How to Price Pressure Washing Jobs

Most pressure washing companies price jobs one of three ways: per square foot, per surface at a flat rate, or by the hour. Per square foot is the most common for house washing, driveways, and roofs because it scales with the work. Typical 2026 ranges in the United States are $0.10 to $0.25 per square foot for house soft washing, $0.15 to $0.30 for concrete flatwork, and $0.30 to $0.60 for roof soft washing, with most companies setting a job minimum between $150 and $300 so small jobs still cover drive time. Whatever model you use, the price has to cover labor, chemicals, fuel and drive time, equipment wear, insurance, and your target profit margin, not just the hours on site.

The three pricing models

• Per square foot — measure the surface and multiply by your rate. Best for house washing, concrete, and roofs, because it scales with the actual work and is easy to defend to a customer.
• Flat rate per surface — a fixed price for a standard driveway, a standard two-story house wash, or a standard gutter cleaning. Fast to quote, but you need tight service-area assumptions or large properties will eat the margin.
• Hourly — usually $75 to $150 per hour per technician. Best for unpredictable commercial work, fleet washing, and heavy grease or graffiti removal where you cannot estimate the surface up front.

What the price has to cover

• Labor, including drive time and load-out, not just the minutes the wand is running
• Chemicals: sodium hypochlorite, surfactant, degreaser, and rinse aid
• Fuel and vehicle wear for the round trip
• Equipment depreciation on the machine, hose, reels, and surface cleaner
• General liability insurance and workers' compensation
• Overhead: software, phone, marketing, and the office time to quote and invoice
• Profit margin on top of all of the above, typically 20 to 40 percent

Set a job minimum

A minimum is the single fastest fix for unprofitable small jobs. If a $90 driveway takes 35 minutes of drive time, 20 minutes of setup, and 25 minutes of washing, you are not making money. Most operators set a minimum between $150 and $300 and hold it, then offer a bundle discount to make the number feel fair: adding the walkway and the front porch to a driveway job costs you almost no extra drive time but raises the ticket.

Charge for the conditions, not just the surface

• Heavy organic growth, rust, or oil staining: add 25 to 50 percent
• Second and third story work, or anything needing a ladder: add for the time and risk
• Tight access, no water spigot, or a long hose pull from the truck
• Delicate substrates: painted wood, stucco, and older shingles need lower pressure and more chemical
• HOA or commercial requirements: certificates of insurance, night work, or traffic control

Quote from the address instead of measuring by hand

Hand-measuring every property is the slowest part of quoting, and it is the reason most operators take days to send a number. Lavo CRM prices from the property address: type it in and the software pulls property data, applies your rates and multipliers, and returns a starting price in seconds. You set the per-square-foot rates, the job minimum, the pitch and story multipliers, and the bundle discounts once, and every quote after that follows your pricing rules. Satellite measurement tools are there when you need to draw an exact driveway, fence, roof, or pool cage.

Frequently asked questions

How much should I charge to pressure wash a house?

Most companies charge $0.10 to $0.25 per square foot to soft wash a house, which puts a typical 2,000 square foot single-story home between $250 and $450 in 2026. Two-story homes, heavy mildew, and difficult access push the number higher.

Should I charge by the hour or by the square foot?

Charge by the square foot for residential work you can estimate up front, such as house washing, driveways, and roofs. Charge hourly for unpredictable commercial work like grease, graffiti, and fleet washing where you cannot judge the scope until you are on site.

What is a good profit margin for pressure washing?

Most healthy exterior cleaning companies target 20 to 40 percent net margin after labor, chemicals, fuel, insurance, and overhead. If you are under 20 percent, the usual causes are no job minimum, unpaid drive time, and under-pricing add-on surfaces.

How do I quote a pressure washing job faster?

Quote from the property address instead of driving out to measure. Lavo CRM returns a starting price in seconds from the address using your own rates, then sends the quote for e-signature. Speed matters: the first quote a homeowner receives wins a disproportionate share of jobs.

Keep reading: How Much to Charge to Pressure Wash a House, How to Quote a House Wash from an Address, all pressure washing answers, Lavo CRM pricing.

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