How Much Garage Door Repair Owners Make: $857K Revenue Case
A garage door repair business owner’s income usually comes from a mix of salary, draws, distributions, and profit left after costs In this researched planning case, revenue rises from $857K in Year 1 to $3742M in Year 5, while EBITDA grows from $76K to $1455M The owner-manager salary assumption is $95K per year, but that is not the same as guaranteed take-home pay Cash still has to cover taxes, debt service, fleet needs, callbacks, inventory, and reinvestment
Owner incomeUp to $171KNet margin9%–39%Revenue for target pay$1.9MBusiness difficultyHard
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Estimate owner take-home and target-pay gap from revenue, margin, costs, reserves, and target pay.
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Planning note: This is a researched planning estimate, not guaranteed salary, tax advice, or owner distribution advice. Actual owner income depends on demand, pricing, staffing, reserves, and operating results.
Want the six drivers behind garage door repair owner income?
1
Booked Jobs
$857K
Year 1 revenue is $857K and break-even lands by Month 7, so more booked jobs turn fixed costs into owner profit faster.
2
Ticket Mix
$397
Average ticket is about $397, and a bigger mix of maintenance and installs lifts revenue without needing the same call count.
3
Gross Margin
74%
Hardware and consumables run about 26% of revenue, so tight parts use keeps more cash in the business.
4
Tech Productivity
2.5h
Each active customer averages 2.5 billable hours per month in Year 1, so better routing and crew use push more revenue through the same team.
5
Lead Efficiency
$125
CAC starts at $125 and drops to $90, so cheaper leads make the $45K first-year marketing budget work harder.
6
Reserve Discipline
$663K
Minimum cash hits $663K in Month 2, so keeping overhead and hiring in check protects the upside from early cash burn.
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How much can I pay myself from a garage door repair business?
For a Garage Door Repair Service, you can pay yourself $95,000 per year, or about $7,917 per month before taxes and deductions, if you’re filling the general manager role; for profit levers, see How Increase Garage Door Repair Service Profits?. Owner pay is separate from profit: modeled EBITDA is $76,000 in Year 1 and $486,000 in Year 2.
Owner Pay
Use $95,000 for GM salary
Monthly pay equals $7,917
Taxes and deductions come after
Field work may replace wage lines
Profit Cash
Owner draw means cash taken
Distributions mean profit paid out
Retained cash funds vans and inventory
DIY dispatch raises operational risk
What is the profit margin for a garage door repair business?
For a Garage Door Repair Service, this planning case shows an 89% EBITDA margin in Year 1, then 299%, 321%, 362%, and 389% by Year 5. The biggest cost block is direct materials at 22% of revenue, plus 6% for fuel and vehicle maintenance and 2% for field service software in Year 1, so margin depends on parts control and truck efficiency; see How To Launch Garage Door Repair Service Business? Small changes in spring, opener, panel, and cable costs can move gross margin quickly.
Margin drivers
22% direct materials in Year 1
18% hardware and replacement parts
4% consumables and fasteners
6% fuel and vehicle maintenance
Margin risks
2% field service software in Year 1
Higher spring and opener costs
Panel and cable price swings
Callbacks and warranty work
How many garage door repair jobs do I need to make a profit?
There isn’t one universal job count for a Garage Door Repair Service; use scenario planning instead. With a Year 1 average ticket of $397 and $857K in revenue, that works out to about 2,160 jobs a year, or 180 per month. The model reaches breakeven in Month 7, and owner income has to cover $322K payroll, $1,074K fixed overhead, and $45K marketing.
Year 1 job math
$397 average ticket
$857K Year 1 revenue
About 2,160 jobs yearly
About 180 jobs monthly
What changes the count
Close rate changes booked jobs
Job mix shifts average ticket
Technician capacity limits volume
Ad efficiency affects breakeven speed
Key Takeaways
Booked jobs drive revenue only when trucks can finish them.
Mix shift raises ticket size, but labor must stay priced.
Parts and labor control margin, cash, and owner pay.
Better routing and lower CAC lift EBITDA faster.
Compare lean, base, and growth owner-income scenarios
Owner income scenarios
Owner income shifts with booked volume, marketing spend, technician count, and cash reserves. The low, base, and high cases show how the same service model can pay very differently as scale builds.
Compare lean, base, and high owner income cases for planning.
Scenario
Low CaseLean case
Base CaseBase case
High CaseUpside case
Launch model
This is the lean path, where modest volume and early cash pressure keep owner pay close to the GM salary.
