Quote a car detail by package, vehicle size, condition & travel — with drive time, setup & margin built in.
The job
Your rate & supplies
Travel
Add-ons (priced as their own lines)
Profit check
Quote this job at
$0
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Mobile Detailing Pricing Calculator — guide & how to use
What it does
This calculator turns the way profitable mobile detailers actually quote into a number you can defend. It sets your
base labor hours from the package and vehicle size, scales them by the car's condition,
then prices that time at your hourly rate. On top of the wash it layers the costs new solo operators routinely give away —
setup/teardown time, billable drive time, IRS-rate mileage, and a mobile convenience premium — and quotes
each add-on as its own line so the margin isn't buried. It returns a quote range instead of a single
risky number, plus an effective $/hour reality check and a margin flag. Everything is calculated privately in your browser, free.
How to use it
Pick the package, vehicle size class, and the car's condition / soil level.
Set your hourly rate (this is the customer-facing rate, $50–$100/hr — not your wage), your per-job supplies cost, setup/teardown minutes, and the mobile premium.
Enter the round-trip distance, average drive speed, mileage rate, and your free-travel radius (only miles beyond it are billed).
Tick any add-ons and adjust their prices, then read the quote range, the breakdown, your effective $/hr, and the margin check.
Base labor hours (before condition)
Calibrated to typical times — a clean sedan interior is about 90 minutes; a full detail runs 2.5–4 hours. Larger vehicles take 20–40% longer.
Vehicle
Exterior
Interior
Full detail
Sedan / Coupe
1.5 h
1.5 h
2.5 h
Small SUV / Crossover
1.75 h
1.75 h
3.0 h
Truck / Large SUV / Minivan
2.0 h
2.0 h
3.5 h
Extended-cab truck / Van
2.5 h
2.5 h
4.0 h
Condition multiplier: Light ×0.85, Moderate ×1.00, Heavy ×1.50. Heavy soil can push an interior-heavy job toward double the time; 1.5 is a conservative blended factor.
The formula
Total on-site + windshield time = service hours (base × condition) + setup/teardown + billable drive hours. Billable drive hours come from the miles beyond your free radius, divided by your average speed. Then:
Base subtotal = (service + setup + drive) × your rate + supplies.
Mobile premium = base subtotal × premium % (it does not apply to fixed add-on prices).
Recommended price = base subtotal + mobile premium + mileage reimbursement + add-ons, rounded to the nearest $5.
Quote range = recommended × 0.90 to × 1.10 (rounded to $5) — a range, never one firm number.
Worked example
A full detail on a moderately-soiled sedan, your rate $65/hr, $20 supplies, 20 min setup, 18% mobile premium, 20 mi round-trip at 30 mph and $0.725/mi, a 20 mi free radius, plus pet hair removal ($50):
Service hours = 2.5 × 1.00 = 2.5 h; setup = 0.33 h; the job is inside the 20 mi free radius so billable miles = 0 and drive time = 0.
Recommended = $204 + $37 + $0 + $50 = $291 → rounded to $290; range at ±10% → $260 to $320.
Push the round-trip to 40 mi and the 20 mi beyond your free radius adds about 0.67 h of paid drive time plus $14.50 mileage — money most solos donate.
Accuracy & disclaimers
This is a starting-point estimator, not a binding quote. Confirm the car's actual condition in person — heavy soil, pet hair, and odor can materially change labor.
Outputs are calibrated to U.S. 2025–2026 market data: full details $150–$500, mobile premium ~15–20%, customer-facing labor $50–$100/hr. Adjust the rate and base hours to your market and your speed.
The tool deliberately returns a ±10% range, not a single firm price, because a wrong firm number erodes trust and boxes you in before inspection.
Ceramic coating and multi-stage paint correction are high-skill services ($500–$3,000 ceramic; $500–$1,200 correction). The add-on fields here are for entry-level spray sealant / 1-stage only — quote real coating/correction separately by experience, not with this calculator.
The IRS mileage rate (72.5¢/mi for 2026; 70¢ in 2025) is a defensible proxy for total vehicle cost — fuel + wear + insurance — so don't also add a separate fuel charge or you'll double-count. The rate changes annually; update the field.
The margin check uses an assumed detailer wage floor of ~$28/hr (mid of the $21–$32 wage band, not the customer rate) and does not include fixed overhead (insurance, marketing, equipment depreciation) — factor those into your target margin.
No data leaves your browser. Nothing is stored or transmitted. Not tax, legal, or accounting advice.
Common pricing mistakes this tool prevents
Copying a competitor's flat number and ignoring travel, condition, and vehicle size.
Not charging for drive time — windshield time is unpaid labor that destroys your hourly earnings.
Charging only for fuel and forgetting vehicle wear/insurance (use the full IRS mileage rate).
Skipping the mobile convenience premium most solos give away.
Folding add-ons into the base instead of quoting pet hair, engine bay, odor, and sealant as separate lines.
Confusing the detailer wage ($21–$32/hr) with the customer-facing rate ($50–$100/hr) and pricing at near-cost.
Frequently asked questions
How do you price a mobile car detailing job?
Set base labor hours from package and vehicle size, multiply by a condition factor, then by your customer-facing hourly rate. Add per-job supplies, a 15–20% mobile premium, billable drive time and IRS-rate mileage for travel beyond your free radius, and each add-on as its own line. Then quote a range, not one number.
How much should I charge for a full mobile detail?
In 2025–2026 a full mobile detail typically runs $150–$500 — roughly $175–$400 for a sedan and $250–$500 for an SUV or truck — with a 15–20% premium over a fixed shop. Your exact number depends on your rate, drive distance, and the car's condition.
Should I charge for drive time?
Yes. This tool converts round-trip miles beyond your free radius into billable drive hours at your labor rate, and reimburses fuel + wear at the IRS mileage rate. Jobs inside your free radius carry no travel charge.
What's the IRS mileage rate for 2026?
72.5 cents per mile (up from 70 cents in 2025). It covers fuel, wear, and insurance — use it instead of charging fuel only, and update it when the IRS changes it annually.
Why a range instead of one price?
Quotes are estimates until you see the car. Pet hair, sand, and odor change labor. A ±10% range protects your margin against what you couldn't see in photos.
Is the mobile detailing pricing calculator free?
Yes — 100% free, calculated privately in your browser. Nothing is stored or sold.