Byblos Horizon1. Stock and shipping
Enter origin, product, cartons and freight. The model calculates chargeable weight, CIF, duties, tax, Beirut fees and landed cost per unit.
Free planning tool
What does it really cost to sell online in Lebanon?
Import, COD refusals, delivery, ads and overhead in one number. Prices checked September 2026, every source shown, every figure editable.
Prices checked Sep 2026 · Every source shown · Runs in your browser. Your numbers are saved only on this device, we never see them.
How it works
Six steps from stock to profit
2. Selling and delivery
Add price, payment mix, courier fees and refusal rate. See how placed orders become delivered orders and cash.
3. Marketing
Model a monthly budget, a CPC funnel or a ROAS target. Compare platform ROAS with cash actually collected.
4. Brand and tools
Include setup, content, creator and software costs. Presets remain editable and show their source confidence.
5. Fixed costs
Add staff, power, internet, rent and a volatility buffer so overhead is not hidden.
6. Results
Review profit, margin, break-even orders, cash needed, scenarios and the strongest controllable levers.
Lebanon cost structure
What makes Lebanon different
Cash on delivery changes the meaning of an order. A placed order isn't yet revenue. Some buyers cancel before dispatch, some refuse at the door, and the courier may hold collected cash until the next payout cycle. The calculator keeps placed, shipped, refused and delivered orders separate, then applies return charges and possible stock loss.
Import cost also stacks. Freight and insurance create CIF value. Product duty, the 3% import fee, an optional 10% fee and VAT can then apply before Beirut broker and local charges. A low supplier price can become a much higher landed cost once carton volume and chargeable weight are included.
Power and fuel create another moving layer. Generator rates and delivery prices can change quickly. This tool includes an editable volatility buffer rather than pretending that a September quote remains fixed.
Card options are limited. Shopify Payments and Stripe aren't directly available for Lebanese businesses, so many stores use cash on delivery, card at the door or a separate online gateway. Each mix has different fees, refusal exposure and cash timing.
Air or sea
A short phone case example
For 1,000 phone cases at $1.20 each, packed in 10 cartons of 7 kg measuring 45 by 35 by 30 cm, the tested September 2026 model estimates a landed total of about $1,583 by sea LCL at $115 per CBM. The same shipment is about $2,013 by air at $6 per chargeable kilogram, or $2,582 by express forwarder at $10.
Sea is cheaper in this fixture, but the published transit range is 45 to 65 days. Air and express are listed at 3 to 7 days. The choice is therefore about stock timing as well as cost. Get a written freight quote and include Beirut destination charges before ordering.
Advertising reality
Is 5x ROAS realistic?
5x ROAS is top 10% to 25% performance in large datasets. The global Meta median is 1.88x (Triple Whale, 40,000+ brands), and beauty is 1.54x. Gulf agencies report 4x to 8x for beauty and fashion on their own accounts, but that data isn't audited and Gulf reach costs much more than Lebanon. Plan with 2x to 3x and treat 5x as a stretch goal, usually reached with retargeting and repeat customers.
Glossary
The numbers in plain English
- AOV
- Average order value before or after delivery charge, as labelled.
- CIF
- Cost of goods, insurance and freight used for customs calculations.
- CBM
- Cubic metres of shipment volume.
- Chargeable weight
- The greater of physical and dimensional weight for air or express.
- Landed cost
- Stock cost plus freight, insurance, duty, taxes and local fees.
- COD
- Cash collected when an order is delivered.
- Refusal rate
- The share of pay on delivery orders refused at the door.
- CM1
- Revenue after product cost and refused stock loss.
- CM2
- CM1 after packaging, delivery, returns and payment costs.
- CM3
- CM2 after ads and influencer spend.
- ROAS
- Attributed revenue divided by ad spend.
- Break-even ROAS
- The ROAS needed for contribution to cover acquisition cost.
- CPA
- Ad spend divided by placed orders attributed to ads.
FAQ
Common questions
- The September 2026 planning range in this calculator is $4.50 to $7.50 per chargeable kilogram for airport to airport air freight, $8 to $12 for express through a forwarder, and $85 to $135 per CBM for sea LCL. Your product weight, carton size, route and local charges change the final quote.
- The model applies the product duty rate, the 3% import fee and 11% VAT to the relevant customs value. A 10% additional import fee and a 1.5% refundable deposit are optional because they do not apply to every shipment. Confirm your exact HS code and charges with a customs broker.
- The default standard courier fee is $5 per shipped order and the return fee is $2.50 for a refused order. Public courier ranges can be higher. Enter the written quote from your courier because route, size, weight and service level matter.
- Start with the cost per purchase your margin can support, not a fixed budget. The calculator compares CPC, conversion rate, order value, delivery rate and margin. It then shows the monthly spend needed for 100, 300 or 500 placed orders.
- It can happen, but it is a stretch goal. Large datasets put median Meta ROAS at 1.88x. Plan around 2x to 3x until your own delivered order data proves otherwise, especially when cash on delivery refusals reduce the cash you collect.
- It is a planning model, not a quote. The formulas are tested against published fixtures and every default is editable. Freight, customs, delivery, fuel and advertising change often, so replace rough values with current written quotes before committing money.
- The rough planning range is $200 to $800 for a paid post and $25 to $60 for a UGC video. The calculator shows how many placed orders each option needs to repay its cost after delivery refusals and operating costs.
Use and cite
Sources you can inspect
Cite this calculator
Byblos Horizon, Lebanon E-Commerce Cost Calculator, https://bybloshorizon.com/tools/ecommerce-cost-calculator-lebanon, data checked September 2026.