what do yall charge?

[GTO Guy]

Just wondering if anyone has a spreadsheet put together on what they charge to do what size vehicles and with what products? I average about $20 an hour and don't really worry about what i use. Mind you I am no "professional" but i think i am pretty dang good at what I do and I only use adam's products. The last car i did was a G8GT and it turned out amazing and I charged the guy 170 bux. took me 9 or 10 hours. what is fair?

[jeast]

I dont know but I like your username lol.

[Team Adam's]

The last car i did was a G8GT and it turned out amazing and I charged the guy 170 bux. took me 9 or 10 hours. what is fair?

 

Way way way waaaaaaaaaaay too low for 9-10 hours of work.

 

Theres 2 ways to approach this:

 

Charge per hour, so no matter what the size of the vehicle, or how bad it is you are going to get a fair rate based on how long you work. The problem here can be your customers willingness to pay for the work... a lot of people like to have a set "not to exceed" price. If you clearly lay out an hourly rate, provide a ballpark for the amount of time it will take and clearly define that if that time is exceeded you will let them know before proceeding. I wouldn't go any lower than $35 p/hour.

 

Menu pricing, this makes it easy to give quotes. Have a base rate for different sizes/types of vehicles and the services you provide become "upgrades". For example charge $250 for an SUV which will include wash, clay, single pass of FMP, and buttery wax. Dress tires, trim and thats it. Add $150 if they want a full correction, another $100 for interior cleaning and dressing, etc. The benefit of this is that you can land business that you might not otherwise get b/c the person can only pay for the services they want and know what the price is right off the bat. The benefit here also is that if your prices are set right, the faster you can finish a job the higher your per/hour profit is... this will make you really look at your process and get it as finely tuned as possible to maximize the profit.

 

In any event $170 for 10 hours of work is too low... thats $17 p/hour not including overhead (product, water, etc) Thats about half of what I would consider the minimum if you are doing truly quality work.

[BADRIDES]

 

Theres 2 ways to approach this:

 

Charge per hour, so no matter what the size of the vehicle, or how bad it is you are going to get a fair rate based on how long you work. The problem here can be your customers willingness to pay for the work... a lot of people like to have a set "not to exceed" price. If you clearly lay out an hourly rate, provide a ballpark for the amount of time it will take and clearly define that if that time is exceeded you will let them know before proceeding. I wouldn't go any lower than $35 p/hour.

 

Menu pricing, this makes it easy to give quotes. Have a base rate for different sizes/types of vehicles and the services you provide become "upgrades". For example charge $250 for an SUV which will include wash, clay, single pass of FMP, and buttery wax. Dress tires, trim and thats it. Add $150 if they want a full correction, another $100 for interior cleaning and dressing, etc. The benefit of this is that you can land business that you might not otherwise get b/c the person can only pay for the services they want and know what the price is right off the bat. The benefit here also is that if your prices are set right, the faster you can finish a job the higher your per/hour profit is... this will make you really look at your process and get it as finely tuned as possible to maximize the profit.

 

In any event $170 for 10 hours of work is too low... thats $17 p/hour not including overhead (product, water, etc) Thats about half of what I would consider the minimum if you are doing truly quality work.

Take the area of where you live into alot of consideration.NO way in he!! I could get $250 for an SUV in my little town of 10,000 people.You have to charge also close to what the other shops in town charge no matter how better you are because ALOT of people dont know what a real detail is and are gonna go to the cheaper place until you get your name out there that you are the MAN.I charge more than other shops in my town and I get it because I know what I'm doing.I have had people ask me for quotes and then say the guy down the street is cheaper.Most of the time their vehicle comes back for me to fix and they had wished I had done it from the start.Alot of variables to take into consideration but once you get to doing alot of jobs and your name gets out there then it will all be cool.

[b_pappy]

I think you hit the nail on the head Jason, it will take some time, but build your name and reputation and people will trust what you charge, then you can slowly raise your rates. If you came out the gate charging $350.00 for a detail no one might ever see your work. Tough call on where the balance is.

Good luck.

Bruce

[mikegeaney]

I "charge" in Liquids. I do the vehicles of friends and family....they know I like Patron and Newcastle Brown.....if I feel shorted I won't do their ride again.

[supersilverado04]

300 dollars sounds like alot for a min. Is that what most detail shops charge? 35hr

[whiterp199]

I "charge" in Liquids. I do the vehicles of friends and family....they know I like Patron and Newcastle Brown.....if I feel shorted I won't do their ride again.

 

I agree. This is the same way I do things, but this is a hobby for me not a job.

