Waterfall Chart for EBITDA Bridge — YoY Price, Volume, Mix & Cost Walk
An EBITDA bridge waterfall chart decomposes period-over-period operating profit variance ($EBITDA_{FY26} = EBITDA_{FY25} + \Delta Price + \Delta Vol + \Delta Mix - \Delta Cost$) into discrete operational drivers.
Tip: Paste Excel or Google Sheets rows (Ctrl+V / ⌘V) directly into any cell.
| # | Label | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
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Net EBITDA Variance = sum_{i=2..n}(Driver_i) = EBITDA_end - EBITDA_start. EBITDA Growth % = (Net Variance / EBITDA_start) * 100%.
Chart Design & Use-Case Tips
- 01Net EBITDA Variance = sum_{i=2..n}(Driver_i) = EBITDA_end - EBITDA_start. EBITDA Growth % = (Net Variance / EBITDA_start) * 100%.
- 02Start with Prior Period EBITDA in Row 1, list commercial tailwinds (Price, Volume, Mix) and cost headwinds/efficiencies in the middle, and let the final Net Total pillar show Current Period EBITDA ($204M).
- 03Standard chart format for private equity portfolio reviews, earnings calls, and M&A quality-of-earnings (QoE) books.
- 04Negative cost headwinds automatically render in crimson while positive value drivers render in primary teal/cobalt.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the standard commercial pillars in a PVM (Price-Volume-Mix) EBITDA bridge?+
FP&A teams isolate Price (rate changes holding volume constant), Volume (unit growth at prior margin), and Mix (shift toward higher- or lower-margin SKUs), followed by COGS and SG&A variances.
How is Current-Year EBITDA shown at the end?+
The engine automatically calculates the cumulative sum of FY25 EBITDA plus all variance steps and plots a grounded 'Net Total' pillar on the far right.
Can I use this for Budget vs. Actual EBITDA variance?+
Yes—relabel Row 1 as 'Budget EBITDA' and enter favorable/unfavorable variances for each operational driver.