How to split bulk purchase costs across items
A bulk purchase has one total cost, but each item you resell needs its own cost to show whether it made money. Splitting that total carefully, and adding the extra charges that belong to the order, makes per-item profit meaningful.
Record the order as one Deal
A purchase or order is one Deal, even when it has several lines or many units. Each resellable unit becomes an item linked to that Deal. Keep the source, purchase date, and currency on the Deal, so you can check the record later.
Enter what you paid, then the costs that belong to it
Start with the amount you paid for the resellable part of the order. Then add the purchase costs that belong to the same order.
- Shipping, customs, and other purchase costs increase the total cost.
- If a discount is already included in the price you enter, do not subtract it again.
- A cash or card refund reduces the total cost only after you have received it.
- A pending refund does not change the cost until the money arrives.
Counting a discount twice, or counting a refund before it arrives, makes the items look cheaper than they were.
Choose how the cost is split
FlipKeep spreads the cost using these rules:
- Each line that has a value is split evenly across that line's units.
- Lines without a value share the cost that is left after the valued lines.
- If no line has a value, the total is split evenly across all units.
- You can enter a custom cost for each unit, as long as the custom costs add up exactly to the total.
When every line has a value, the values must add up to the full cost, including shipping and other purchase costs. FlipKeep will not accept the purchase until they match.
A worked example
This example uses made-up numbers. An order contains a camera, four kitchen gadgets, and twenty paperbacks. The amount paid is 200.00, and shipping adds 20.00, so the total cost is 220.00. You give the camera a value of 150.00 and the gadgets a value of 40.00. The paperbacks have no value.
| Line | Units | Line cost | Cost per unit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camera | 1 | 150.00 | 150.00 |
| Kitchen gadgets | 4 | 40.00 | 10.00 |
| Paperbacks | 20 | 30.00 | 1.50 |
| Total | 25 | 220.00 |
The paperbacks share the 30.00 that remains after the valued lines, so each paperback costs 1.50. The lines add up to the total cost of 220.00, so FlipKeep can save the purchase.
If you prefer a different split, enter a custom cost for each unit. FlipKeep checks that the custom costs add up to the total before it saves the purchase.
Mixed orders with personal items
Some orders include goods you plan to keep. For those, choose one of two methods:
- Enter the resale cost directly. Use this when you know how much of the order was for items you will sell.
- Let FlipKeep split the order total by merchandise value. It compares the value of the resale items with the value of the personal items, then applies that share to the order total.
Personal goods stay out of your inventory, so their cost never appears in an item's cost.
Record purchases in another currency
Enter the amounts in the Deal's transaction currency. If your home currency is different, record the exchange rate you used. FlipKeep stores that historical rate with the transaction, so a later change in the exchange rate does not rewrite an earlier result. The app also keeps a table of reference rates that refreshes once a day, and you can refresh it by hand.
Rounding
FlipKeep calculates money in the smallest unit of the currency, such as cents. When an amount cannot be divided evenly, the leftover unit is assigned to a stable line or unit, so the totals still reconcile.
Checklist before you save
- Enter the purchase date, the source, and the currency.
- Add each line with its quantity.
- Enter the amount paid for the resale part of the order.
- Add shipping, customs, and other purchase costs.
- Add refunds only after they have arrived.
- Enter line values where you know them, and check that the lines add up to the total cost.
- Review the cost of each item before you save.
Common questions
Should I split a bulk cost evenly or by value?
If the items are similar in value, an even split is simple to follow. If one item is worth much more than the others, enter a value for its line so its cost reflects that. FlipKeep supports both approaches, and you can enter a custom cost for each unit.
Do shipping and customs become part of the item cost?
Yes. Shipping, customs, and other purchase costs increase the total cost of the Deal, and FlipKeep spreads that total across the items.
What if a discount is already included in the price?
Enter the price you actually paid, and do not subtract the discount again. Subtracting it twice would make the items look cheaper than they were.
Can I record a purchase in a different currency?
Yes. Enter the amounts in the Deal's transaction currency and record the exchange rate you used. FlipKeep keeps that rate with the purchase.
Why does FlipKeep reject a purchase?
FlipKeep rejects a purchase when the values do not reconcile with the total cost. Check that shipping and other purchase costs are included, and that any custom costs add up to the total.
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