Mobile Detailing Pricing Guide Australia

How to price a mobile detailing job

Start with the service, then adjust it for the vehicle and the work in front of you.

1. Estimate the labour time for the service on a standard vehicle in standard condition.
2. Apply a vehicle-size adjustment for hatchbacks, sedans, SUVs, utes and vans.
3. Add time for condition: heavy soil, sand, pet hair, stains or neglected interiors.
4. Add direct product costs and a small equipment-wear allowance.
5. Add the return travel cost from your base to the job.
6. Add the profit margin the business needs.
7. Compare the result with your minimum job price and use the higher figure.

In this guide’s model, labour cost and selling price are separate. The target hourly pay is entered as a job cost, and the model labels the amount left after labour and other entered job costs as job profit.

If your margin is a percentage of the final selling price, use this calculation:

Price ex GST = total job cost ÷ (1 − target margin)

For example, a 25% margin in this formula means dividing cost by 0.75. Adding 25% to cost instead produces a 20% margin on the resulting price.

What to include in your detailing price

As a recommended starting point, build the quote from inputs you can see and update:

• Labour: setup, detailing, pack-down and job administration.
• Vehicle size: the extra surfaces, seats and storage areas included in the service.
• Condition: the extra time attached to the condition you inspected or the customer described.
• Products: shampoo, chemicals, compounds, coatings, cloth wear and other consumables.
• Equipment wear: an allowance for tools and machines used on the job.
• Travel: return kilometres multiplied by your cost per kilometre.
• Add-ons: pet-hair removal, stain treatment, engine-bay work or another service outside the base package.
• Margin: the amount left for the business after job costs.
• Minimum charge: the floor that makes a small mobile job worth booking.
• GST: calculate the business price ex GST first, then apply the GST setting used by your business.

This guide recommends writing down the boundaries of every package. Define the tasks, vehicle-size rule and condition rule for an “interior detail” so differences between two quotes can be traced to stated inputs.

If employees will do the work, use the applicable minimum pay rates, penalties and allowances rather than treating a target hourly amount as a substitute for workplace entitlements. For a consumer-facing quote, show the total price including any GST that applies and any unavoidable fees as a single prominent figure.

Worked example: SUV interior detail

Hypothetical example only. Every amount, rate and time below is invented for the calculation. All figures are ex GST unless stated.

A mobile detailer quotes an SUV interior detail in heavy condition. The job is estimated at 3.25 hours. The detailer enters:

• Target pay for labour: 3.25 hours × A$48 = A$156.00
• Products: A$22.00
• Equipment wear: A$6.00
• Return travel: 28 km × A$0.85 = A$23.80
• Total job cost: A$156.00 + A$22.00 + A$6.00 + A$23.80 = A$207.80
• Target margin: 25% of the final ex-GST price

The ex-GST quote is:

A$207.80 ÷ 0.75 = A$277.07 ex GST

For this hypothetical arithmetic, applying Australia’s 10% GST rate gives:

A$277.07 × 1.10 = A$304.78 incl GST

The detailer then records the actual time. If the job takes 4.10 hours instead of 3.25 hours, the invented result is a 51-minute overrun. This guide recommends using that result to test the heavy-condition allowance, the SUV time or the inspection questions before the next quote.

Common mobile detailing pricing mistakes

Charging one price for every vehicle

In this guide’s model, one package price leaves vehicle size and condition out of the calculation. Put each vehicle into a size band and define the adjustment attached to that band.

Treating difficult condition as free labour

Ask condition questions before confirming the quote. Record pet hair, sand, staining and heavy soil as separate adjustments so the customer can see what changed.

Forgetting return travel

Price the full return distance, not only the drive to the customer. Use one cost-per-kilometre setting across your quotes.

Calling your wage “profit”

Pay for the detailer’s labour inside the cost calculation. Measure business profit after that labour allowance.

Leaving actual time unrecorded

Use the estimate for the current quote and the actual minutes as an input when reviewing the next one. Record both against the same service, vehicle size and condition.

Mixing ex-GST costs with an incl-GST sale

Choose one basis for the calculation. This guide uses ex-GST inputs and profit figures, with GST added only when presenting an incl-GST customer price.

Use the free mobile detailing price calculator

Use the mobile detailing price calculator for one quote. Select the service, vehicle size, condition and add-ons, then enter travel, hourly pay, vehicle cost and margin. The calculator uses its service time and product-and-wear values to produce the quote and lets you switch the displayed customer price between ex GST and incl GST.

When to use a detailing spreadsheet

Use the calculator for a single quote. Move to a spreadsheet when you want a repeatable operating record:

• a service price book with size and condition rules;
• quotes built from the same settings every time;
• estimated minutes beside actual minutes;
• revenue, job cost and effective hourly rate by service;
• unpaid jobs, expenses and tax collected in one year view; and
• evidence for changing a menu price.

This guide recommends entering each job once, then using the accumulated job history to identify services and vehicle sizes that run over the estimate or fall below the chosen target.

FAQ

Should I charge by the hour or by the job?

Build the job price from estimated time and costs, then present a fixed scope and price. Record actual time after completion so the next fixed quote uses better inputs.

How do I price pet hair or heavy soil?

Create a defined condition level with extra minutes or a multiplier. Apply it after confirming the vehicle condition and show it as part of the quote.

Do I include travel in the customer price?

Include the return travel cost in the job calculation. Keep it inside the package price or show it as a separate line; use the same method consistently.

How should I handle GST?

Use one basis throughout the internal calculation. For a consumer-facing quote, show the total payable amount, including any GST that applies and unavoidable charges, as a single prominent figure. In the hypothetical arithmetic, A$277.07 ex GST becomes A$304.78 incl GST at the current 10% Australian GST rate; whether a sale is taxable depends on the business and transaction.