How to start a food truck business in the US (2026 guide)

To start a food truck business in the US, you need a business entity and tax IDs, a health permit for the truck from your city or county, a licensed commissary to base it at, a fire inspection, vehicle and liability insurance, and permission for every spot you park. The rules are local. New York City caps the number of vending permits, Los Angeles County won't issue a truck permit until it has approved your commissary, and Austin charges $309 for a mobile vendor permit. Plan for your truck, kitchen equipment, permits and first stock before you sell a single taco.

Not legal advice. Food truck rules are set by your state, county and city. Always check with the health department and city where you'll trade. Fees below were read on the agencies' own pages on October 20, 2026.

Step 1: Choose your concept and check where trucks can sell

Before you pick a menu, find out where your city lets trucks park and how many permits it gives out. This decides your income more than your recipes do.

Ask your city or county three questions:

1. Is there a cap or waiting list? New York City limits the number of mobile food vending permits by law and only lets you apply when the Health Department contacts you from a list. Local Law 18 of 2021 added 445 supervisory licenses a year from fiscal 2023 to 2026, and NYC 311 says Local Laws 54 and 59 of 2026 add 2,200 a year from fiscal 2027 to 2031.
2. Where can I park? Many cities ban trucks near restaurants, schools or certain streets, or limit how long you can stay in one spot.
3. Do I need a separate business or vending license on top of the health permit?

Then pick food that suits a small kitchen and a fast line: 5 to 8 items you can serve in a few minutes each. Price every item from its real food cost; our food cost percentage guide and how to price menu items show how.

Step 2: Write a short business plan and budget

A plan makes you count the costs before you commit. It doesn't need to be long. Cover your concept, where you'll trade, your menu and prices, your start-up costs and how many orders a day you need to break even.

Our free food truck business plan template gives you the sections, and the restaurant startup cost calculator adds up the line items. The SBA's 10 steps to start a business (market research, plan, funding, location, structure, name, registration, tax IDs, licenses and a business bank account) are a good outline.

Step 3: Register the business and get your tax IDs

Set up the legal and tax side before you sign for a truck, because permits ask for your business name and tax numbers.

• Pick a structure. Many owners start as a sole proprietor or form an LLC to separate business and personal liability. Ask an accountant which suits you.
• Get an EIN. The IRS issues an Employer Identification Number online, and it says "You never have to pay a fee for an EIN." Beware of sites that charge for one.
• Register for sales tax with your state. In states with a sales tax, hot food sold to go is taxable; see sales tax on restaurant food for how five states treat it.
• Open a business bank account so your takings and costs stay separate.

Step 4: Get the truck built to health-code standards

Buy a truck that your health department will approve, or have one built to its plan-review rules. Many departments want plans before construction. The FDA Food Code, the model most states base their rules on, says plans must be reviewed and approved before a food establishment is built or converted.

The 2026 FDA Food Code (released September 17, 2026) now defines a mobile food establishment as one operated from a vehicle, portable structure or watercraft "that can change location and moves as part of its routine operation." Your state may still use an older edition, so check which one applies.

Things inspectors check on almost every truck:

• Handwashing sink with hot and cold water, soap and paper towels.
• Warewashing. The Food Code calls for a sink with at least three compartments (wash, rinse, sanitize) unless an alternative is approved.
• Water and waste tanks. The Food Code says a mobile unit's sewage holding tank must be 15% larger than its water supply tank.
• Cold and hot holding. Cold food at 41°F or below; hot food at 135°F or above.
• Hood and fire suppression over fryers and griddles, inspected by your fire department.

In Los Angeles County, plans go to the Environmental Health Plan Check Program, which says its first review is completed within 20 working days, and an enclosed truck may also need state Housing and Community Development certification.

Step 5: Line up a commissary

A commissary is a licensed kitchen where you store food, prep, clean the truck, fill fresh water and empty waste water. Most health departments require one:

• Los Angeles County: "A permit shall not be issued until the commissary location is verified and approved," and the department runs random checks that trucks really use it.
• Austin: all mobile food vendors must have a Central Preparation Facility, a permitted fixed food business. A home can't be one, you keep a log of every visit, and a waste-hauling service doesn't replace it.
• New York City: "You must get your food from a commissary or other licensed, permitted or regulated establishment."

