Tools

Publisher's Game Budget Calculator

Type Calculator

Topic Budgeting

Published 24 May 2026

Updated 3 August 2026

Four inputs. One total. Built for the moment a publisher asks: what's the all-in number.

The total is the number for the ask slide in the Publisher Pitch Deck Template. Publishers check it against what the game can realistically earn, as what a publisher actually reads in your pitch deck explains.

Development Budget

This is the number you know best, and the only one entirely in your control. It's also the figure you put in the deck when you pitch to a publisher.

Development Budget is usually calculated by Dev months x Monthly burn Rate + 20% of the total for rainy days.

Publisher Markup

This percentage is often buried in the contract definition of Net Revenue. Read the recoupment section carefully before agreeing to any number.

Marketing Budget

Covers promotional activities for the game: paid ad campaigns, influencer and creator deals, PR, festival and event presence, trailers, and store page assets. Set by the publisher, not by you. Indie titles typically run $50,000 to $200,000; more ambitious projects reach $500,000 or beyond.

Services Budget

Porting, QA, and localisation. Usually set by the publisher, but worth pressure-testing: which platforms you want to release on, which languages are non-negotiable for you, how many words you have to localize, etc.. Use the rates below to estimate.

Reference rates for services

Porting (per platform) ≈ $20,000

Localisation (standard) ≈ $0.10-0.13 / word

QA ≈ $25 / hour

Total to Recoup

Recoupment. As a general rule, the developer doesn't see a revenue share until net sales clear this total, but this isn't written in stone. Some deals carve out marketing, tier the recoupment, or apply different rules to different cost buckets. Read the recoupment clause before assuming anything.

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Publishing Break-Even Calculator

Notes

Publisher math. Project viability is usually evaluated against 2x the total (company-level break-even) and 3x (growth). You aren't expected to model those targets, but knowing they exist tells you how the publisher reads your budget when the pitch lands on their desk.
Estimation only. Every figure here, including the reference rates, is a working estimate drawn from market averages. Treat the output as a directional indicator, not a contract. Real numbers come from real quotes.
Next step. Once you have a total, run it through the Publishing Break-Even Calculator to see how many units you need to sell to clear recoupment at 1×, 2× and 3×.
Marketing, in my experience. For most deals, marketing lands somewhere between 20 and 50% of the development budget, most often around a third. Bigger budgets tend to sit at the lower end of that ratio.
Services, in my experience. Services (porting, QA, localisation) usually run between 25 and 35% of the development budget. It can climb well past that when a project is heavy on ports, QA passes, or languages.