About Mobile Food Math
Mobile Food Math is a free planning system for people thinking about starting a food truck, coffee cart, trailer, or any other mobile food business — built to answer the money questions before you spend it.
What we do
Starting a mobile food business is mostly a numbers problem before it is a cooking problem. How much does it really cost to launch? What should each menu item be priced at? How many servings a day do you need to break even? Mobile Food Math turns those questions into free, no-signup calculators and plain-English guides.
What you'll find here
- Calculators — startup cost, menu pricing, break-even, and profit tools you can run in your browser, with vehicle-specific versions for coffee, taco, BBQ, pizza, and ice cream operations.
- Guides — 75+ researched articles on equipment, insurance, commissary costs, permits, and city-by-city licensing for the U.S. mobile food industry.
- Comparisons — truck vs. trailer vs. cart, and city vs. city, so you can weigh the trade-offs with real cost ranges instead of guesses.
How we build our numbers
Our estimates come from published industry data, vendor pricing, permit schedules, and operator interviews, expressed as ranges rather than single "magic" figures. Every calculator and cost figure is a planning estimate, not a quote. Local prices, regulations, and taxes vary, so we always recommend you verify the specifics with your city, suppliers, and licensed professionals before committing money.
Independence
Mobile Food Math is an independent publisher. We are not a broker, lender, insurer, or equipment vendor, and the tools are free to use. The site is supported by advertising and may, in the future, include affiliate links — these never change the cost ranges or recommendations we publish.
Get in touch
Spotted a number that looks off, or want to suggest a tool or city we should cover? We read every message — see the contact page. You can also review how we handle data in our privacy policy.