Purchase Price Variance Calculator

PPV = (actual price − standard price) × quantity purchased. Buying 500 units at ₹110 against a ₹100 standard gives an unfavourable variance of ₹5,000.

The benchmark you planned around — a budgeted rate, a negotiated contract price, or last period's average cost. Consistency matters more than which one you choose.

Usually, but check why. A cheaper price from lower quality, bigger-than-needed bulk orders, or missed delivery windows can cost more downstream than the variance saves.

Monthly works for most small businesses — often enough to catch supplier increases before they compound, without drowning in noise. Review your highest-spend items first (our ABC analysis tool helps rank them).

Yes. Each row is one item, with its own standard cost, actual cost and quantity. Add as many rows as you need with the add item button. The calculator totals the variance across all of them and counts the items compared. When an item cost more than standard, it names the biggest overrun. When one cost less, it names the biggest saving.

A row counts only when it has an item name and a quantity above zero. If you enter prices but leave the name blank or the quantity empty, the variance impact shows a dash. The row is then left out of the total and the items compared count. Fill in both and the row is added straight away.

If you claim input tax credit on the purchase, compare prices without GST, because you get the tax back and it is not part of your cost. If you cannot claim it, for example under the composition scheme, the GST is a real cost and you can include it. Either way, keep standard and actual prices on the same basis.

Purchase price variance looks only at price: how much more or less you paid per unit, multiplied by the quantity you actually bought. Budget variance compares total actual spend with the total budget, so it mixes price changes with buying more or less than planned. A budget overrun can come entirely from buying more, even when the price variance is zero.