Food Truck Income Explorer: see what a truck really makes by concept, market & event mix.
"How much do food trucks make?" has one honest answer: it depends on what you sell, where you park, and how you book your calendar. Build your own month below and this shows the revenue and take-home profit ranges you'd realistically see — every band pulled straight from documented 2026 food-truck data, not a dream figure.
Build your truck's month
Pick a concept and a market, then set how many of each kind of gig you'd work in a typical month. The tool multiplies your event counts by documented per-event revenue ranges and applies documented net-profit margins to estimate what you'd gross and keep — per month and per year. Nothing here is invented; every number traces to our published guides below.
Your setup
Concept and market set the context. Your event mix drives the dollars. Updates as you go.
Season & keep-rate
Trucks don't sell twelve full months. Set how many strong selling months you'll really work.
What this truck makes
Revenue and take-home ranges from your own event mix.
Where these numbers come from
The core math is yours: your concept, your market, and how many gigs you work. The tool multiplies your event counts by documented per-event revenue ranges and applies documented net-profit margins. Nothing here is invented — every band is quoted from our published food-truck guides:
Per-event revenue ranges (lunch route $400–$1,200/day, farmers market $500–$1,500, brewery/taproom $600–$2,000, private/corporate catering $1,500–$5,000, festival $2,000–$10,000+), the headline revenue picture (average truck ~$346,000/yr; established range $250,000–$500,000; first year 40–60% of the median; revenue $500–$2,000/day; average customer spend ~$12.76; smaller markets may top near $200,000), seasonality (winter revenue drops 30–50%; budget 8–9 strong months), owner take-home ($50,000–$90,000 median; top operators stacking lunch + catering + festivals report $100,000–$150,000+), and the cost structure (food 28–35%, labor 20–30%, fuel 5–8%, fees/permits 3–7%, insurance 2–3%, commissary 2–4%, card processing 2–3%, marketing 1–2%; net profit 15–30% well-run; catering events 25–45%): our How Much Do Food Trucks Make breakdown. Net-margin floor and food-cost bands by concept (the average truck nets 6–9% — two to three times a sit-down restaurant's 3–9%; coffee under 20% food cost, dessert/drinks 15–25%, pizza 20–25%, tacos ~27%, premium proteins 30–35%): our Most Profitable Food Trucks breakdown, which draws on Toast's food truck pricing guide.
How the market tier works: "Major metro / mid-size / small" only sets your starting defaults and season length, using our guides' own statements about market size — it never applies a hidden per-city dollar multiplier. Your event counts drive every figure. What this is not: an income promise. It's a planning range built on industry benchmarks, not your specific truck, and it isn't financial advice. First-year trucks run lighter; your city, menu, and discipline move every number. Spotted something off? Tell us.
Keep planning
More free tools and guides, no email needed.
Ran the numbers? Now build the truck that hits them.
This explorer estimates the range. The full Food Truck Kit turns it into your plan: a revenue projector, break-even and profit models, the startup budget calculator, menu pricing worksheets, vendor and equipment lists, permit walkthroughs, a business plan template, and 40+ more files — everything from idea to opening day, already built and branded.
