Guides
How to start a laundromat without copying someone else's numbers
Start a laundromat by pricing your own utilities, machines, lease and insurance, not by copying a national benchmark or the store across town.
What to take away
- To start a laundromat without copying someone else's numbers, price your own building, utility meters and machine mix. A benchmark from another city cannot be spent at your address.
- Price a wash bottom-upwater, sewer, gas, electricity and chemicals per cycle. Then add card fees, labor and maintenance per cycle, then margin.
- Score the site before you sign. Parking, visibility, nearby apartments without in-unit laundry, and a lease you can survive in year one matter more than square footage.
- Confirm zoning, water discharge and licensing with your city or county before you order equipment. Requirements vary by jurisdiction.
- Track uptime against service-call response time and parts availability. A machine waiting on a part earns nothing.
This article covers laundromat business mechanics in general. It is not legal, tax, utility, plumbing or electrical advice for your situation. It is not gas, wastewater, equipment-repair, licensing or lease advice either. Those depend on your building, machines, jurisdiction and local codes, so confirm with the authority that sets them and with a licensed professional.
What actually decides whether the store works
Four things carry a laundromat: the site, the machines, the utilities, and the cash cycle. Get any one wrong and the other three cannot cover for it.
Four Pillars of a Laundromat
Site
- Decides
- Demand
- Key metric
- Apartment density
- Example
- 1,500 sq ft beats 3,000
Machines
- Decides
- Capacity
- Key metric
- Uptime
- Example
- 20 down vs 14 running
Utilities
- Decides
- Margin
- Key metric
- Local rates
- Example
- $3-$10 water
Cash Cycle
- Decides
- Survival
- Key metric
- Reserve months
- Example
- 3-6 months fixed
The site decides demand. Apartment density, renters without in-unit washers, and easy parking do more than a bigger floor. A 1,500 square foot store with 20 washers can beat a 3,000 square foot store with weak parking.
The machines decide capacity. A bank of 20 washers that are down half the time serves fewer customers than 14 that run. Track uptime and service-call response.
The utilities decide margin. Water, sewer and gas rates are set locally. Commercial water often runs $3 to $10 per 1,000 gallons, sewer $4 to $12 per 1,000 gallons, and gas $0.80 to $1.50 per therm in 2026.
The cash cycle decides first-year survival. Coin and card revenue arrives daily; the lease, loan and service contract do not wait. Keep three to six months of fixed costs in reserve.
The startup steps, in order
Startup Steps in Order
- Read local demand before a listing
- Score the site at 7am and 9pm
- Read the lease like an operator
- Confirm zoning and permits
- Read local demand before a listing.Pull renter and household data for your census tracts from the U.S. Census Bureau. Count apartment units without in-unit laundry within a 5 to 10 minute drive. The Bureau of Labor Statistics industry page for drycleaning and laundry services gives national establishment, employment and earnings figures as context, not as your forecast.
- Score the site.Walk it at 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. Count cars, foot traffic, neighboring businesses and competing laundromats on the same route. Use Google Maps to map apartment complexes and competitors. Look for 1 parking space per 3 to 4 washers, a 36 inch delivery door, and clear visibility from the road.
- Read the lease like an operator.Check term, renewal options and rent escalators. Check who pays water, sewer and gas. Check who pays trash, taxes and roof repairs. A 5 to 10 year term with 2 to 3 percent annual escalators is common. Ask what happens if the building sells. Take it to a commercial attorney in your state before you sign.
- Confirm zoning and permits.Ask the city or county planning department about laundromat or self-service laundry use, water discharge rules, grease or lint interceptor requirements and any conditional-use hearing. Request a certificate of occupancy requirement list. Name the department that told you, and get it in writing.
- Get utility capacity checked by licensed trades.A plumber and electrician confirm water service size, drain capacity, gas supply and panel capacity. A 30 pound washer needs 3 to 4 gallons per minute at fill; a 50 pound washer needs 5 to 7. Gas dryers draw 100,000 to 150,000 BTU per hour. NFPA 54, NFPA 211 and local code set ventilation rules.
- Choose equipment on cost per productive year.Weigh new against used by brand, age, meter hours and rebuild cost. New 30 pound washers run $3,000 to $6,000; used units $1,000 to $2,500. New 50 pound dryers run $3,500 to $6,000; used $1,200 to $2,500. Installation runs $300 to $1,000 per machine. Ask distributors about parts lead time.
- Price a wash bottom-up.Use your own variables: water and sewer per cycle, gas or electric per cycle, chemical cost per cycle, and card fees per transaction. Add labor per attended hour and a maintenance reserve per machine per year. Add those to fixed monthly costs divided by expected monthly cycles. Set price above that break-even.
- Set up the business side.The SBA business guide walks through market research, startup costs, permits, insurance and financing. The IRS starting a business page covers entity choice, tax IDs and recordkeeping. Your CPA decides how depreciation and equipment costs are treated for your entity.
