How much to charge for..

[Russ@Exclusive]

How much should I charge to do a full interior shampoo and protection. The service includes the following.

- Every surface is vacuumed and wiped down
- Upholstery is shampooed with Megs APC
- If leather, Lexol cleaner & conditioner applied
- Dashboard and other surfaces protected with Armor All

Any ideas?

[zoomzoom mazda5]

By shampoo, what do you mean? by hand or machine?
I would say if it's in good condition then 125.00-200.00, if trash 250.00-350.00. Would like to see some pic's of it. And if it's a total deep cleaning of leather than it's 350.00 period.

[Russ@Exclusive]

It is in decent condition, no pictures right now sorry. And by shampoo, I mean by hand.

[zoomzoom mazda5]

OK, well IMO I would charge 150.00.

[Russ@Exclusive]

Thanks. I may actually go lower since it is a friend but I was thinking right in that range.

[jaybs02]

For your friend charge what you think is fair.
For your business in general, check to see what others in your area are charging for similar services. You don't want to give away your services but you also don't want to price yourself out of the game either.

A lot of it depends on what the market can bare. You say your from long island so I don't have to tell you how much of a price difference there can be from one side of the island to the other

[ArmstrongDetailing]

I shy away from customers who call me just for an interior. In my experience they are not going to be good customers and the interiors are usually worse than normal. In other words, their interior has been abused and neglected to the point they can't stand it anymore.

Now let's assume this is not the case in your situation...

You need to have more information on the size and condition of the vehicle. Are we talking about a minivan or a smart car?

I have a price menu to give the customer an idea of what it will cost (I purposely leave interior only details off of it). I have four price tiers based on size and two different price tiers depending on the condition.

How do I determine what to charge? It starts with knowing how much time you can comfortably get through the job. Then it's just a matter of how much you are trying to make per hour. A lot of detailers base their price on $35-$40 per labor hour (not including drive time). I base mine on atleast $50 per hour because I have a fast system. Now this holds true for the average detail. The more work you are given in one spot at one time is a factor.

For example;

If I were just coming to detail an interior on a mid-size car in average condition I would factor it taking me an hour and a half and I would want $60 per hour cuz it's a small job (that's $90.00 for you math challenged).

If they are giving you a full days worth of work then you can afford to give them a little break because you aren't wasting time driving place to place.

[southerndetail]

Originally Posted by Troy@DetailCity

I shy away from customers who call me just for an interior. In my experience they are not going to be good customers and the interiors are usually worse than normal. In other words, their interior has been abused and neglected to the point they can't stand it anymore.

Now let's assume this is not the case in your situation...

You need to have more information on the size and condition of the vehicle. Are we talking about a minivan or a smart car?

I have a price menu to give the customer an idea of what it will cost (I purposely leave interior only details off of it). I have four price tiers based on size and two different price tiers depending on the condition.

How do I determine what to charge? It starts with knowing how much time you can comfortably get through the job. Then it's just a matter of how much you are trying to make per hour. A lot of detailers base their price on $35-$40 per labor hour (not including drive time). I base mine on atleast $50 per hour because I have a fast system. Now this holds true for the average detail. The more work you are given in one spot at one time is a factor.

For example;

If I were just coming to detail an interior on a mid-size car in average condition I would factor it taking me an hour and a half and I would want $60 per hour cuz it's a small job (that's $90.00 for you math challenged).

If they are giving you a full days worth of work then you can afford to give them a little break because you aren't wasting time driving place to place.

Yep, thats what I do also.

[Russ@Exclusive]

Good system thanks for the info. It is a friend of mine and she drives a Caddy CTS. The car is pretty new so I cannot imagine the interior being terrible. And I am just like you, I prefer not to do just interior jobs.

[ArmstrongDetailing]

I have found a good way of handling what to charge friends and family.

20% off for friends and no charge for family. There might be one or two friends I would treat like family but I would get them to help me.

[Mr. Clean]

Originally Posted by Troy@DetailCity

I have found a good way of handling what to charge friends and family.

20% off for friends and no charge for family. There might be one or two friends I would treat like family but I would get them to help me.

I agree, never a charge to family. I will discount for friends and (good) neighbors.