How much does a Detailer make?

[BradUF]

I too hate my job and want to get into detailing because it has a since of accomplishment to it unlike my current job of stocking groceries. I also already know a fair amount about it.

[doged]

Not enough. I am not sure why they do not get paid alot more. Maybe that is why it is so hard to find a good one. to do a car right it really takes a full day and most places cannot charge more than 150 to 200 dollars. It is pretty hard to make money at that rate. Look at what mechanics get an hour. I think if detailers were able to charge 400 bucks a car you would see alot more people doing it and much better quality work. But for some reason people do not care if their car shines but yet are willing to pay exuberant prices for other things. Did you ever see the Detailer to the Stars on MTV, he even put Evian in the WS washer. I wonder what he charges.

It depends what your after as a business. We do a “superior detail� in 3 to 4 hour and charge $160 to $200. Now you probably ask what is your definition of a “superior�? My answer is, it’s “way superior� to 99% of the competition in our market. We would love to do 6hr to 8hr details and charge $300 to $450, but are market will not let us. We do have a “few� customers who will pay us this fee and I did say a few.

[David Fermani]

It depends what your after as a business. We do a “superior detail� in 3 to 4 hour and charge $160 to $200. Now you probably ask what is your definition of a “superior�? My answer is, it’s “way superior� to 99% of the competition in our market. We would love to do 6hr to 8hr details and charge $300 to $450, but are market will not let us. We do have a “few� customers who will pay us this fee and I did say a few.

That`s pretty accurate for me also. Sometimes you need to adjust your prices for some customers/cars.

[Scottwax]

That`s pretty accurate for me also. Sometimes you need to adjust your prices for some customers/cars.

Same here. There just aren`t a lot of people in most areas who are passionate enough about their car to pay for near concours level detailing. Personally, I`d love to spend more time on some of the cars I do but the owners won`t pay me enough and while I love detailing, I need to put food on the table and a kid through college (with one right behind!).

[doged]

On another note, most of our clients do not have the aptitude to be able to distinguish between our 3hr and 6hr detail. It’s best to ask a new client what do they expect or what areas of a detail are they concerned most about. A very important part of your “rate� is determined by the level of customer service you provide. Compare fine-dining to a franchise restaurant service. In this day and age, people are used to very poor service and will gladly pay for very superior service.