- Run a soft opening and track uptime.Log every service call, response time and the part needed. Track uptime weekly against a target of 95 percent or better. A machine waiting four days on a part is a machine earning nothing. That log tells you whether to add machines or change vendors.
Where the money actually goes
| Cost line | What drives it | Typical 2026 range | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water and sewer | Gallons per cycle, local rate | $3 to $10 per 1,000 gallons water; $4 to $12 per 1,000 gallons sewer | Your utility's commercial rate schedule and discharge rules |
| Gas or electric | Dryer run time, local rate | $0.80 to $1.50 per therm gas; $0.10 to $0.20 per kWh electric | Utility rate class and any rebate program |
| Chemicals | Detergent, softener, bleach per load | $0.10 to $0.35 per cycle | Supplier pricing and hard-water conditions |
| Card system | Per-transaction fee, terminal lease | 2.5 to 4 percent plus $0.10 to $0.25 per transaction; terminal lease $20 to $50 per month | Contract term and who owns the equipment; compare Card Concepts, ESD and SpyderWash |
| Labor | Attended hours, cleaning, folding service | $12 to $18 per attendant hour plus 15 to 30 percent payroll burden | Your state's wage and overtime rules |
| Maintenance | Machine age, water hardness, use hours | $0.25 to $0.75 per cycle or $300 to $800 per machine per year | Service contract terms and parts lead time |
| Lease | Location, square footage, term | $12 to $30 per square foot per year in many markets; 1 to 3 months deposit | Attorney review and who pays taxes, insurance and CAM |
| Insurance | Coverage limits, building condition | $2,000 to $6,000 per year for $1M/$2M general liability | Insurance broker and workers comp rules |
| Startup build-out | Utility hookups, ventilation, flooring, lighting | $20,000 to $80,000 for a 2,000 square foot store in many markets | Licensed contractor bids and permit fees |
| Equipment | Machine count, size, new or used | $3,000 to $6,000 per new 30 pound washer; $3,500 to $6,000 per new 50 pound dryer | Distributor parts availability for Speed Queen, Dexter Laundry, Continental Girbau, Huebsch or Maytag Commercial |
| Working capital | Fixed costs, ramp-up time | 3 to 6 months of rent, labor, insurance and loan payments | Your CPA and lender |
Hard water shortens machine life and raises chemical use. Freeze protection matters in cold markets, and ventilation matters everywhere. Both are building decisions, not equipment decisions.
What the numbers look like for one store
A 24-hour store with 18 washers, 16 dryers and one attendant on day shift. The owner priced each wash from utility meter readings and chemical invoices, not from a competitor's sign.
Break-Even for One Store
- 1,889washes per month to break even
- 63washes per day to break even
- $8,500fixed monthly costs
- $4.50contribution per wash
Use a 30 pound wash price of $6 to $8 and a 30 minute dryer price of $1.50 to $2.50. Variable cost per wash often lands near $1.20 to $2.50, so each wash contributes $4 to $5.50 before fixed costs.
Fixed monthly costs might include $4,000 rent, $3,600 labor, $350 insurance, $500 maintenance reserve and $50 card terminal lease. That is $8,500 per month. At a $4.50 contribution per wash, break-even is about 1,889 washes, or 63 per day.
Two machines went down in month three. The service call took four days because the part was not stocked locally. The owner started keeping a spare of the two most-replaced parts and moved the maintenance reserve into a separate account.
By the following winter, bedding and bulky loads filled the weekend calendar past what the dryers could clear. The choice was adding dryer capacity or turning work away. The owner had the per-cycle margin to know which one paid.
Price from your own meters and invoices, check the rules with the office that enforces them, and let the uptime log tell you what to buy next.
Common questions
How much does it cost to start a laundromat?
There is no honest single figure. It depends on whether you lease or buy the building, how many machines you install, and what the utility hookups cost in your location. Build the estimate from quotes. Include equipment, installation, utility work, and permits. Also include lease deposits, insurance, and working capital for the first months.
A leased 2,000 square foot store with 20 washers and 16 dryers often lands between $250,000 and $500,000 in many markets. That range covers equipment, build-out, permits and working capital.
Do I need a license to open a laundromat?
Usually a general business license plus whatever your city or county requires for the specific use. Some jurisdictions add a conditional-use permit, water discharge requirements or health department rules. Call your city or county permitting office and ask what applies to your address.
Should I buy new or used washers and dryers?
Used machines cost less up front and more in parts and downtime. Compare by cost per productive year: purchase price plus expected repairs over the years you plan to keep it, divided by those years. Ask the distributor for parts availability before you commit either way.
How do I price a wash?
Add your per-cycle water, sewer, energy, chemical and card fees. Then add your share of labor, maintenance, rent and insurance per cycle. That total is your break-even. Set the price above it by the margin your loan and reserve need.
