PCB Manufacturing Break-Even Analysis: About $160K/Month

Fixed costs $130.9K/mo Monthly burn base

Contribution margin 81.7% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $160.3K/mo Revenue to break even

Break-even timing Month 1 Launch month

Break-even calculator

Test monthly revenue, variable expenses, and fixed costs to see where PCB manufacturing crosses break-even.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue This is the monthly sales run rate across board types. $ Low sales Full line Variable expenses These rise with materials, labor, shipping, and commissions. $ Lean costs Heavy costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $1,611,335 $1,731,667 revenue - $120,332 variable expenses

Margin ratio

93%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly overhead the margin must cover. $ Slim overhead Big overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which PCB manufacturing expenses are fixed, and which move with sales?

Cost classification

Break-even is only reliable when board-level inputs stay variable and factory overhead is not buried in unit cost. Misclassify rent or salaried technicians, and Month 1 break-even can look safer than cash really is.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
FR4 Laminate	Variable	Model at $80.00 per Standard FR4 unit; copper foil and chemicals follow the same unit-driven logic.	Blending board inputs into factory overhead instead of matching them to units produced.
Direct Manufacturing Labor	Variable	Use the per-unit amounts in cost of goods sold, from $40.00 on Standard FR4 to $250.00 on Rigid Flex.	Treating all labor as variable when salaried staff still creates monthly burn.
Packaging & Shipping Prep	Variable	Apply the per-unit packaging amount, such as $10.00 for Standard FR4 and $40.00 for Rigid Flex.	Using one flat packaging rate across product lines with very different handling needs.
Manufacturing Facility Rent	Fixed	Carry $25,000 per month through the break-even model regardless of early production volume.	Allocating rent per board and making low-volume months look artificially expensive.
Business Insurance	Fixed	Include $2,000 per month as operating overhead for the relevant planning range.	Leaving insurance below the line because it does not touch the shop floor.
Software Subscriptions & Licenses	Fixed	Include $1,800 per month as recurring overhead from Month 1 through Month 60.	Modeling licenses as a usage fee when the assumption is a stable monthly charge.
Factory Utilities	Semi-variable	Use the revenue-linked range of 0.4% to 0.8%, since plant usage rises with production mix.	Treating all utilities as fixed even when process load changes with output.
Skilled Technicians	Semi-fixed	Model salary in steps: 5.0 FTE in the first year, rising to 18.0 FTE by the fifth year.	Calling technician payroll variable per board when hiring happens ahead of volume.

How does break-even shift from lean FR4-heavy output to full HDI and rigid flex production?

Scenario table

Break-even improves as the line shifts from lean FR4-heavy output to higher-complexity HDI and rigid flex work. Revenue rises faster than fixed overhead, and the contribution margin edges up as sales and logistics rates fall.

Planning case only; results will move with yield, mix, pricing, and throughput.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean FR4-heavy case	$566,667	$103,867	$130,883	81.7%	$331,917	Clears break-even by about $406k a month.
Base mixed-volume case	$1,731,667	$298,832	$200,883	82.7%	$1,231,952	Clears break-even by about $1.49m a month.
Full high-complexity case	$3,490,000	$561,792	$272,967	83.9%	$2,655,242	Clears break-even by about $3.16m a month.

What breaks first if PCB orders slow or costs creep up?

Stress test

The base plan has a $406,667 monthly cushion, but that cushion can shrink fast if sales dip, overhead rises, or scrap and rework eat margin. The combined stress case matters most because cash bottoms at -$3.043 million in Month 10.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change to revenue or cost mix.	$160,000	$406,667 cushion	The base plan clears break-even in Month 1.
Revenue shortfall	Monthly sales fall 10% to $510,000.	$160,000	$350,000 cushion	Sales can soften and still clear break-even.
Fixed-cost pressure	Monthly overhead rises by $25,000.	$191,000	$375,667 cushion	Overhead creep raises the break-even bar fast.
Margin pressure	Contribution margin drops to 75% from scrap, overtime, and rework.	$175,000	$391,667 cushion	Yield losses move break-even more than small sales swings.
Combined pressure	Sales fall 10%, overhead rises $25,000, and margin drops to 75%.	$208,000	$302,000 cushion	This is the main stress case to watch in Month 10.

What should you verify before you sign the lease and order the PCB line?

Founder checklist

Don’t lock the lease or buy the line until you have signed demand, locked input suppliers, and checked that the first-year mix can carry the fixed burn. The model looks profitable on paper, but the Month 10 cash trough of -$3.043M is the real stress test.

1Signed demand2,950 orders

Confirm signed or near-signed orders that match the first-year mix of 1,500 Standard FR4, 500 Rapid Prototype, 800 High Volume Multilayer, 100 HDI Microvia, and 50 Rigid Flex boards before you lock the lease.

2Fixed burn$43.8K/mo

Add up the monthly fixed burn before you commit to rent, because the model already carries $25,000 of facility rent and $43.8K of total fixed costs each month.

3Quote margin85%-89% CM

Test every quote against the unit cost stack, since pricing ranges from $1,500 to $9,000 and the modeled contribution margin sits around 85% to 89%.

4Hiring ramp10 FTE

Build hiring around the launch ramp, because Year 1 already needs 10 FTE and $1.045M of payroll, with quality control and R&D joining in Year 2.

5Cash runway-$3.043M

Keep enough cash to survive the Month 10 trough at -$3.043M, because capex reaches $6.9M across build-out, the first line, cleanroom, drilling, waste treatment, quality control, information technology, and office setup.

6Supply chain5 inputs

Secure laminate, copper foil, substrates, chemicals, and packaging before launch, because one missing input can stop production and blow up the delivery plan.