How to make $10k/mo with a Food Truck
The Goal Seek panel below is pre-filled with your target. Pick which lever to move and we’ll show exactly what needs to change. The full calculator is right below it, adjust anything, watch the numbers update in real time.
Where your money goes
- Food COGS35%$5,069
- Beverage COGS7%$1,056
- Labor33%$4,752
- Fuel5%$660
- Fixed costs16%$2,250
- Card fees4%$549
Profit over the first year
What would it take?
Set a target and pick which levers you’re willing to move. We’ll work out what each one needs to be.
What goes into Food Truck costs
Food trucks live and die on three numbers: covers per day, ticket size, and food cost percent. Independent operators in major US metros average somewhere between 60 and 150 covers on a strong lunch day, with a typical ticket around $10–15. Food cost percent, what you pay for ingredients as a fraction of food revenue, sits around 28–35% for healthy operations. Push past 40% and you're working for your supplier.
Where trucks lose money silently is labor. The IRS recommends payroll costs stay under 30% of revenue. Most owner-operators forget to pay themselves, then resent the truck six months later. Plug a realistic wage into the calculator (even if you're the only crew member) and you'll see the truck's real profitability vs. your effective hourly rate.
Event and location fees are the other invisible hit. A spot at a popular weekly market might cost $50–200 per day; an exclusive corporate catering contract might cost nothing but limit your other gigs. The fixed-cost block, truck loan, insurance, licenses, propane, marketing, is mostly the same whether you serve 40 or 140 people. That's why volume is everything.
Frequently asked
What's a typical food cost percentage for a food truck?
28–35% is healthy. Under 28% usually means you're underpricing or your menu has very high-margin items. Over 40% means something's wrong: shrinkage, theft, supplier prices that moved, or menu items that look profitable but actually aren't.
How many days a month should I plan to operate?
Full-time operators typically run 20–24 days a month: 5–6 days a week minus weather, maintenance, prep days, and holidays. The calculator defaults to 22, which is a strong but achievable cadence. Sub-25 means you're probably either part-time or in a market with weather constraints.
Should I include the truck loan in monthly costs?
Yes, it's a real cash outflow whether the truck is profitable or not. The calculator has a Truck Loan / Lease line for exactly this. If you bought the truck outright, set it to $0 but consider amortizing the original cost over a realistic useful life (5–7 years) elsewhere.
What's the biggest mistake new operators make on this model?
Forgetting beverage margins. Beverages run 70–80% gross margin vs. 65–72% for food. If you sell 0% beverages you're leaving real money on the table. If you sell 30%+ beverages, your profit math gets a lot friendlier. The calculator has a Beverage Share slider, try moving it from 0 to 25 and see what happens.