[Mirror Detailing]

I have about 7-8 package deals, with only two packages changing prices pending on what size the vehicle is. Then I have a full paint correction package which is $40 an hour, and can take anywhere from 10-20 hours.

[Chris@Adams]

I agree, it depends on where you live. It would be hard to get 250 dollars around here for a SUV.

[11chevz71]

i know i dont charge enough. but it better than nothing

[ArmyAcadia09]

Thanks for starting this, I was wondering the same thing. I have thought about starting to detail cars for money on the side. I once worked on my mom-in-laws benz for $100, wash clay wax interior, but that was ok because its a 2 dr convertible and its fast :rockon:

[Mirror Detailing]

Thanks for starting this, I was wondering the same thing. I have thought about starting to detail cars for money on the side. I once worked on my mom-in-laws benz for $100, wash clay wax interior, but that was ok because its a 2 dr convertible and its fast :rockon:

 

Dam thats extremely expensive. I have a package thats wash, clay, black trim coated, wax, rims/tires, windows, vacumm interior, treat dash/center console for $80.

[stang_krazy]

Just wondering if anyone has a spreadsheet put together on what they charge to do what size vehicles and with what products? I average about $20 an hour and don't really worry about what i use. Mind you I am no "professional" but i think i am pretty dang good at what I do and I only use adam's products. The last car i did was a G8GT and it turned out amazing and I charged the guy 170 bux. took me 9 or 10 hours. what is fair?

 

Hey GTO

 

I think for the most part staying close to $25.00 an hour is pretty fair for a detailer and the customer. The only thing I see bad for charging by the hour is the most important part of why your/we are doing this, the customers money!

 

I've worked around a couple dealerships and the one thing the customers I've heard and talked to hated was the idea of getting charged by the hour and getting ripped off! So think about that.

 

And like chris stated, the area is key to what you can charge. And these automatic car washes have been popping up left and right everywhere in the last year or so and it's going to make it harder for them to give up a $100.00 or more to get there car washed and waxed when they can go to a local automatic car wash and for about $8 to $10 dollars there car is all cleaned up, so why should they pay us $100.00 plus to do what they think they just got done for $10.00!

 

The best thing (in my opinion) is think about your services and what your going to be including with them. Break your packages down into say 3 packages? (so it's easyer for you but the most important the customer to remember!) Include the interior with every package, makes the customer happy and also that your not charging for every little detail-like a garage or a dealer does.

 

anyway always include a vacuum-wipe down with a protectant-windows,and have little zip-lock bags or? to put their change or whatever you find under the seats in so you can put in their passenger seat when they pick up there car,also some thank you mats might be a good ideal when you get your business going, the little thing like that customers appreciate and word of month gets around!

 

Don't forget either that if you get a LGM (WITH PRO HEAT 1425) or have one,do charge extra for that plus you may have a customer who is in a hurry and just wants a quick interior done so fiqure up a price just for interior only. And then if all they want is a quick wash fiqure a price just for that.

 

Here's something maybe to go by and to help get you started and or add too.

 

1st package; wash & wax $ ?

 

consist of:?

 

2nd package; 1st package plus surface prep $ ?

clay only to remove the above bonded surface contaminants, then wax

 

This for most is a hard seller to alot of customers because the fact is they think a wash and wax is just that plus the fact is it's their hard earned money, and you need to be good at what you do and get their trust right from the get go ( but don't never be dishonest or lie about anything , it's more then your word it's your name!)

 

Talk to them about the enviroment and the contaminants that can and does get stuck/traped on and in there paint, like tree sap-rail dust-industrial fallout (let them feel and hear first hand what their paints surface feels like and show them how the clay removed the contaminants and then let them feel the difference.

 

Also talk to them about dirt build-up from everyday driving that slowly builds up in the pores of there paint. And that over time they bond to their paints surface and simple washing can't remove them. And this is why clay and SHR is so important to remove, because on a darker paint their eyes can't see it because it's somewhat transparent in that there eyes see through it to the color of the paint and not this grayish build-up but on a lighter color or a white paint it's possible to see this staining.

 

3rd package; Full polishing of the paint $ ?

leaves off from the last step.Gets in the paint to remove the below surface contaminants. (this step is the most important to bringing out the full potential for the paints depth-shine-gloss and clarity!!

 

This is the most important step in doing a good detail or a great detail! Spending the biggest part of your time in the cleaning step, And this is where the test spot is so important. You want to have your game plan so you know what steps and how many applications of SHR will get the job done.

 

Remember to try and stay in the $25 an hour and not cheat your customers or yourself.

 

And check around your location to see what the locals are charging, remember also that some places have detailers on just about every corner and some are pretty good at what they do and some that do more damage then good and that hurts all of us.

