Roofing Business Profit Margin: IRS Data, Costs & Break-Even

By Muhammet Çay

Read roofing margins in the right order

Gross profit on a roof is its collected contract price less materials, paid crew or subcontract labor, disposal, and other direct job costs. Divide by collected revenue for gross margin. Net margin also deducts estimating, vehicles, insurance, office staff, marketing, and equipment costs. A markup applied to shingles or crew cost is not the margin on the full contract. The markup versus margin calculator makes the conversion explicit.

Schedule C profit for an owner-operated roofing business includes pay for the owner’s own estimating, supervision, and field work. To compare with a staffed company, assign a cost to those duties before assessing residual profit. The IRS table below covers all NAICS 238 specialty trades. It cannot establish either a healthy roofing target or an owner’s take-home amount.

Roofing costs that deserve job-level tracking

A takeoff error on squares, underlayment, flashing, or edge metal changes the job’s direct cost before work begins. Tear-off can expose damaged decking or unusual disposal needs. Document allowances and obtain authorized change orders rather than silently absorbing the extra work. Crew productivity varies with roof pitch, access, weather, and material handling. A subcontract quote should state scope, insurance expectations, and responsibility for corrections; it is still a direct job cost.

The source data lists a BLS roofer median wage of $26.65 per hour (official occupational wage). It does not include employer burden or unbillable time. BLS ECEC construction total compensation is $51.96 per hour (official broad-industry measure), which is not a roofing wage quote. Track actual crew cost, fall-protection and equipment expense, vehicles, insurance, and post-completion leak visits. Rain delays can push payroll or subcontract scheduling into another week while fixed costs continue. See the startup cost and license pages for related planning.

A roof contractor’s example month

Example inputs, not a benchmark: Take $100,000 of collected project revenue, $35,000 in roofing materials and disposal, $30,000 in paid crew and subcontract cost, and $25,000 in operating expense. Gross profit is $100,000 − $35,000 − $30,000 = $35,000; gross margin is 35%. Net profit is $35,000 − $25,000 = $10,000; net margin is $10,000 ÷ $100,000 = 10%. If the owner personally estimated and supervised jobs without payroll, that $10,000 includes payment for those hours. Substitute your completed-job ledger in the calculator.

Count jobs, then check crew capacity

Subtract project-variable material, crew, and disposal cost from an average collected roof price to find contribution. Divide fixed monthly cost by that contribution and round up to the next full roof. The break-even calculator handles this threshold; the jobs-needed calculator handles a revenue goal. Test a repair-only month separately from a replacement-heavy month and compare the result with crews and workable weather days. Use the roofing labor-rate guide when setting crew assumptions.

Continue with the roofing business hub.

Official sources

• Internal Revenue Service — IRS Statistics of Income, Nonfarm Sole Proprietorships: Income Statements, by Industrial Sectors, Tax Year 2023 (Table 2)

Last updated: October 2, 2026