CONCRETE CONTRACTOR GROSS MARGIN BENCHMARKS.
Commercial concrete subcontractors typically run 21% to 22% gross margin at $1M to $5M and 23% to 24% at $5M to $10M. The Construction CFO targets the upper end of that range, not by cutting price, but by labor productivity is priced to real pour rates, not an optimistic yards-per-day assumption.
Gross margin is where a concrete subcontractor either has room to cover overhead and profit or does not. The benchmark below shows where a concrete sub should land by revenue band, the three reasons the number slips when it slips, and what to check first. Concrete margin lives in production: cubic yards placed and finished per crew day. Most bids assume a pour rate the crew rarely hits once you count forming, weather standby, pump time, and finishing. When the real rate runs under the estimate, the labor cost climbs and the margin erodes pour by pour, invisible until the job closes. Pricing to honest production rates is the single biggest margin lever in concrete.
Concrete subcontractors at $1M to $5M typically run 21% to 22% 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.
CONCRETE BENCHMARKS: WHERE YOU SHOULD BE.
| METRIC | INDUSTRY LOW | SPM TARGET | STRONG | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Margin | 17% | 21–24% | 26%+ | Labor productivity is priced to real pour rates, not an optimistic yards-per-day assumption |
| 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 CONCRETE MARGIN.
Labor productivity is the whole game.
Concrete margin lives in production: cubic yards placed and finished per crew day. Most bids assume a pour rate the crew rarely hits once you count forming, weather standby, pump time, and finishing. When the real rate runs under the estimate, the labor cost climbs and the margin erodes pour by pour, invisible until the job closes. Pricing to honest production rates is the single biggest margin lever in concrete.
Production is tracked weekly and rework is funded.
Top concrete subs track labor in both dollars and hours against the estimate every week, by phase: forming, placement, finishing. They price pump and equipment time as their own line, fund a rework and tear-out reserve in overhead, and document weather standby as a change condition instead of eating it. That discipline is what separates a 26% gross margin from a 20% one on the same work.
Check production rates, the overhead number, and rework.
If concrete margin is under 23%, look first at whether labor is tracked against real production rates, what your overhead actually is once every cost is loaded, and whether rework and tear-out are funded or quietly draining finished jobs. One concrete sub thought overhead was 5%; the real number was 12%, and that gap was 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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