How much do you charge for your details?

I can't seem to find much specifically regarding pricing structure for detailing services. I have looked at what local "detailers" ( most of them better described as "overpriced mediocre carwashers"), and their prices are little help because the caliber of their service is much different from what I intend to provide. So I just thought I would ask those of you who are in this business what your pricing structures are like. Do you offer packages only, or do you charge only by the hour no matter what? Do you charge extra for extremely neglected cars, or the same flat rate?

Any input would be appreciated. Thanks

Brian

 

This question has been asked many, many times. The shortest, most concise answer I can give is as follows:

Everyone here charges a different price. Different economic regions will support different pricing schemes. Some are able to charge by the hour, some have a hard time booking at cheap(er) steady rates.

It all depends on where you live, what the economy is like in your area and what target marketbase you're after.

If you'd like, PM me and I'll show you my pricing here in the Pacific Northwest. I book just enough to stay busy, but I'm not overbooked. I'm leaning more towards underbooked currently with the crappy weather right now.

 

try different rates and see.
not trying to advertise but here is Nicks website (guy i work with) to give you idea on rates, check other ppls websites on here to see how rates vary based on where we are
Oakes Automotive Detailing : All Your Automotive Detail and Cleaning Needs

rates are ok and he does all kinds of cars. prices waries a little based on condition and how much time it takes to finish the job

charging about 15-20 an hour would be fine i guess? but it depends on condition of paint
i think doing by hour is pretty good idea since it will reflect how much time you spend doing the car.
dont think it should depend on car you doing (either its Ferrari or ford focus) but maybe if you do ferrari or other exotic, you might charge more since you would have to use more expensive products or if owner requests to use certain product that you have to order

if mods think its advertisement let me know and ill remove link or remove it yourself

 

Packages, for us, are priced "from to". Any correction work is hourly, start to finish. We don't give estimates or projected pricing, it's done when it's done.

 

All my package prices are based on $50hr for mobile work and $40hr for at the shop.

 

I would do package prices to start out, then switch to hourly once you get more experience.

And when I say package price, for example: 2-Step Correction - $300-$375 dependent on the car size, paint hardness, severity of damage, etc. I typically give them a quote and tell them it may vary by $50 either way, depending on if there are unexpected hold-ups like road paint or something. BTW that price is just an example price, and not what I charge.

You won't be able to do hourly until you have more experience IMO. You'll need to give them a ballpark estimate on the hours and that's something that comes with experience.

 

agree on package price untill you get experience and see how long it takes you to do different types of paints and stuff

$40 an hour. hmm i guess you know better how much to charge. im just getting into this so dont know good prices

 

Local shopps might be overpriced, but the higherend shops will generally charge about as much as the local region can handle. Using their price structure isnt always bad....you just need to offer a better job for the money...

 

All of our packages take into consideration the time it takes to do the job properly. Charging by the hour will scare away clients in most cases as they want to know what its going to cost BEFORE you start. For paintwork correction, when I tell a client I will do a single stage polish for x amount, that means I go around the car once with the most abrasive pad and polish I can that will not require a finishing polish after. What comes out comes out. I know from experience that cars will take me x amount of time and trucks/suvs will be this much time so I can accurately gauge the amount of time needed and give them a firm estimate. I don't lose money on very many jobs and my clients are comfortable knowing what the final bill will be. Basically for each cutting stage I charge for a full day and for a finishing stage I charge for 5-7 hours depending on the size. I do have some clients that allow me to charge by the hour, but for the most part, people are more comfortable with package pricing. Package pricing doesn't mean you have to be cheap either. There are places like Polished Bliss who charge by the package, but their daily rate is such that their packages are $$$$.

