Food Trucks · Tool 03

Route Profitability Calculator

Not all stops are created equal. Use this calculator to determine which locations on your route are most profitable by analyzing sales against the variable costs for that stop.

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Optimize Your Schedule

Focus your time and effort on the most lucrative stops.

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Control Variable Costs

Identify which costs are highest at each location to find savings.

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Data-Driven Decisions

Replace guesswork with hard numbers to build a more profitable business.

The calculator

Run the numbers

Route Profitability Calculator
Results

Enter values and click Calculate to see results

The theory

Understanding route profitability.

Route profitability analysis helps you move beyond just looking at total sales and understand the true net profit of each location you visit. It accounts for the variable costs associated with serving at that specific spot.

/ Formula

By tracking this for every stop, you can identify your winners and losers, helping you build a smarter, more profitable weekly schedule.

Net Profit = Total Sales - (Food Cost + Labor Cost + Fuel Cost + Other Costs)
Questions, answered

Frequently asked questions.

This should include any costs specific to that location. The most common are event fees, permit costs for a specific park or area, or a percentage of sales paid to a brewery or venue owner. Don't include your truck's fixed monthly costs here.
Calculate the total hours your staff worked for that specific stop, including setup and breakdown time. Multiply those hours by their hourly wage. For example, 2 employees working a 4-hour lunch shift at $20/hour each would be (2 * 4 * 20) = $160.
If you know your average food cost percentage, you can calculate the dollar amount for the stop. For example, if your total sales were $1000 and your average food cost is 30%, your food cost in dollars for that stop would be ($1000 * 0.30) = $300.
Not necessarily. First, see if you can make it profitable. Can you reduce costs? Is there a different time of day that might be busier? Could you raise prices? If you try a few things and it's still losing money, then it's time to drop it for a more promising location.
This calculator focuses on *variable* costs for a specific stop to help you compare locations. Your overall business profitability also has to account for *fixed* costs like your truck payment, insurance, commissary kitchen rent, and annual licenses, which you pay regardless of where you park.
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