How Much Does Your Detailing Chemical Really Cost Per Car?

If you run a detailing business, you probably have a pretty good idea what you pay for a gallon of chemical.

You might know that one soap costs $20 a gallon and another costs $100.

But here is the question I think is a lot more important:

How much does that chemical actually cost you every time you use it on a car?

Those are two very different numbers.

A $20 gallon of detailing chemical is not automatically cheaper than a $100 gallon of chemical.

I know that sounds wrong.

But once you start looking at dilution ratios and how much product you actually use on a vehicle, the math can change pretty quickly.

I have seen this over and over again in the detailing business.

A detailer sees $20 per gallon and thinks:

“That is cheaper.”

Maybe it is.

Maybe it isn’t.

Let’s do the math.

Price Per Gallon Does Not Tell the Whole Story

Let’s say Product A costs $20 per gallon.

Product B costs $100 per gallon.

At first glance, Product A is obviously the winner.

But let’s say Product A is used straight or at a very low dilution.

Product B is a concentrate that you dilute 20:1.

Now the comparison gets interesting.

This is why I don’t like looking at the price of a detailing chemical by itself.

I want to know what that chemical costs me to actually use.

That’s the number that matters to your business.

What Does Your Chemical Cost Per Car?

I built the calculator on this page so you can figure this out for yourself.

Enter the price you pay for a gallon, your dilution ratio and how many ounces of the finished product you use on a vehicle.

The calculator will tell you approximately what that chemical costs you per vehicle.

This is the number I think detailers should pay a lot more attention to.

Let’s Look at a Real Example

Let’s say you buy a chemical for $100 per gallon.

That sounds expensive.

A gallon contains 128 ounces, so the concentrate costs about 78 cents per ounce.

Now let’s say the product is diluted 20:1.

If you make 32 ounces of finished product, you aren’t using 32 ounces of the $100-per-gallon chemical.

You’re using only a small amount of the concentrate.

That’s the part that gets lost when we simply compare gallon prices.

Now let’s say you use 4 ounces of that finished product on a vehicle.

The amount of concentrate you’re actually putting on that vehicle is very small.

That’s what you need to price.

Not the bottle.

Not the gallon.

The actual amount of concentrate you consumed.

Dilution Is Where the Math Gets Interesting

This is also why it is important to understand what a manufacturer’s dilution ratio actually means.

If a product says 20:1, you need to know exactly how the manufacturer is defining that ratio.

For the calculator on this page, I am treating 20:1 as:

20 parts water to 1 part chemical.

So you have 21 total parts in the finished mixture.

If you’re looking at a product that uses a different convention, such as a ready-to-use ratio or the manufacturer’s specific mixing instructions, follow the manufacturer’s directions.

The goal here isn’t to replace the directions on the bottle.

The goal is to figure out what the product is actually costing you to use.

Ready-to-Use Cost Is Another Number Worth Knowing

There is another calculation I like to look at.

What does a gallon of ready-to-use product actually cost me?

This can be very useful when comparing products.

For example, you may have:

Product A

$20 per gallon
1:1 dilution

versus:

Product B

$100 per gallon
20:1 dilution

Looking at the gallon price alone makes Product A look like the obvious choice.

But after dilution, Product B may produce significantly more usable chemical from that gallon of concentrate.

That doesn’t automatically mean Product B is better.

It means you need to compare apples to apples.

What About a Product You Use Straight?

That’s easy.

If you’re using a product straight with no dilution, enter:

Dilution: 0:1

Then enter how many ounces of the product you use on a vehicle.

For example:

A $20 gallon of chemical contains 128 ounces.

If you use 16 ounces per vehicle:

$20 ÷ 128 = about 15.6 cents per ounce.

16 ounces would cost you about:

$2.50 per vehicle.

That’s a much more useful number than simply saying:

“I buy it for $20 a gallon.”

This Is Where Detailers Can Get Into Trouble

I’ve seen detailers spend a lot of time trying to save money on chemicals without actually looking at their usage.

They’ll switch from a $30 product to a $20 product because it is cheaper.

Sounds good.

But what if they have to use twice as much?

Now the $20 product isn’t necessarily saving them anything.

There are also other things to consider.

Does it work as well?

Does it save time?

Does it require more agitation?

Does it leave residue?

Does it require another product afterward?

Does it work consistently?

Chemical cost is only one part of the equation.

But it is an important part.

Your Time Costs Money Too

This is something I think gets overlooked by detailers all the time.

Let’s say Chemical A costs you 50 cents more per car.

But Chemical A saves you five minutes.

If you’re running a professional detailing business, those five minutes can be worth a lot more than 50 cents.

You have payroll.

You have insurance.

You have rent.

You have utilities.

You have equipment.

You have vehicles.

And most importantly, you have a limited number of hours in a day.

So don’t automatically buy the cheapest chemical.

Buy the product that makes sense for the job and makes sense for your business.

Don’t Forget About Overuse

There is another reason I like calculating cost per vehicle.

It makes you start paying attention to how much product you’re actually using.

A few extra ounces here and there may not seem like much.

But multiply that by 5 cars a week, 20 cars a month or 200 cars a year.

Now it starts adding up.

If you’re using two ounces more product than you actually need on every vehicle, you’re giving away chemical.

And you’re probably not even noticing it.

Your Detailing Business Is a Numbers Game

You don’t have to be a CPA to run a profitable detailing business.

But you should know what things cost.

You should know your labor cost.

You should know your vehicle cost.

You should know what your equipment costs.

And yes, you should know what your chemicals cost you per car.

That’s why I like this calculation.

It’s simple.

Cost per gallon → dilution → actual usage → cost per vehicle.

Once you start looking at chemicals this way, some of the products you thought were expensive may not be expensive at all.

And some of those “cheap” gallons might not be the bargain you thought they were.

Want to Know What Your Chemical Really Costs?

Use the calculator above.

Put in the price you actually pay.

Put in the dilution ratio you actually use.

Then put in approximately how much finished product you’re using on a vehicle.

Don’t guess if you can measure it.

If you normally fill a spray bottle, foam cannon or pump sprayer, measure it.

After a few cars, you’ll have a much better idea of your actual usage.

That’s the number I would use when deciding what a chemical really costs my business.

And if you’re buying detailing supplies, don’t be afraid to ask questions.

There are a lot of great products out there.

There are also a lot of products that look great on a shelf because of the price.

The cheapest gallon isn’t always the cheapest product.

The product that gives you the lowest cost per job is what I’m interested in.

About Justin the Supply Guy

I’ve spent a lot of years around the detailing business, including owning and operating a detailing shop and selling detailing supplies.

I’ve made plenty of mistakes along the way.

I’ve bought products because they were cheap.

I’ve bought products because somebody said they were the latest and greatest.

And I’ve learned that sometimes the best product isn’t the cheapest one or the most expensive one.

It’s the one that works, saves you time and makes sense for your business.

That’s what I’m trying to do here at Justin the Supply Guy: cut through some of the noise and help detailers make better decisions about the products they’re buying.

If you need detailing supplies, check out JustinSupplyGuy.com.

Remember, don’t just look at what a chemical costs per gallon. Look at what it costs you per car.