“That’s an insane amount…”
Selling cars can be profitable, but the income can also be volatile. Many salespeople rely very little on base salary and primarily on commissions and bonuses tied to how many vehicles they sell each month.
One car salesman on TikTok who says he’s the “number one Kia salesman” in his district recently broke down his earnings for the month.
TikTok creator Jake (@jakesellskia) shared a look at his spreadsheet and explained how his pay works in a video that has garnered over 58,500 views as of this writing.
“This is how my month went as the number one Kia salesman in my district,” he says at the start of the clip.
Jake explains that his district includes 19 dealerships across Texas. To keep track of his earnings, he maintains a spreadsheet listing each vehicle he sells along with the commission attached to it.
“[It] shows all my commissions: stock number, year, make, model, VIN,” he says, while showing the document on his laptop screen.
He says he sold 33 cars during the month. “As you can see, here’s the commission,” he says while scrolling through the sheet. “I get 25% of the front end.”
In dealership terms, the “front end” typically refers to the sale profit of the vehicle itself before add-ons like warranties or financing products.
Jake says bonuses make up a significant portion of his earnings.
“We get $500 for six cars sold before the 15th, and $500 for every five after,” he explains.
Selling 33 vehicles meant he qualified for a $3,000 bonus. Another incentive program, he explains, involves customer satisfaction surveys.
“We get $50 for every perfect survey,” he says. “We lose $50 for every imperfect survey.”
Those survey bonuses added $2,350 to his paycheck for the month.
After adding commissions and bonuses together, Jake says his total monthly pay came to $18,830.25.
“That doesn’t include our back-end reserve money,” he adds, referring to smaller bonuses tied to products sold through the finance office. “But overall, pretty good month,” he concludes.
Jake says he’s currently ranked first in his district and is aiming to maintain that position for the quarter. If he sells 15 new cars during the following month, he says he’ll reach Kia’s “platinum” status, which pays an additional $70 per vehicle directly from the manufacturer.
According to data from Indeed, the average pay for car salespeople in the US is $84,000 per year, though the range can vary widely depending on commissions, dealership policies, and sales volume.
Online discussions among people who work in the industry suggest the spread can be significant.
On Reddit’s r/carbuying subreddit, one person wrote that the lower-performing salespeople may make around $40,000 annually, while top performers can earn $150,000 to $180,000 per year.
However, commenters pointed out that those higher earnings often come with demanding schedules.
“Yes you can make 100k+ a year, but with the hours you work it isn’t worth it,” one user wrote, describing shifts that run 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. during the week and extended hours on the weekend.
Another commenter shared a similar example from their own family.
“My dad, for example, sold cars at Kia and he’d sell anywhere from 25–30 cars a month,” they wrote. “But he grinded, I mean no days off. Worked on Christmas and made well over 100k annually.”
In the comments section, viewers thought the actual pay was little compared to the gross profit.
“So much sales for so little pay….” one user wrote.
“That’s an insane amount of work for such little money,” another wrote. “I made 25k off a single deal a few days ago.”
Others shared their own experiences. “I work at Honda; they don’t pay us out anything!” one wrote. “Only on Prologues that nobody buys!”
Motor1 has reached out to Kia and Jake via email for comment. This post will be updated if either replies.
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motor1.com?
– The Motor1.com Team