 

Thanks 911 for the advice, your posts are extremely helpful. Does the principle of charging by the hour still apply even if no serious correction work is done? For instance, one package I was considering was a wash, clay, polish (i.e. KAIO or Menz One Step Acrylic), and then LSP, interior will be done thoroughly as well. I think that most people would be willing to pay for this, however since it takes me about 6+ hours to complete on a four door sedan (I am slow) I couldn' see charging any less that $100-150 for that kind of service. Does this sound reasonable? The area I live in is largely military and middle class, although most of us in the Navy have plenty of discretionary income. I am also doing this because I enjoy detailing, as well as extra money (mainly to buy more detailing stuff right now).

 

The best way I have found to set your pricing is to figure out foremost, how much do you want to make an hour. I wouldn't work for less than $25/hr, even if I was doing it as a hobby as it makes it hard for fulltime guys to get the dollars they need to get to be profitable as they have overhead etc. Figure out how long it will take you to do the job at hand and multiply by your hourly rate. If you figure 6 hours than 6x$25=$150. If you are going to go through the hassle of busting out your polisher, make it worth your while. Instead of using Menz One Step(60%FMJ and 40%106FA) , why not use 106FA or Power Finish on a white or black pad? You'll get a better finish, shouldn't have an issue with holograms or marring and you are going to finish with an LSP anyway. Just use a product like DG 105 or Colli 845 to get great durability.

 

I charge $75 for exterior (no correction), and $75 for interior. Trunks and engines extra. That would be for a 4 door mid size sedan. SUV's are more.

I would not charge less than 125 per trip around the vehicle for polishing.

So my price for a wash/clay/seal, interior, and one step polish is $275.

I don't feel comfortable charging hourly simply because I feel like I need to fine tune my process so I'm not wasting the customer's money by being inefficient. I feel like I should be able to get the job done faster. But that's not the customer's fault.

 

i see a lot of people putting down that a 1 step polish will take 6+ hours. is that how long you guys take as an average, or is it total time? i mean do you just charge for actual working time and not for clean up, break down what ever you want to call it?

i charge $250 for a 1 step and interior, we all know one step wont get 100%, but 80-90% in most cases. i only take about 4 hours total with my helper doing the interior and me doing the exterior. plus another hour or so for set-up and break down. so i break if i break it down it comes out to about $50 an hour, broken down further i give my helper $10-$15 an hour and i make $35 to $40 an hour.

 

That's a good point that I hadn't thought about. But it does seem to me that most of the "detailers" in my area are extremely underpriced, which tells me they either make very little money, or they don't actually detail, they just wash cars in a hurry, and probably poorly. Does anyone else have this problem in their area?

I feel the same way about needing to fine tune my process. That is why I would like to concentrate on one-step polishes/LSP packages, and as my reputation grows and my skills increase, then I may be able to charge higher prices.

 

Six to eight hours is about how long it would take me to do a one-step, LSP, and interior, but I am using a PC right now (rotary coming in about two weeks), and there is also a learning curve that I am dealing with right now. I am currently working on a systematic checklist to reduce wasted steps and repeated trips to the same areas, however, that often can't be avoided because certain things must be done in a particular order.

 

$45 per hour......

 

The amount of time you are taking is normal. When I do a protection detail, (that is engine, jambs, wash, clay, sealantx2, vacuum, windows, wipe and leather - no shampooing or polishing) its 7-9 hours depending on the vehicle. I wouldn't concern myself with getting faster. This is where most detailers make the mistake. Concentrate on doing it right, not quickly. You're done when its done properly.

 

Find out how much you want to charge per hour. Do a few friend's cars and see how long it takes to do it. Multiply those by each other, and there you have it.

 

Thank you for confirming that for me. Others (mainly my wife) have told me that I need to work on getting a little faster, but I have often thought that detailing is naturally supposed to be a slower process, that's why its called detailing. I read in one of your previous posts that the way to make money is to slow down, do a great job and a good reputation will follow. But I know that I do waste a decent amount of time and there are ways to improve. That's one of my primary jobs in the Navy is utilizing business principles like Lean and Six Sigma to reduce waste in processes, so I know there are improvements to be made without compromising the quality of the job, and a lot of it will come with experience.