All businesses / Courier and last mile

Fingerprint: capital · hours · speed to income · margin · ceiling. The dashed line is mid-scale.

Start a courier and last mile: the real numbers

Parcels on a contracted route. Below is what it actually costs, how long before money arrives, and the part most guides leave out.

Startup capital

€5,000–€20,000

Hours / week

35–55

First income

~3 wks

Net margin

35%

Saturation

high

Realistic ceiling

€1,300–€2,800+

This ceiling is not a wall

The figure above is what this earns in the shape described — you, running it. Past that it keeps going, but by hiring people or adding units, not by you working more hours. That is a different job from the one you would be starting, and worth knowing before you start it.

What nobody usually tells you

Starts paying within days and the work never runs out. But it is the thinnest margin in this database once fuel, insurance and the van are counted, and the platform sets your rate — not you.

The route, in five steps

  1. Read the contract: fuel, insurance and returns are usually yours
  2. Count the real hours before judging the rate
  3. Learn one route until you halve your own time
  4. Add a second van only with a driver you trust
  5. Keep a second client: single-contract routes get cut

What you'll need to buy

These are the categories every courier and last mile pays for in the first month. We break down what each one actually costs at this size on the tools page.

vangoods-in-transit insurancescannerfuel float

Does it hold up for you?

These numbers are the average case. Whether this business clears your target depends on your capital, your hours and how long you can wait — put them in and see.

Run my numbers → See the tool stack