,600	$181,900 cushion	Base revenue clears break-even with room to spare.
Revenue shortfall	Admissions fall 61% from base.	$115,600	$0 cushion	This is the edge of break-even; one more step down turns the plan negative.
Fixed-cost pressure	Monthly fixed costs rise by $144,000.	$297,500	$0 cushion	The current revenue base is fully consumed by overhead.
Margin pressure	Film exhibition costs rise to 140% of ticket revenue, pushing contribution margin to 30.8%.	$297,500	$0 cushion	Film fee creep can erase the operating cushion even if sales hold.
Combined pressure	Fixed costs rise by $144,000 a month and contribution margin slips to 30.8%.	$764,100	$466,600 gap	Weak admissions and higher costs together push break-even far above the base plan.

What should you verify before signing the lease and buying the cinema equipment?

Founder checklist

Before you commit, make sure the $35,000 monthly lease, $424,000 first-year payroll, and $1.20 million buildout still fit the traffic plan. The model breaks even in Month 1, but the $173,000 cash low in Month 3 means any slip in demand or staffing hits fast.

1Lease load$35K/mo

Confirm the lease stays at $35,000 a month, because that fixed bill sets the floor before one ticket is sold.

2Payroll plan$424K Y1

Verify first-year salaries total $424,000 and keep hiring tied to admissions so staff does not outrun demand.

3Margin mix$1.73M EBITDA

Check that the ticket, concession, rental, ad, arcade, and sponsorship mix still supports the modeled Year 1 EBITDA of $1.728 million.

4Buildout capex$1.20M

Lock the projector, sound, seating, ticketing, concession, IT, signage, arcade, and backup power spend at about $1.20 million before you commit.

5Demand proof150K admissions

Test whether the opening schedule can really pull 150,000 box office tickets and 110,000 concession transactions in the first year.

6Cash cushion$173K by M3

Keep at least $173,000 available by Month 3, because that is the modeled cash low and it has to absorb launch spend and early sales misses.