This is the scaled path, where Year 2 volume supports salary plus a modest draw.
This is the upside path, where Year 5 scale supports a bigger draw but also a much heavier management load.
Typical setup
Year 1 runs at about $71.4K monthly revenue, $45K marketing, $125 CAC, 3 field tech FTEs, and $76K EBITDA, or 8.9% margin, so cash has to stay tight.
Year 2 runs at about $135.3K monthly revenue, $55K marketing, $115 CAC, 4 field tech FTEs, and $486K EBITDA, or 29.9% margin, once reserves are covered.
Year 5 runs at about $311.8K monthly revenue, $85K marketing, $90 CAC, 11 field tech FTEs, and $1.455M EBITDA, or 38.9% margin, so oversight becomes a real job.
Cost drivers
45% emergency repairs
$45K marketing
$125 CAC
3 field tech FTEs
$8.95K monthly overhead
42% emergency repairs
$55K marketing
$115 CAC
4 field tech FTEs
$8.95K monthly overhead
50% maintenance agreements
$85K marketing
$90 CAC
11 field tech FTEs
$8.95K monthly overhead
Owner income rangeBefore owner reserves
$95K salarySalary only
Salary plus small drawBalanced draw
Salary plus larger drawLarge upside
Best fit
Use this to test whether the launch can support the general manager role without counting on a big profit draw.
Use this as the normal planning case if you expect steady dispatch volume and a cleaner cash cushion after the first year.
Use this to test the upside case for owners who can manage a larger crew, more dispatching, and tighter day-to-day control.
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Planning note: These scenario ranges are researched planning assumptions, not guaranteed earnings, salary promises, tax advice, or distributions.
Garage Door Repair Service Core Six Income Drivers
Booked Job Volume
Booked Job Volume
More booked garage door repair jobs raise revenue only if technicians can finish them. Using $857K in Year 1 revenue and an average ticket of $397, that works out to about 2,157 completed jobs a year, or roughly 180 jobs a month. Once fixed costs are covered, more completed jobs lift EBITDA and owner take-home pay.
Here’s the quick math: if leads rise but dispatch cannot book, route, and close them, the extra demand just creates waste. Urgent spring repairs, stuck doors, opener failures, and commercial calls only help when truck time, parts, and scheduling line up. The real limit is technician capacity, not raw lead count.
Track the Board, Not Just Leads
Measure lead volume, booking rate, close rate, completed jobs, and jobs per technician per day. If booked jobs are climbing but completions are flat, you need better routing, tighter dispatch, or more stocked trucks before you buy more ads.
Keep booked volume aligned with capacity so labor stays productive and overtime stays low. With fixed overhead already in the base, every extra completed job after that point has a much better shot at flowing to profit and owner pay. If scheduling slips, cash gets tied up in reschedules and callbacks.
Overhead, Reserves, And Owner Role
Cash Reserve and Owner Pay
This driver is about what’s left for the owner after fixed overhead, reserve needs, and the general manager role are paid. $8,950 in monthly fixed overhead includes $4,500 rent, $850 general liability insurance, $1,500 fleet insurance, $1,200 accounting, $600 utilities and internet, and $300 supplies. If the $95K general manager role is paid as salary, that adds about $7.9K/month.
Accounting profit is not cash. The model’s $663K minimum cash need in Month 2 means owner pay has to wait until reserves cover payroll, van replacement, inventory, insurance, and slower collections. The $2.025M startup capex also ties up cash early, so a strong month can still leave the owner short if the reserve floor is too thin.
Hold the cash floor before paying yourself
Track monthly burn, cash on hand, and days of reserve. If the $95K role is the owner’s job, treat it as compensation or as a hire, not both. Set a rule: no owner draw until cash stays above the reserve floor after payroll, insurance, parts buys, and van spending. That keeps growth from starving operations.
Test the cash forecast weekly, not monthly. Use reserves to cover lumpy costs like van replacement, inventory restocks, insurance renewals, and slow customer payments. When cash stays disciplined, the business can pay the owner consistently instead of handing out profit that later comes back as an emergency capital call.
Lead Acquisition Efficiency
Lead Acquisition Efficiency
When marketing turns into booked garage door jobs at a sane cost, owner income rises because more gross profit is left after ad spend. Here, the budget is $45K in Year 1, $55K in Year 2, and $85K in Year 5, while CAC customer acquisition cost falls from $125 to $90. Lower CAC lifts EBITDA without changing price.
