Whether you’re just starting your search for the mobile pizza truck or trailer, or are an experienced concessionaire looking to upgrade your equipment, we have used pizza trucks and trailers for sale by owner located across the United States, so you can find the right piece of equipment at the right price, without burning time and money sitting in a dealership listening to a high-pressure sales pitch.

Browse our active listings below for used pizza trucks, concession trailers, or carts. Each listing contains photos, equipment lists, the location of the unit, the asking price, and other important details. Whether you’re looking for a blank slate you can customize to your own needs, or a turnkey pizza concession business that’s ready to roll, you’ll find the right inventory here. Browse all of our food trucks for sale here. 

ACTIVE PIZZA TRUCK AND TRAILER LISTINGS

• Custom 20′ x 8’3″ Pizza Trailer for Sale in Newport Beach, CA (Asking: $80,000)
• Custom-Built Wood Fired Pizza Trailer for Sale in Howe, IN (Asking: $29,750)
• Custom-Build Trailer with Wood Stone Oven in Bellingham, WA (Asking: $90,000)
• Custom Wood Oven Pizza Truck for Sale in New York (Asking: $160,000)
• Turnkey 18′ WorldWide Manufacturing Pizza Trailer in Roswell, NM (Asking: $65,000)
• Wood Fired Pizza Vintage Truck in White River Junction, VT (Asking: $80,000)
• Custom Build Pizza Food Truck for Sale in Naugatuck, CT (Asking: $120,000)
• 1989 Chevrolet P30 Pizza Truck in Nashville, TN(Asking: $54,995)

We update these listings on a regular basis, so please be sure to check back often for new listings. Remember to follow the basic rules of transacting business on the internet: Never purchase a piece of equipment without inspecting it personally first, and never send money via US Mail, wire, or internet transfer until you’ve had the opportunity to inspect the unit in person.

Pizza Concession Buyer’s Guide

When you think of the hottest mobile food businesses hitting the streets today, you probably imagine some of the old standards: Taco trucks, hamburger slingers, maybe even the occasional barbecue wagon. But one of the most lucrative and profitable mobile businesses hitting the road today may catch you by surprise: The mobile pizza business.

Mobile pizza concession builds tend to be a little different than your standard-issue food truck, and it can be difficult to figure out how to get started and exactly what kind of equipment you need. If you’re trying to negotiate the ins and outs of the mobile pizza business, and you’re not sure exactly what kind of equipment you need, we’ve written a brief guide that can help you determine the size and type of pizza concession vehicle that best suits your needs.

The kind of pizza you want to sell is going to drive a lot of the decision making, when it comes to choosing your equipment for a mobile pizza business, as well as what kinds of similar businesses are operating in your chosen marketplace.

If you plan to offer artisan-style pies that can compete with even the highest-end local pizza businesses in town, you’ll probably need to consider a pizza vehicle that’s built around a massive wood or coal-fired pizza oven. In these types of concession units, most of the physical space in the vehicle is given over to the pizza oven, which can be both enormous and extraordinarily heavy, depending on the materials used for construction. These types of mobile units produce world-class pies, but often at the expense of space or capacity to do much else.

If artisanal crust considerations such as “gluten formation rate” and “yeast ratios” are less important to your pizza business, and you’re more concerned with cranking out decent pies quickly at a reasonable price, you may want to build your pizza truck around more traditional electric or gas ovens, which can still produce a quality product quickly and at a great price, albeit without some of the “high-end” pizza cache.

In this case, you’ll be looking for a truck which can handle cooking multiple pies quickly, with plenty of auxiliary space for refrigerating dough (either homemade or store-bought), as well as additional storage for cheese and refrigerated storage, and disposable items like pizza boxes, napkins, cups, plates, and straws.

Because you won’t have the space you need for a gigantic multi-deck oven that can fire multiple pies at once, look for trucks or trailers built around ovens that may sacrifice multi-pie volume for ultra-fast cook times. Many of these ovens can cook a pizza in two minutes or less, which means that even if you can’t cook multiple pies at the same time, you’ll be able to pass them through the oven quickly.

While all of this equipment can be crammed into a towable cart or even a small concession trailer, most mobile pizza businesses will need a larger vehicle to suit their needs. Remember, whether you’re going for a wood or coal fired traditional oven, or a rapid-turnover electric or propane pizza oven, much of your truck or trailer’s real estate is going to be eaten up by housing your ovens.

Trailers and carts are typically much less expensive than a large step van or food truck, but do have some limits, in terms of your opportunities for expansion. While you can always start a pizza business that offers just a few different kinds of pies, what if you want to start selling drinks, garlic knots, or pasta dishes?

If your pizza truck dreams include eventually growing and expanding into other offerings, a larger investment in a larger vehicle with room to handle this expansion may make good sense.

