CIVIL CONTRACTOR GROSS MARGIN BENCHMARKS.
Commercial civil subcontractors typically run 21% to 23% gross margin at $1M to $5M and 24% to 25% at $5M to $10M. The Construction CFO targets the upper end of that range, not by cutting price, but by equipment is costed by the day on its own line, not bundled into an all-in rate.
Gross margin is where a civil subcontractor either has room to cover overhead and profit or does not. The benchmark below shows where a civil sub should land by revenue band, the three reasons the number slips when it slips, and what to check first. Civil work is equipment-heavy, and most subs bill the machine, operator, fuel, and mobilization as one all-in hourly number. When everything is bundled, an overrun is invisible: you cannot tell if fuel ran over, the machine sat idle, or the operator went to twelve-hour days. The margin leaks where you cannot see it. Breaking equipment out by the day is the biggest civil margin lever.
Civil subcontractors at $1M to $5M typically run 21% to 23% gross margin while netting 5.5% to 8.5%. The Construction CFO targets 12% net by fixing the cost structure underneath the margin, not by underbidding the work.
How it is calculated: Gross margin is revenue minus direct job cost (material, labor, equipment, and direct job expense), divided by revenue. It is the number that has to cover all overhead before any of it becomes profit. Track it per project and per phase, not just company-wide.
CIVIL BENCHMARKS: WHERE YOU SHOULD BE.
| METRIC | INDUSTRY LOW | SPM TARGET | STRONG | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Margin | 17% | 21–25% | 27%+ | Equipment is costed by the day on its own line, not bundled into an all-in rate |
| Net Profit Margin | 4% | 12% | 13% | After real overhead is loaded into every bid; the number that says the business works |
| Overhead Rate | 30% | 12–14% | 9% | Lower is better; most subs assume 10% and run far higher |
| Days Sales Outstanding | 75 | 45 | 30 | Retention and pay-app timing hold the last slice longest |
| Working Capital Ratio | 1.1 | 1.5 | 2.0 | Material and mobilization hit before the first billing event |
WHAT MOVES THE CIVIL MARGIN.
Equipment cost hides inside an all-in rate.
Civil work is equipment-heavy, and most subs bill the machine, operator, fuel, and mobilization as one all-in hourly number. When everything is bundled, an overrun is invisible: you cannot tell if fuel ran over, the machine sat idle, or the operator went to twelve-hour days. The margin leaks where you cannot see it. Breaking equipment out by the day is the biggest civil margin lever.
Equipment is allocated, overhead is normalized, quantities are tracked.
Top civil subs build a cost basis for every machine and charge a daily standby rate so idle days are covered, track earthwork quantities against the estimate, and run a real overhead number instead of an assumed 10%. One civil contractor found overhead was actually 30%, fixed it to 18%, and turned a hidden 1% loss per job into an 11% net.
Check equipment allocation, overhead, and quantity overruns.
If civil margin is under 23%, look at whether equipment is costed by the day on its own line, what your real overhead rate is once every cost is loaded, and whether earthwork quantities are tracked against the estimate weekly. Most civil subs believe overhead is 10% and actually run 25% to 40%, and that gap is the missing margin.
FLAT MONTHLY FEE. NO SURPRISES.
Two tiers based on trailing 12-month revenue. No hourly billing. No payroll. No add-ons. Everything included in the flat monthly fee.
| Revenue | Core Financial | Executive Financial |
|---|---|---|
| Under $1M | $1,900/mo | $2,900/mo |
| $1M–$3M | $2,600/mo | $3,600/mo |
| $4M–$6M | $3,800/mo | $5,500/mo |
| $7M–$9M | $5,100/mo | $6,900/mo |
| $10M–$12M | $6,100/mo | $8,500/mo |
| $13M+ | Quoted | Quoted |
ControlQore billed separately at ~$100/month per $1M in revenue. SPM does not handle payroll.
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