Free calculator
Auto Detailing Price Calculator
Price an interior detail, a full sedan detail or an SUV from your own numbers: break-even rate, target rate and a quote with drive time and self-employment tax counted. Free, no sign-up.
- Your time on site$0
- Drive time (0 each)$0
- Vehicle$0
- Supplies$0
- Price floor, zero profit$0
How it works
Most detailers price a package by what other shops post, or by pay divided by hours. That leaves out the hours nobody pays for (driving to the car, quoting, texting customers), the costs that run every month, and self-employment tax.
This calculator grosses your take-home up for self-employment tax (15.3% on 92.35% of profit) and your income tax estimate, adds a year of business costs, and spreads the total over the hours customers actually pay for. That is your break-even rate. Your margin on top gives the target rate.
A job's price floor is your time on the car and your drive time at the break-even rate, plus vehicle cost per mile and supplies such as chemicals, towels and pads. The quote adds your margin and rounds up to the next $5.
A worked example
A $52,000 take-home goal with a 12% income tax estimate needs $70,394 of profit before tax. Add $6,540 a year of business costs and you need $76,934 of revenue. At 48 weeks of 45 hours with 65% paid, that is 1,404 paid hours: a break-even rate of $54.80 and a target of $64.47 with a 15% margin. Pay divided by all hours would say $24.07. A full sedan detail (4 hours on site, a 20-mile round trip, $20 of supplies) has a $290.91 price floor and quotes at $345, with $54.09 of profit inside it. An interior-only sedan detail (2.5 hours, $12 of supplies) quotes at $240, and a full SUV or truck detail (5 hours, $25 of supplies) at $415.
Price every job at once
The full Service Pricing Calculator workbook uses this same maths for Excel and Google Sheets: a quote builder, a printable price sheet for every job type, a job tracker that flags jobs below your floor, and 20 example jobs across 7 trades, mobile auto detailing among them. $2.99, instant download.
Questions
How much should I charge for a full detail?
It depends on your pay goal, your costs, your drive and how long the car takes you. With the example numbers a 4-hour full sedan detail needs $345 to pay its share. Enter your own numbers to see yours.
Does it count the drive to the customer?
Yes. Round-trip miles become drive time at your average speed, priced at your break-even rate, plus vehicle cost per mile. A 20-mile round trip at 30 mph adds 40 minutes.
How do I price SUVs and trucks?
Pick the SUV or truck example (5 hours, $25 of supplies) or type the hours and supplies a bigger vehicle takes you. The example jobs are starting points, not market prices.
Is this tax advice?
No. It is a planning estimate. Ask your tax preparer for your real income tax rate.