Standard Equipment List:

Whether you eventually plan to offer a full-scale self-contained Italian food solution, or simply want to stick to basic pizza service, there are a few “standard features” for a pizza truck, trailer, cart, or wagon that we consider essential. Look for listings that already include the following:

• A pizza oven, whether it’s a large-format traditional wood or coal fired oven, a large propane or electric deck oven, or multiple “quick-fire” individual pizza cookers
• Interior lighting
• Power inverter system to support electrical appliances including additional refrigerators, freezers, and refrigerated prep stations, with room for expansion as your equipment needs change
• A small refrigerator for keeping dough, cheese, and toppings cold
• Some means of water service including on-board tanks or storage, a 3-bay sink for ware washing, and a handwash sink. An option for connection to an external water source is a big plus.
• Lots of interior storage, including tables and shelving, to accommodate dry goods and disposables
• A serving window
• Space for a menu, and/or exterior wraps for branding and advertising
• Check with your local health inspector to discuss your plans for your pizza cart or truck, to find out what types of exhaust and fire suppression is required in your region.

Electrical and Fuel Considerations:

No matter which type of pizza truck or trailer you’re shopping for, you’re going to have some significant electrical and fuel considerations. After all, something’s gotta keep that pizza oven running at 1000 degrees, whether that’s stacks of firewood or coal, or a steady stream of propane or electricity to keep the fires burning.

Make sure the truck or trailer you’re considering has the type of fuel you need in ample supply, whether that’s room for storing dry fuels like wood or coal, or multiple propane tanks for gas-fired installations. Nothing will short-circuit your business more quickly than running out of propane in the middle of service, so you’ll want to make sure to have multiple backups available.

Remember that your electrical needs will be significant, as well. This is obvious if you’re running electric pizza ovens, but is also a factor when you consider how many refrigerators, freezers, ice makers, and other pieces of high-load electrical equipment you may need to be running.

Depending on where and how you plan to set up your truck, cart, or trailer, you may be able to connect to an external power source, such as in some city parks or at large events, like local fairs or concerts. However, it probably makes sense to purchase a generator to go with your new concession unit, for those times when an external power source isn’t available.

We like the 25-30 kw generator models from Onac Cummings and PowerTech, for their combination of power, relatively low price, and quiet operating noise. Of course, if you plan to operate an air conditioning unit inside the truck or trailer (which is something of a must when you’re running pizza ovens capable of producing screaming hot temperatures), you may find you need to purchase a generator that can handle this type of high-load appliance.

How to Operate a Profitable Pizza Truck or Cart

Even if there are a few pizza places in your neighborhood that seem like they are completely dominating the hearts and minds of local pizza enthusiasts, the fact is, there is still probably room for your pizza truck or trailer to carve out a piece of that market.

The novelty and uniqueness of seeing a pizza oven on wheels will probably attract even those customers who may already think they have a favorite, and if you are able to compete on quality and with a creative array of topping choices, you’re well on your way to success in this business. Here are a few additional strategies to consider, on your road to fame and fortune as a mobile pizzaiolo:

Catering and Special Events:

Pizza trucks and trailers can spell big business at local festivals, food fairs, carnivals, and farmer’s markets, and not just for the throngs of attendees that frequent these types of events; you might find you make just as much money serving the traveling army of employees and volunteers responsible for setting up, breaking down, and operating the event.

Look for events that either don’t have an existing pizza vendor, or which can support multiple pizza operations. At these types of events, the quality and uniqueness of your offerings is going to be paramount; you may not sell a lot of plain cheese pies, but if you can dream up a pizza creation featuring attention-grabbing flavor combinations or toppings, you’re sure to attract customers looking for novel and creative new things to eat.

Similarly, a pizza truck can be a great addition to a corporate event, or to big functions like weddings, receptions, birthday parties, or anywhere else people congregate.

Strategic Partnerships:

Keep on the lookout for strategic partnership opportunities that can fuel your pizza business. For example, does your local craft brewery offer tours of their facility, but little in the way of food options? Inquire about a partnership that allows local beer samplers to have a slice of pizza, as well, by parking outside the brewery. Make a list of the large corporate presences in your municipality, and talk to the HR department about the potential for a spot out front or on the corporate campus. You’ll have a built-in stream of customers who visit your coffee cart or truck every single day, and don’t have to deal with the headache of continually trying to figure out where you can place your truck or trailer.

Of course, for the privilege of operating on their property with their group of captive customers, some companies may propose a revenue split. In the pizza business, this is something you should consider; the margins are so high in the pizza business, there’s probably room to break off a percentage of sales in exchange for a sure-thing place to park and operate.

Other Things to Consider:

We hope this brief guide will help get the wheels turning and give you an overall understanding of both how to evaluate a used pizza concession truck, cart, or trailer, as well as how to operate one for maximum return on your investment. Here are two more quick things to consider:

Get an inspection. Never purchase this type of equipment sight unseen, or based only on low-resolution photos on the internet. Remember, when you buy a mobile concession business, you are investing in all of the potential problems of a commercial kitchen, coupled with the idiosyncrasies of a used truck. Just as you would never purchase a car without taking it for a test drive, make sure you have a chance to inspect your new equipment before any money changes hands. Now’s also the time to acknowledge potential gaps in your knowledge, and bring along a trusted mentor or mechanic to assist in your evaluation.

Get friendly with your local health inspector. Remember, the health inspector shouldn’t be someone to fear; it is their job to help you operate your new business safely. Schedule a call with your local health department to discuss your idea, and find out what special equipment or considerations you may need to operate legally and safely in your region.

If you want to learn more about operating a mobile food business, check out our business plan section to see how you can create a custom plan for your pizza unit, or click here to browse our complete inventory of food trucks for sale.