Here’s the quick math: at $45K spend and $125 CAC, marketing buys about 360 new customers; at $85K and $90 CAC, it buys about 944. That only helps if booking rate, review volume, referrals, property manager relationships, and repeat customers stay strong. Emergency ads can fill the board, but weak close rates will burn cash fast.
Track Cost Per Booking, Not Just Leads
Measure cost per lead, booking rate, and CAC every week. If leads are cheap but the office cannot book them, owner pay gets squeezed because the same ad dollar produces less revenue and less contribution margin. Keep a simple funnel: lead, booked job, completed job, repeat job. One clean metric: booked jobs per $1,000 of spend.
Push the channels that create trust: reviews, referrals, and property manager relationships. Those usually lower CAC more than emergency-only ads, which often raise volume but can hurt margin if the close rate is weak. If repeat customers rise, the same $45K to $85K budget can support more profit and steadier cash flow, which makes owner draws less volatile.
Gross Margin After Parts And Labor
Gross Margin After Parts And Labor
At a $397 average ticket, Year 1 direct material cost is about 22% of revenue: 18% for hardware and replacement parts plus 4% for consumables and fasteners. That leaves about $310 per job before payroll and overhead. One clean line: if parts are priced too low, owner pay gets squeezed fast.
This driver matters because gross margin is the cash left to fund payroll, marketing, trucks, rent, and owner draws. Here’s the quick math: $397 × 22% = $87 of direct material cost, so every rework visit, warranty callback, or underpriced part cuts into the money that should cover labor and profit.
Track Parts And Callback Losses
Track parts markup, technician labor cost, supplier price changes, and first-time fix rate on every job. If a spring, opener, or cable job needs a second visit, the lost labor time and extra parts can erase the margin from the first call.
Use a simple job sheet that shows estimated parts cost, actual parts cost, billable labor hours, and callback flag. Watch any job mix where parts run above 22% of revenue or where labor gets reworked; that is usually where owner distributions get quietly drained.
Compare quoted vs. actual parts cost
Flag warranty callbacks weekly
Test markup by part type
Track labor hours per job
Technician Productivity And Route Density
Route Density
Route density is how many paid jobs each truck can finish in one tight area, with less windshield time. In Year 1, the business has one lead technician at $75K and two service technicians at $55K each, and about 180 completed jobs per month at the average ticket. Better routing and fewer return trips lift contribution because more of each labor dollar turns into billable work, not fuel, overtime, or dead time.
Here’s the pressure point: if stocked vans and first-time fix discipline are weak, callbacks eat the same truck day twice. Keeping springs, rollers, cables, and opener parts on the van helps techs close more jobs on the first visit, which protects cash and lets the owner delay adding another truck until the current fleet is truly full.
Track Jobs Per Truck Day
Measure jobs per technician per day, first-time fix rate, callbacks, and windshield time by zone. If the same area keeps producing multiple short trips, the route is too loose and margin leaks into fuel and overtime. A stocked truck with the right parts should cut repeat visits and keep paid hours high.
Use dispatch to cluster emergency repairs, opener failures, and spring jobs by zip code, then compare revenue per truck day before and after the change. The owner’s income improves when each truck day covers more billable work without adding payroll too early. That is the cleanest way to raise profit and protect take-home pay.
Average Ticket And Job Mix
Average Ticket and Job Mix
Year 1 mix matters here: 45% emergency repairs at $370, 25% new installations at $750, and 30% maintenance agreements at $14,250. Higher ticket jobs can lift owner pay, but only if labor, parts, and callback risk are built into the price. The real driver is not ticket size alone; it’s cash left after the work is done.
Here’s the quick math: a bigger share of installations can raise revenue per truck day, but it also adds scheduling pressure, parts exposure, and warranty risk. Emergency repairs keep volume moving, while installs and maintenance change gross profit and timing. If parts are late or callbacks rise, the extra revenue won’t show up in take-home income.
Price the Mix, Not Just the Call
Track average ticket by job type, plus labor hours, parts cost, and callback rate. Split emergency repairs, installs, and maintenance so you can see which jobs really pay. A $750 install that takes too long or needs a return visit may earn less than a faster $370 repair.
Use gross profit per truck day as the main test. If the mix shifts toward installations or commercial work, build in extra time for scheduling, stock the common parts, and price warranty risk up front. That protects contribution margin and keeps more cash available for payroll and owner draws.
