Satellite TV Installation Break-Even: About $45K Monthly Revenue

Fixed costs $6.9K/mo Core overhead

Contribution margin 70% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $9.8K/mo Zero-profit threshold

Break-even timing Month 6 Model break-even

Break-even calculator

Test whether monthly revenue covers variable expenses and the fixed cost base for a satellite TV installation service.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Revenue is the pool that must cover variable and fixed costs. $ Lower sales Higher sales Variable expenses Use direct costs that rise with each install, setup, and service call. $ Lower costs Higher costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $44,625 $63,750 revenue - $19,125 variable expenses

Margin ratio

70%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly cost base profit has to cover. $ Lower overhead Higher overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which satellite TV installation expenses are fixed, variable, or semi-fixed for break-even?

Cost classification

Break-even gets cleaner when monthly overhead stays separate from job-level spend. In the first year, fixed and semi-fixed costs set the revenue floor, while variable costs reduce margin on every installation or service call.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Technician and operating payroll	Semi-fixed	Use $21,000/month in the first year, then add payroll in steps as headcount grows.	Treating salaries as per-job labor and understating the monthly revenue floor.
Warehouse and office rent	Fixed	Include $3,500/month as recurring overhead before measuring break-even revenue.	Spreading rent across jobs and hiding the cash needed each month.
Field service management software	Fixed	Include $450/month as stable operating overhead for scheduling and dispatch.	Leaving small software subscriptions out because they look immaterial alone.
General liability insurance	Fixed	Include $800/month as required overhead across the planning range.	Adding insurance only after profit, instead of before break-even.
Hardware and consumables	Variable	Apply 14% of first-year revenue to each job mix before contribution margin.	Using gross sales as margin and ignoring mounts, cable, connectors, and related supplies.
Subcontractor labor fees	Variable	Apply 5% of first-year revenue when outside technicians support booked work.	Classifying subcontractors as fixed labor even though spend follows job volume.
Fuel and vehicle maintenance	Variable	Apply 8% of first-year revenue to reflect route activity and service miles.	Budgeting fuel as a flat amount while dispatch volume rises.
Annual marketing	Semi-fixed	Use the $45,000 first-year budget as planned demand spend, not a per-job charge.	Letting customer acquisition cost replace the actual marketing cash budget.

How does break-even shift from a lean satellite install plan to the base case and the full buildout?

Scenario table

Break-even gets easier as the mix shifts toward higher-revenue work with lower variable costs, but the full plan also adds overhead. So the cushion grows from lean to full, even though the fixed-cost bar rises.

Planning assumptions only; actual break-even will move with customer mix, technician utilization, and travel costs.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean residential-heavy case	$63.8k	$19.1k	$31.6k	70%	$13.0k	Above break-even, but the cushion is modest.
Base mixed-service case	$162.4k	$43.8k	$53.7k	73%	$64.9k	Comfortably above break-even with room for slippage.
Full scaled case	$270.3k	$64.9k	$80.4k	76%	$125.0k	Strong cushion, though higher overhead keeps pressure on volume.

What breaks the break-even plan for a satellite TV installation service?

Stress test

Here’s the quick math: Year 1 revenue has about $18,650 of monthly cushion above break-even, but that vanishes if bookings slip or overhead steps up. The biggest risks are low route density, discounted installs, repeat truck rolls, and hiring before work is booked.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	Year 1 average revenue stays at $63,750 a month.	$45,100	$18,650 cushion	Comfortable start, but the cushion is not large.
Revenue shortfall	Monthly revenue falls 29% from the Year 1 average to $45,100.	$45,100	$0 cushion	Any further drop pushes the business below break-even.
Fixed-cost pressure	Overhead rises to the Year 3 level of $53,700 a month.	$76,714	$12,964 gap	Fixed costs move break-even above Year 1 sales.
Margin pressure	Hardware at 14%, subcontractor labor at 5%, fuel and vehicle maintenance at 8%, and commissions at 3% keep the Year 1 variable load at 30% of revenue.	$45,100	$18,650 cushion	Discounted installs and repeat truck rolls can thin the margin fast.
Combined pressure	Year 5 overhead reaches $80,400 a month while the 30% variable load stays in place.	$114,857	$51,107 gap	Low route density and hiring ahead of booked work can break the model.

Can you prove enough booked demand before you commit to the van fleet and first hires?

Founder checklist

Don’t buy the van fleet until you can prove booked demand, route capacity, and cash cover the Month 6 break-even plan. The model needs $678,000 minimum cash in Month 2 and about $196,000 of startup capex, so the first test is runway, not optimism.

1Booked Demand$120K fleet

Validate enough booked installs and maintenance before you commit to the $120,000 van fleet, because the schedule has to carry the opening burn through Month 6 break-even.

2Runway Cushion$678K min

Match launch cash to the $678,000 minimum in Month 2 and the roughly $27.9K monthly fixed burn, or the business can run short before the route matures.

3Startup Capex$196K

Add up the vans, meters, tools, ladders, office IT, racking, signage, and inventory before launch, because that $196,000 sits in front of operating cash.

4CAC Discipline$125 CAC

Test whether the $45,000 Year 1 marketing budget can hold customer acquisition cost at $125, or paid demand will outrun the margin.

5Margin Check70% CM

After hardware, subcontractor labor, fuel, and sales commissions, Year 1 keeps about 70% contribution margin, so weak pricing or a poor mix will push breakeven out.

6Field Coverage3.0/8.0/2.0 hrs

Keep liability coverage active before roof, ladder, and customer-site work, and only add techs when this job mix can stay dense enough to support the next hire.