How much should I charge for a detail?
How much should I charge for a detail?
That’s probably the question I get asked the most. I’m going to do a full video on this, but let’s walk through it.
- How much do you want to make?
Look. If I was going back to hands-on detailing full time, I wouldn’t do it for less than $100k a year.
Figure 40 hours a week and 48 working weeks. That gives you a little time off plus holidays.
That’s 1,920 working hours a year. Rough math puts me at about $52 an hour just for my time.
- A true full detail for me is about 4.5 to 5 hours on a pretty normal vehicle.
Not a wash and vacuum. An actual detail.
- Now figure out your overhead.
And no… being mobile does not mean you magically have no overhead.
Truck payment. Fuel. Insurance. Chemicals. Equipment. Ads. Phone. Software. Towels. Payroll. Shop rent if you have it. All the stuff people pretend doesn’t count.
Add it all up for the year and divide it by your working hours.
For me, let’s say that number is around $120k a year. Divide that by 1,920 hours and my business costs me about $62 an hour to operate. Round it up to $65.
- Material cost per car.
I use about $10 per car when you include all the little stuff people forget about. Towels, pads, brushes, sprayers, gloves, laundry, tornador wear items, etc.
- Now do the math.
$52 an hour for me.
$65 an hour for the business.
That’s $117 an hour before materials.
Multiply that by 5 hours and now you’re at about $585. Add materials and you’re basically at $595 for a true full detail.
Now before everyone loses their mind, here’s the important part.
You take that number and reality check it.
Maybe you’re slow. Maybe your overhead is crazy high. Maybe you forgot expenses. Maybe your process sucks. Or maybe… you’ve been undercharging the whole time.
How did I reality check mine?
Simple. I looked at who the top 3 detailers in my area were and checked what they charged.
Because market matters too.
If the best guys in town are charging $300 and your math says you need $600, something has to change. Your speed. Your overhead. Your customer base. Something.
But if the best shops are charging $600 and you’re charging $250 because “that’s just what people around here pay,” you’re probably pricing from fear, not numbers.
Most detailers know how to polish paint. Very few know their numbers.
