Side tool — outside the 10 steps
Helium calculator
Helium is priced per balloon, not per foot, so it never belongs in your garland tiers. Work the number out here and enter it into Fanfaire as its own item. Nothing on this page changes your tier prices, delivery fee or Results.
I offer helium work
Turn this off if you don't do helium at all — every calculation below stops, and nothing carries into your garland pricing.
Step 1
Your helium supply
Your helium
$1.72 / cu ft
11" latex gas cost
$0.86
Blend saves gas on latex only. Foils always get 100% helium — so does any latex carrying weight, like a tail or a charm.
Step 2
Cost per balloon
| Size | Cu ft | Helium | Balloon | Hi-Float | Ribbon | Each | Dozen | In bouquet | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11" latex | 0.5 | $1.11 | $13.33 | $0.86 | |||||
| 17/18" latex | 1.5 | $3.15 | $37.83 | $2.58 | |||||
| 24" latex | 4.2 | $9.47 | $113.65 | $7.23 | |||||
| 36" latex | 14 | $27.98 | $335.80 | $24.10 | |||||
| Foil (27") | 1 | $4.49 | $53.90 | $1.72 | |||||
| Foil (34") | 2 | $8.71 | $104.56 | $3.44 |
Helium costs carry an amber dot while they come from your tank price. Type over any of them if your supplier bills differently. Balloon costs are seeded from Sempertex / Tuftex / Kalisan averages.
Step 3
Labor and overhead
Overhead and pay start from the numbers you already entered in the main calculator. Change them here and only the helium math moves. Hours and share are helium-only: your garland work already carries most of the overhead, so helium takes its slice — 15% of your monthly overhead spread over your helium hours. Raise the share if helium is a bigger part of the business; lower it if garlands do the heavy lifting. Time yourself: a dozen 11in takes 3–5 minutes just to inflate, before arranging and bagging.
Overhead / minute
$0.01
Overhead this bouquet
$0.11
Labor this bouquet
$5.00
Labor + overhead
$5.11
Step 4
This bouquet
Materials (13 balloons)
$17.82
Labor + overhead
$5.11
All-in cost
$22.93
Profit
$27.07
Margin (goal 40–60%)
54%
Small latex floats briefly
11in and 14in latex fall in 12–24 hours without Hi-Float. Same-day delivery only, or treat them.Step 5
Price to enter in Fanfaire
Break even
$22.93
At 50% margin
$50
Enter $50 in Fanfaire as its own item — not as part of your per-foot garland price. The garland price already carries your delivery and install; this covers gas, balloon, treatment and the time to fill and bag.
Float time
| Size | Helium only | With Hi-Float |
|---|---|---|
| 11" standard | 12–24 hours | 1–4 weeks |
| 11" metallic | 12–24 hours | 1–3 weeks |
| 14" round | 26–30 hours | 2–5 weeks |
| 18" round | 36+ hours | 3–8 weeks |
| 24" round | 2–4 days | 4–10 weeks |
| 3 ft giant | 3–5 days | 6–20 weeks |
Hi-Float coverage
| Size | 96 oz | 24 oz | 16 oz |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11" | 567 | 141 | 100 |
| 14" | 283 | 70 | 50 |
| 16" | 202 | 50 | 33 |
Balloons per tank
| Tank | Cu ft | 11" latex |
|---|---|---|
| Small | 40 | 75 |
| Medium | 80 | 140 |
| Medium large | 100 | 200 |
| Large | 125 | 225 |
| Extra large | 219 | 425 |
| Super | 291 | 550 |
Simple rules
- Don't put helium in latex smaller than 11in for delivery — under 18in it falls fast.
- Use 100% helium in foils.
- No metallic ribbon — it can take a power line down if it gets caught.
- Anything hanging off a latex balloon means 100% helium.
- Don't accept client balloons from marketplaces; the weights are often wrong and they won't float.
Seeded from 6 standard tank sizes and typical brand pricing. Defaults assume a 291 cu ft tank — change it above.