Gross is a vanity number
"I grossed twenty grand last month" sounds great at the truck stop. But gross pays no bills. After fuel eats its third, the truck note and insurance take their cut, and the government takes theirs, the number that matters is what's left — your take-home. That's the paycheck this calculator is built to find.
The flow: gross revenue − business costs = net profit. Net profit − taxes = take-home. Per diem quietly shrinks the taxable slice, so it lifts your take-home without you driving an extra mile.
Where the money goes
- Fuel — almost always the biggest bite, often a third of gross by itself.
- Fixed costs — truck payment, insurance, permits, ELD, phone. They hit whether you roll or not.
- Maintenance and tires — set aside per mile so the big repair doesn't wipe out a good month.
- Taxes — income tax plus 15.3% self-employment tax. No employer is withholding for you, so this one surprises people every April if they don't plan.
Three ways to grow the take-home
- Raise your rate, not just your miles. Ten cents a mile on 10,000 miles is $1,000 straight to the bottom line. Rate every load with the load profitability calculator.
- Protect fuel economy. Your single largest variable cost responds to speed, idle time and tire pressure. Small habits, big money.
- Capture every deduction. Per diem alone can shelter thousands. Run yours on the per diem calculator and don't leave it on the table.
Reality check: if your take-home looks thin, start at the root — your cost per mile. You can't out-drive a rate that's below your cost.