Shared commercial kitchens often rent commissary space by the month. Ask what's included: parking, water, waste dumping, cold storage and prep time.

Step 6: Apply for your health permit, license and fire inspection

Apply early. The FDA Food Code's model rule is to apply for a permit at least 30 calendar days before you plan to open.

Also expect:

• A certified food protection manager. The Food Code says the person in charge should be certified by passing an accredited exam, unless the health department rates your operation as low risk.
• A written employee illness policy. New in the 2026 Food Code: the permit holder must have one, available on request.
• Restroom access. Los Angeles County requires trucks to operate within 200 feet of an approved toilet and handwashing facility when stopped for more than an hour.

Step 7: Insure the truck and the business

Events, markets and commissaries will ask for proof of insurance before they let you trade, so get quotes while the truck is being built.

• Commercial auto insurance for the truck (a personal policy usually won't cover business use).
• General liability insurance. Most events, markets and private lots ask for a certificate naming them as additional insured.
• Workers' compensation if you have employees. It's required for most employers in most states. Texas is the exception: private employers can choose not to carry it, but they must notify employees and the state.
• Equipment and spoilage cover for the kitchen and stock.

Step 8: Hire and pay staff properly

Most trucks run with two or three people at a time. Plan your pay from real wages: the Bureau of Labor Statistics put the national median for fast food cooks at $14.85 an hour in May 2025. Check your state and city minimum wage, which is often higher than the federal $7.25.

Every new hire needs a Form I-9 (USCIS says all US employers must complete one for every person they hire), and you must report new hires to your state.

Step 9: Set up payments and online ordering before day one

Your truck can only cook so fast. A line that's too long sends people away, and slow afternoons cost you the same rent and wages.

1. Put a QR code menu on the truck. Customers read the menu while they wait, so they order faster. Make one with the free menu QR code generator or a QR code menu for food trucks.
2. Take pre-orders for pickup. Office workers order at 11:30 and collect at noon without queuing. Read how a food truck can take online orders.
3. Tell regulars where you are. Update your ordering page and social posts each day with your location and hours.

How Menuthere helps. Menuthere gives you an ordering page and QR codes free, with 0% commission and 50 orders a month on the Free plan. Customers see your menu, order for pickup and you get the order in your dashboard. You can switch ordering off with one button when you're between spots. For a busy truck, the Lite plan (US$17 a month) adds unlimited orders, scheduled pre-orders and card payments through your own Stripe account. See Menuthere for food trucks.

Let the lunch crowd order before they reach the window. No commission, free QR codes.

Create your free ordering page

How much does it cost to start a food truck?

There's no single price, because the truck decides most of it. Here's how to build your budget. The permit lines come from the agencies' own pages; the other lines are planning ranges, not quotes, so get real prices from builders and insurers before you commit.

Use the free restaurant startup cost calculator to add your own numbers.

Worked example: one weekday lunch and the pre-order math

Here's an illustrative lunch for a taco truck. The wage is the BLS median for fast food cooks (May 2025), the payroll tax is the employer's 7.65% share of Social Security and Medicare, and the card fee is Stripe's US rate of 2.9% + 30¢. The other figures are assumptions for the example.

Now look at those 30 pre-orders. On your own ordering page they cost $21.18 in card fees. Taken through a delivery app on DoorDash's 25% Plus tier, the same $420 would cost $105.00 in commission, five times as much. At 30 pre-orders a day you'd also be past the Free plan's 50 orders a month within two days, so Lite at US$17 a month is the plan that fits.

Your food truck start-up checklist

• City cap, waiting list and parking rules checked
• Concept, menu of 5–8 items and prices costed
• Business plan and start-up budget
• LLC or other structure; EIN; state sales tax registration; business bank account
• Truck plans approved by the health department
• Commissary agreement signed
• Health permit, vendor license and fire inspection
• Certified food protection manager; written employee illness policy
• Commercial auto, liability and (where required) workers' comp insurance
• I-9s and new-hire reports for staff
• Card reader, QR code menu and ordering page ready

Related guides

Planning a full sit-down or counter-service restaurant? Read our step-by-step guide on how to open a restaurant, with a 6-month timeline. You may also want to read how to start a food stand and how to start a pizza business.