Start from the hourly amount you need
Work out what you need to earn per working hour after costs: your monthly bills and goals divided by the hours you can actually spend on cars (not driving, not texting clients). That number is your floor. If a price works out below it, it's a hobby, not a business.
Time each service honestly
Time your last few jobs of each type, from setting up to packing away. Mobile work has setup time a shop doesn't, such as water, power and moving the van, so include it.
Add product and travel
Add the product you use per car (chemicals, towels, pads, coating) and a travel allowance. Many detailers set a service area and add a small fee beyond it rather than baking long drives into every price.
price = (hours × hourly target) + product + travel, then round up to a clean number
Example: a full interior on a sedan takes 2.5 hours. At a $60 hourly target that's $150, plus $12 of product, plus $8 of travel, which is $170. Round to $175.
Price by vehicle size
Bigger vehicles take longer, so price by size: sedan or coupe, SUV or crossover, and truck or van. A simple approach is to re-run the formula with each size's real time. Clients understand size pricing and it stops you from losing money on a third-row SUV.
Use add-ons for the messy extras
Pet hair, heavy stains, odor treatment and engine bays vary wildly from car to car. Keep them out of the base price and sell them as add-ons. The base price stays competitive and the hard jobs pay what they cost you.
Quote fast, then stick to it
Clients book whoever answers first with a clear number. In Beadup you set your prices by vehicle size once, and the AI photo quote suggests an itemized price from those prices only. You review and approve it before it's sent. Clients who book from your link see the same prices, so there's no back-and-forth.