A business model is the way a company earns its money. Here are four common ones, each shown with one company that Cityfort covers.
Real companies often mix them. The labels are plain descriptions, not grades, and no model is shown here as better than another.
How does a subscription model work? SpaceX's Starlink
Customers pay a repeating fee for continued access to a service. The company earns money for as long as they stay.
SpaceX's Starlink sells satellite internet this way.
Its prospectus says subscribers pay a monthly fee, which varies by market and download speed. There is typically also a one-time terminal cost.[S1]
The prospectus says it recognizes that fee revenue "ratably over the service period".[S1] That means the money counts evenly across the months of service, not all on sign-up.
SpaceX's filing reports subscriber counts. It also defines ARPU, a revenue-per-subscriber measure: Starlink service revenue divided by average subscribers and by months in the period.[S1]
Starlink sits in SpaceX's Connectivity segment.[S1] SpaceX's largest segment on its stock page is Connectivity: 61.0% (1 of 3 segments) (FY2025).
How does a marketplace model work? Amazon's sellers
A marketplace connects buyers with independent sellers, and the operator earns a fee on the deal. It does not have to own the goods.
Amazon runs one inside its stores. Its 10-K says of these sales, "We are not the seller of record in these transactions."[S2]
It earns fixed fees, a percentage of sales, per-unit activity fees, interest or a mix of these.[S2]
This changes how revenue is counted.
Amazon records gross revenue, the full sale, on items from its own inventory. On items from third-party sellers, it records only its net share.[S2]
Amazon's split of sales by type is on its stock page, including the share from third-party sellers.
How does an advertising model work? Meta's apps
The people using the product usually pay nothing. Businesses pay to put messages in front of them.
Meta says it generates substantially all of its revenue from selling advertising placements on its apps to marketers.[S3] Those marketers can buy ads that appear on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, Threads and WhatsApp.[S3]
Revenue in this model depends on advertisers' budgets. Meta says its marketers do not have long-term advertising commitments with it, which it calls common in the industry.[S3]
Meta's 10-K also discusses ad impressions delivered and the average price per ad.[S3] Its largest segment is Family of Apps: 98.9% (1 of 2 segments) (FY2025), and the stock page shows who pays.
How does a hardware model work? Tesla's cars
The company makes a physical product and sells it. Revenue arrives with each sale, and costs include materials, parts and factories.
Tesla says it designs, develops, makes, sells and leases electric vehicles, along with energy generation and storage systems.[S4] It sells vehicles through its website and company-owned stores.[S4]
Supply costs are part of this model. Tesla's 10-K names raw materials including aluminum, steel, lithium, nickel and copper, whose prices may fluctuate.[S4]
It also says its products contain thousands of parts, bought from suppliers around the world.[S4]
Physical products can carry later costs too. Tesla provides a limited warranty on the new and used vehicles it sells directly to consumers.[S4]
Tesla's largest segment is Automotive: 86.5% (1 of 2 segments) (FY2025). Its stock page shows who pays.
Can one company use more than one model?
Yes, and many do. Amazon's sales groups include store sales, third-party seller services, advertising services and subscription services such as Prime memberships.[S2]
Meta's second segment, Reality Labs, earns revenue from consumer hardware products, software and content.[S3] Tesla's automotive segment includes paid Supercharging sessions and insurance as well as vehicles.[S4]
A company's segments are a quick way to see how its money is split. Here is the largest one at each company on Cityfort, listed A to Z.
See it in real companies
Largest business segment at companies on Cityfort
5 companies on Cityfort, listed A–Z (not ranked).
From each company's filings, as cited on its Cityfort stock page. These figures change when a stock page is updated.