 

Just my thoughts and opinion.

[BADRIDES]

and have little zip-lock bags or? to put their change or whatever you find under the seats in so you can put in their passenger seat when they pick up there car,also some thank you mats might be a good ideal when you get your business going, the little thing like that customers appreciate and word of month gets around!

I do this also

[OIF Vet]

I live in an apartment complex and I charge $80 for a car. That includes wash, clay, machine polish, wax, tires, wheels, and interior. I have 6 steady customers and another 5 lined up once the weather gets better. I believe if I go any higher with my price people will not have it done. I look at it this way, $80 is better than no dollars! I do it because I enjoy detailing, make a few extra bucks on the side and my 11 and 8 year old sons help out. They love helping out plus that they a cut of the payment. It's funny becuase I charge $80 but I usually get between $90 and $100 including the tip. The customers are happy and so and I.

 

So far, I had one car that needed some extra attention and that is one of my repeat customers.

 

I don't do trucks with the acception of mine. I haven't done any SUVs but if I did, I would probably charge $120 for the same service.

 

Rob

 

Eric, If I move to Hood next we could team up and start a side business between local training, NTC and deployments. What do you think, we could get about 10 cars done.

[Adam]

First, welcome to the new members!

 

My $0.02 on how much to charge for a detail: There are two types of detail, the quick and cheap, and the extremely thorough. Depending on what condition the vehicle is in, the price really should vary. (IMHO)

 

There are also several types of customer:

 

 

• High-end car, wealthy, "I don't care how much it costs, just make it perfect."
  
• High-end car, wealthy, cheap as heck, wants the most miraculous detail on earth for $5.
  
• Families or individuals with nice cars, ready to pay a decent amount for a decent service.
  
• Fleet owner/ manager, need to maintain the vehicles, and realize the resale value, as well as care of the employee will be maximized when a vehicle is good shape.
  

There are more types of owner, however, these are the ones I seemed to come across the most.

 

Best money for time spent for my company was always fleet detailing. Driving around town, I'd see a super clean plumber's truck, and "Unit #6" on the front fender. I'd call and offer them a free detail so they could see how thorough my detail was.

 

Limo companies were my goal as well, and that was my first fleet account. I ended up detailing trucks for Coca-Cola, which led me the startup of Adam's Polishes.

 

The nicer the car, typically, the bigger pain in the butt the customer is. "This scuff mark wasn't here before the detail....." How many times I've had the conversation, "Riiiiiiiiiiiiiight, I found a yellow concrete pole earlier, in YOUR garage, and drove the car into it? Yep, that's right, that was me!"

 

I charged a base rate of $100 for cars, and $125 for larger vehicles, minivans, large SUV's, etc. When I did paint correction, I charged an extra $50, and when clay first came out, I would have the customer feel their car, and ask if they wanted those little bumps off.

 

Certainly, most people did, and I'd charge an extra $25 for that service, and charge an extra $25 for an engine detail.

 

If we talk with the customer, level with he or she, and describe the details of the condition and work to be performed, it really should be an alignment of expectations.

 

When you are slammed, and don't have time to handle your load of business, raise your prices. The market will let you know how you are doing, as word of mouth will keep you busy if you offer an excellent detail.

 

When it seems you are working 100 hours/ week, and only detailing 10 cars, netting out $1,000, time to raise your prices!

 

Again, my $0.02, and this was 1982 - 1996 dollars.

 

-Adam

[ArmyAcadia09]

First, she paid me what she thought I had no idea, and she wanted me to buy the products for her which were $60 (pre-Adam's).

 

Rob,

 

Sounds good, got NTC in a few months and deployment few months after that. So I'd be out of the loop, but we can work it out.

[ArmyAcadia09]

Good advice from the man himself....

 

I hit post quick reply and your post popped up and I thought how'd I get into Adam's account.....

[BADRIDES]

I did a Ford Excursion Friday which was a construction contractors daily vehicle with 192,000 miles on it and was very bad.Detail consisted of detailing interior,doorjams,cleaning engine,undercarriage,fenderwells,wheels and tires,washing,claying,waxing and I charged him $200 and he tipped me $25 and it took 6 hours.$37.50 an hour.The guy had the Excursion sold and promised the buyer the clean up so he was tickled.Another thing I take into consideration also when I'm detailing is what shape is this vehicle gonna be in 1 month from now.So I know how really in depth on certain stuff I clean to whether they will even notice or not if I clean that.I get ALOT of business from the small used car lots in town.If its only a thorough interior detail I do it.Alot of these have young kids working there that all they know is washing and waxing and have no clue on cleaning out a/c vents with toothbrushes or cleaning stains in carpets.I do alot of trucks and SUV's and the main question I always get asked is will you wash or wax the top?I tell them of course and you are more than happy to check before it leaves my shop.Some of the other shops in town dont because they think its so high up you wont look or feel the top.

