Which Car Salesmen Make the Most Money?

car salesmen make the mostFrom of the Series: Questions People Ask About Car Sales

This is a very popular question people ask about car sales. Many people think that there is a particular brand that pays more or has more profit than another. However, one brand might be more profitable than another, but that has nothing to do with which car salesmen make the most money.

I have met people that sell everything from new luxury cars to strictly used cars at a small local lot. The one thing I have learned about pay plans for car salesmen is that almost every dealership has a different plan. It is hard to find two dealerships with the same pay plan without the same owners. But that does not guarantee that the payment plans will differ from store to store.

Which Car Salesmen Make the Most Money Factors

To try and find an answer to the question of which car salesmen make the most money, I have talked to many top salespeople. I visited with top salespeople from dealerships of the same brand only 15 miles apart. I found that one dealership paid its top people more than the other. The dealer that paid more actually had a lower commission rate. But the difference was in the bonuses.

The lower-paying dealership had a commission rate that was 10% higher, but the only bonus was for monthly volume. The other dealership that paid more had a bonus volume. However, they also had a bonus for selling demo vehicles, leases, and aged vehicles. A car sales salary consists of many factors. Not to mention that they also paid their salespeople for selling extras like accessories, undercoating, fabric, and paint protection.

Overall, one dealership paid its top salespeople approximately 20% more than the other. Both dealers were the same brand, in the same market, and sold new and used. Talk about a range that was the same brand and the same market. There are many more examples like that with the same brand. So you can see that brand does not always indicate which car salesmen make the most money.

which car salesmen make the most money

Brands and Which Car Salesmen Make the Most Money

Once again, I can assure you that the brand is not a sure indicator of how much the salesperson can earn selling cars. I have met salespeople selling cars for a used car-only dealership that has earned more yearly than salespeople selling Lexus and Mercedes Benz. It’s all about the dealership, and then it comes down to the salesperson.

Naturally, most think they will make more significant commissions selling cars like Porsche, Audi, Acura, Mercedes, or Lexus, but it’s not true. The car salesperson pay plan makes the difference. The commission rate, volume bonus, and other bonuses make a difference. Still, the salesperson is also a massive variable regarding which car salesmen make the most money.

You can also look at the “How Much Car Salespeople Make” grid for a real-world example of what car salesmen and saleswomen earn in a year. The figures are sorted by brand, state, and type.

Later, Fresh Up on the Lot,

KB