Cost per Pick Calculator
Layout moves picks per hour; scanning moves errors.
Cost per pick
$0.619
$19,184 a month
Error cost is 42.7% of cost per pick — small per pick and $98,208 a year. Slot layout and pick path are what move picks per hour; scanning is what moves the error rate.
How the Cost per Pick Calculator works
Slot layout and pick path move picks per hour; scanning moves the error rate. They are separate problems with separate fixes, and treating picking productivity as one number hides which one is costing you.
Not financial advice. Marketplace fees change, and they vary by country, plan and seller status. Every rate here is an editable default, not a quoted price — check the platform's current fee schedule before you price a product against it. This is not tax or business advice.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good picks-per-hour rate?
It depends entirely on layout, order profile and equipment. Compare against your own trend and against what a redesigned layout could achieve, not against a published figure.
How much does a pick error cost?
The replacement item, the shipping both ways, the support interaction and the damage to the customer relationship. Twenty pounds is a conservative figure for most ecommerce.
How do I improve pick rates?
Slot fast movers near the packing bench, batch orders travelling the same route, and reduce the walking distance per pick. Walking is the majority of picking time in most warehouses.
Is barcode scanning worth it?
For anything beyond a handful of SKUs, yes. It cuts error rates by an order of magnitude and pays back through avoided errors rather than through speed.