[stang_krazy]

I did a Ford Excursion Friday which was a construction contractors daily vehicle with 192,000 miles on it and was very bad.Detail consisted of detailing interior,doorjams,cleaning engine,undercarriage,fenderwells,wheels and tires,washing,claying,waxing and I charged him $200 and he tipped me $25 and it took 6 hours.$37.50 an hour.The guy had the Excursion sold and promised the buyer the clean up so he was tickled.Another thing I take into consideration also when I'm detailing is what shape is this vehicle gonna be in 1 month from now.So I know how really in depth on certain stuff I clean to whether they will even notice or not if I clean that.I get ALOT of business from the small used car lots in town.If its only a thorough interior detail I do it.Alot of these have young kids working there that all they know is washing and waxing and have no clue on cleaning out a/c vents with toothbrushes or cleaning stains in carpets.I do alot of trucks and SUV's and the main question I always get asked is will you wash or wax the top?I tell them of course and you are more than happy to check before it leaves my shop.Some of the other shops in town dont because they think its so high up you wont look or feel the top.

 

Hey Jason

 

I think that is a pretty fair price and sounds like you got lucky in getting done that quick!

 

And the tips mean alot doesn't it!

 

I really appreciate the tips more then the money from the job because to me no matter what they say about the job you've done for them when they give you that extra money, rather it's just $5.00 or $50.00 it really says something about pleasing the customer. And thats what it's all about!

 

I think this is a great thread!

 

Keep them coming so future members that has a simular question can get an idea if alot of you from different states/area's tell there detailing prices and what's invovled because every state/area has a completly different price range for the services being provided to the customer ?

[stang_krazy]

I live in an apartment complex and I charge $80 for a car. That includes wash, clay, machine polish, wax, tires, wheels, and interior. I have 6 steady customers and another 5 lined up once the weather gets better. I believe if I go any higher with my price people will not have it done. I look at it this way, $80 is better than no dollars! I do it because I enjoy detailing, make a few extra bucks on the side and my 11 and 8 year old sons help out. They love helping out plus that they a cut of the payment. It's funny becuase I charge $80 but I usually get between $90 and $100 including the tip. The customers are happy and so and I.

 

That's what it's all about, and when your kids get invovled with you doing these things your teaching them a valuable lesson!

[GTO Guy]

I did a Ford Excursion Friday which was a construction contractors daily vehicle with 192,000 miles on it and was very bad.Detail consisted of detailing interior,doorjams,cleaning engine,undercarriage,fenderwells,wheels and tires,washing,claying,waxing and I charged him $200 and he tipped me $25 and it took 6 hours.$37.50 an hour.The guy had the Excursion sold and promised the buyer the clean up so he was tickled.Another thing I take into consideration also when I'm detailing is what shape is this vehicle gonna be in 1 month from now.So I know how really in depth on certain stuff I clean to whether they will even notice or not if I clean that.I get ALOT of business from the small used car lots in town.If its only a thorough interior detail I do it.Alot of these have young kids working there that all they know is washing and waxing and have no clue on cleaning out a/c vents with toothbrushes or cleaning stains in carpets.I do alot of trucks and SUV's and the main question I always get asked is will you wash or wax the top?I tell them of course and you are more than happy to check before it leaves my shop.Some of the other shops in town dont because they think its so high up you wont look or feel the top.

 

HOW IN THE WORLD DO YOU CLAY AN EXPEDITION IN LESS THAN 6 HOURS? took me over 4 to do the G8 and it only has 12k on it. it was white and i am a perfectionist but man... you must be flyin!

[BADRIDES]

That's what it's all about, and when your kids get invovled with you doing these things your teaching them a valuable lesson!

My 14 year old son helps me during school breaks and gets paid a little bit but the responsibility lesson he learns is worth so much more.

 

HOW IN THE WORLD DO YOU CLAY AN EXPEDITION IN LESS THAN 6 HOURS? took me over 4 to do the G8 and it only has 12k on it. it was white and i am a perfectionist but man... you must be flyin!

It was an Excursion and I didnt let any grass grow when I did it and a buddy stopped by and helped me with waxing it so that helped time wise.

[stang_krazy]

My 14 year old son helps me during school breaks and gets paid a little bit but the responsibility lesson he learns is worth so much more.

That's great jason!

And there is no amount of money in this world that could take away from that moment for some father and his kids time !!!!! It's worth ever second