Piece-Based Pricing Guide

This guide explains how to set up and use piece-based pricing for ingredients that are counted as individual items (slices, pieces, wraps, etc.) rather than measured by weight.

Overview

Piece-based pricing allows you to cost recipes based on individual pieces rather than weight measurements. For example, "2 slices of bacon" or "1 tortilla wrap" instead of "60g bacon" or "45g tortilla".

When to Use Piece-Based Pricing

Use piece-based pricing for ingredients that are:

  • Naturally portioned: Bacon slices, chicken breasts, burger buns
  • Pre-cut items: Sliced cheese, deli meats, pizza slices
  • Countable items: Tortilla wraps, eggs, bread rolls
  • Uniform portions: Items where each piece has consistent size/weight

Setting Up Inventory Items

Step 1: Basic Information

Set up your inventory item normally with:

  • Ingredient Name: Description of the item
  • Price per base unit: Cost per gram/ml derived from the container price
  • Container Size: Total weight or volume of the package
  • Case Information: Case size and price if applicable

Step 2: Portion Information

This is where piece-based pricing is configured:

Piece Size & Unit

Enter the weight or volume of one piece and choose the unit that matches how you measure it (grams, ounces, milliliters, etc.).

Examples:

  • Bacon slice: 28 g
  • Tortilla wrap: 1.6 oz
  • Cheese slice: 0.7 oz
  • Chicken breast: 200 g

Piece Measure

Select the unit type from dropdown:

  • slice - for sliced items (bacon, cheese, deli meat)
  • piece - for individual items (wraps, buns, chicken pieces)
  • each - alternative to piece

Using in Recipes

Recipe Entry

When adding the ingredient to a recipe:

  1. Amount: Enter the number of pieces needed (Example: 2 for 2 slices of bacon)
  2. Unit: Must match the Piece Measure from inventory

Cost Calculation

The system automatically calculates:

Recipe Cost = Amount × (Price per gram × Piece Size)

Example - Bacon:

2 slices × ($0.0135/gram × 28 grams/slice) = 2 × $0.378 = $0.76

Examples

Example 1: Bacon Slices

Inventory Setup:

  • Piece Size: 28 grams
  • Piece Measure: slice
  • Price per gram: $0.0135

Recipe Usage:

  • Amount: 3
  • Unit: slice
  • Cost: 3 × ($0.0135 × 28) = $1.13

Important Matching Rules

For piece-based pricing to work, the Piece Measure in inventory must match the Unit in your recipe:

✅ Correct Matches:

  • Inventory: slice → Recipe: slice
  • Inventory: piece → Recipe: piece

❌ Won't Work:

  • Inventory: slice → Recipe: piece
  • Inventory: piece → Recipe: gram

Troubleshooting

Cost Too Low

  • Check if Piece Size is set correctly (not 1 gram by default)
  • Verify Price per gram is accurate

Cost Too High

  • Piece Size might be too large
  • Check if using correct unit in recipe (slice vs piece)

System Not Using Piece Pricing

  • Ensure Piece Measure matches recipe unit exactly
  • Check browser console for pricing strategy messages
  • Verify Piece Size is greater than 0