Ford vs SpaceX: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Ford reported $187.3B of revenue in FY2025 and a net loss of $8.2B. SpaceX reported $18.7B of revenue in FY2025 and a net loss of $4.9B.
Latest financial snapshot
Financial summary
Ford
Ford's numbers show a profitable truck and fleet business funding an expensive EV reset. FY2025 revenue rose 1.2% to $187.267B, but Ford posted an $8.162B net loss as Model e lost $4.806B at EBIT and the company took charges tied to its December 2025 decision to cancel some EV programs. Ford Pro earned $6.843B of EBIT. In Q2 2026, revenue fell 4% to $48.3B on lower wholesale volumes and aluminum shortages linked to supplier Novelis, and the $1.3B net loss included $3.6B of charges for exiting the BlueOval SK battery joint venture. Adjusted EBIT still rose 17% to $2.5B, adjusted free cash flow was $2.1B, and liquidity exceeded $43B.
SpaceX
SpaceX revenue grew from $10.387 billion in 2023 to $14.015 billion in 2024 and $18.674 billion in 2025, but heavy Starship, Starlink, and AI spending produced a $4.937 billion FY2025 net loss. In Q2 2026, its first quarter reported as a public company, revenue was $7.8 billion (up 92%), adjusted EBITDA was $3.5 billion, net loss was $541 million, and backlog was $47.5 billion. The IPO raised $85.7 billion and a $25 billion bond sale added more liquidity. In late September 2026 the stock traded near $145, for a market capitalization around $1.9 trillion.
Revenue and profit by year
Ford
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $187.3B | -$8.2B | -4.4% | +1.2% | Source |
| FY2024 | $185B | $5.9B | 3.2% | +5.0% | Source |
| FY2023 | $176.2B | $4.3B | 2.5% | +11.5% | Source |
| FY2022 | $158.1B | -$2B | -1.3% | +15.9% | Source |
| FY2021 | $136.3B | $17.9B | 13.2% | +7.2% | Source |
| FY2020 | $127.1B | -$1.3B | -1.0% | -18.4% | Source |
| FY2019 | $155.9B | $84M | 0.1% | -2.8% | Source |
| FY2018 | $160.3B | $3.7B | 2.3% | +2.3% | Source |
| FY2017 | $156.8B | $7.8B | 4.9% | +3.3% | Source |
| FY2016 | $151.8B | $4.6B | 3.0% | — | Source |
SpaceX
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $18.7B | -$4.9B | -26.4% | +33.2% | Source |
| FY2024 | $14B | $18M | 0.1% | +34.9% | Source |
| FY2023 | $10.4B | -$4.6B | -44.6% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
Ford
- Ford Blue~54%
Combustion and hybrid Ford and Lincoln retail vehicles generated $101.019B of FY2025 revenue.
- Ford Pro~35%
Commercial vehicles, fleet services, telematics, charging, and related customer relationships generated $66.286B of FY2025 revenue.
- Ford Model e~4%
Electric vehicles, EV technologies, and related software generated $6.670B of FY2025 revenue while remaining loss-making.
- Ford Credit and Other~7%
Vehicle financing, leasing, and other corporate activities complete Ford's consolidated revenue base.
SpaceX
- Launch services
Not formally reported
Commercial, civil, and national-security launches priced by rocket, payload, orbit, and service type.
- Starlink consumer broadband
Not formally reported
Monthly subscriptions and terminals for residential and mobile broadband.
- Enterprise and government connectivity
Not formally reported
Starlink enterprise, aviation, maritime, backup connectivity, Starshield, and government services.
- AI infrastructure
Not formally reported
Compute and cloud services from SpaceX's AI segment, formed through the xAI combination; $2.6B revenue in Q2 2026.
Business model and strategy
Ford
How it makes money
Ford designs, builds, and sells vehicles through roughly 9,000 independent Ford and Lincoln dealers worldwide and reports three operating segments plus Ford Credit. Ford Blue sells gas and hybrid retail vehicles such as the F-150, Bronco, Explorer, and Maverick ($101.0B of FY2025 revenue).
Growth strategy
After its December 2025 EV reset, Ford is concentrating capital on trucks, hybrids, and higher-margin services rather than large first-generation battery-electric programs.
Competitive advantage
Ford's clearest moat is the F-Series truck franchise, the best-selling pickup line in the U.S. every year since 1977, combined with Ford Pro's position in commercial vans and Super Duty trucks. Fleet customers buy vehicles, service, parts, telematics, and financing from one supplier, and Ford's upfitter, dealer, and mobile-service network is hard for EV startups or importers to replicate.
SpaceX
How it makes money
SpaceX earns money in three segments. Space sells launches on Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy, plus Dragon cargo and crew missions for NASA, the U.S. government, and commercial customers ($962 million in Q2 2026).
Growth strategy
SpaceX's growth plan has four parts: add Starlink subscribers and raise enterprise, aviation, and mobile revenue; launch higher-capacity Starlink V3 satellites on Starship; expand national-security work through Starshield and launch contracts (over $6 billion in U.S. government awards in Q2 2026); and scale AI compute capacity, which grew from 400 megawatts a year earlier to 1.4 gigawatts at the end of Q2 2026.
Competitive advantage
SpaceX's advantage is reusability combined with vertical integration. It builds its own engines, avionics, rockets, and satellites, and reflies Falcon 9 boosters many times, which lowers its marginal launch cost below rivals that still expend most hardware. Being its own largest launch customer lets it deploy Starlink at a cadence no other operator has matched, and Starlink revenue then funds Starship.
Questions about Ford vs SpaceX
Which company has higher revenue — Ford Motor Company or SpaceX?
Ford Motor Company reported $187.3B (FY2025), while SpaceX reported $18.7B (FY2025). By last reported revenue, Ford Motor Company is the larger business, with SpaceX reporting a smaller revenue base.
What is the market cap of Ford Motor Company vs SpaceX?
Ford Motor Company's market capitalisation stands at $48.0B, while SpaceX's is $1.92T. SpaceX carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to Ford Motor Company.
Which is more financially efficient — Ford Motor Company or SpaceX?
Ford Motor Company generates $1.11M / employee in revenue per employee, while SpaceX generates $826k / employee. Ford Motor Company shows higher revenue efficiency per headcount, though this reflects business model differences — capital-light software companies routinely outperform labour-intensive manufacturers on this metric.
How do Ford Motor Company and SpaceX make money?
Ford Motor Company and SpaceX generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Ford Motor Company: Ford designs, builds, and sells vehicles through roughly 9,000 independent Ford and Lincoln dealers worldwide and reports three operating segments plus Ford Credit. SpaceX: SpaceX earns money in three segments.
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — Ford Motor Company or SpaceX?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, Ford Motor Company trades at 0.3x P/S and SpaceX at 102.8x P/S. SpaceX commands a higher revenue multiple, typically indicating that investors expect faster growth or higher future margins compared to Ford Motor Company. A higher multiple is not inherently better — it may also signal that the stock is priced for perfection.
Is Ford Motor Company bigger than SpaceX?
By last reported revenue, Ford Motor Company ($187.3B (FY2025)) is the larger company compared to SpaceX ($18.7B (FY2025)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Ford vs SpaceX overview