Self-serve dog wash calculator: how many washes a day to break even? Free, private

Your dog wash

Number of tubs (stations)

Self-serve wash price, dollars

Add-on price: dryer, conditioner, flea treatment, dollars

Share of washes that buy an add-on, %

Weekdays open per week (0 to 5)

Weekend days open per week (0 to 2)

Open hours per day

Minutes a dog spends in the tub (self-serve)

Minutes to drain and clean a tub between dogs

Self-serve washes per tub on a typical weekday

Self-serve washes per tub on a typical weekend day

Busy season starts in month (1 = January)

Busy season length, months (0 for no seasons)

Traffic in the busy season, % of typical

Traffic in the other months, % of typical

Full-service dogs per open day (0 for self-serve only)

Full-service price per dog, dollars

Staff minutes per full-service dog (also tub time)

Wage per hour for full-service staff, dollars

Water used per wash, gallons

Water and sewer cost per 1,000 gallons, dollars

Water heating and drying power per wash, dollars

Shampoo and supplies per wash, dollars

Towels and laundry per wash, dollars

Card fees, % of sales

Repairs and replacement reserve, % of sales

Attendant hours per open day

Attendant wage per hour, dollars

Payroll taxes and benefits, % of wages

Rent per month, dollars

Base utilities per month: electric, internet, trash, dollars

Insurance per month, dollars

Software, booking and marketing per month, dollars

Other fixed costs per month, dollars

Owner pay per month, dollars (0 if none)

Cost per tub, with sprayer, lift or ramp and dryer, dollars

Shop square feet

Build-out per square foot: plumbing, drains, floors, walls, dollars

Permits, legal and water connection fees, dollars

Signage, point of sale and cameras, dollars

Opening inventory, dollars

Cash you keep in the bank at opening, dollars

Other start-up cost, dollars

Opening month (1 = January)

Traffic in month 1, % of full traffic

Months to reach full traffic

Loan as % of start-up cost (0 for all cash)

Loan interest rate, %

Loan term, years

Months to project from opening

Optional sale: times a year of operating profit (blank for none)

Target yield on start-up cost, % a year

Target months to get your equity back

Fill in your shop, then click Work out the shop. Only tubs, price and weekday washes per tub are required; the rest default to zero or the neutral choice.

Result

If traffic runs above or below plan

Versus plan	Washes per open day	Profit per year	Yield on cost	Loan coverage	Cash after loan

If the wash price is higher or lower

Price change	Price	Profit per year	Yield on cost	Loan coverage	Cash after loan

Month by month from opening

Month	Calendar	Washes	Sales	Operating profit	Cash after loan	Cumulative cash

What it does, and what it leaves to you

Capacity: a tub can wash open minutes / (minutes in the tub + clean-up minutes) dogs a day. Full-service dogs are served first; self-serve gets the tub time left. A plan above capacity is rejected, and a busy month that goes over it turns the extra dogs away.
Sales: self-serve washes = tubs x washes per tub x open days, using the weekday and weekend figures, times the busy or slow season share and the ramp share. Sales = washes x price + the expected add-on + full-service dogs x their price.
Costs: card fees and the repairs reserve are shares of sales; each wash costs its water (gallons x cost per 1,000), heating, shampoo and towels; full-service labor = dogs x staff minutes x wage; attendant labor = hours x open days x wage x (1 + payroll share); rent, utilities, insurance, software, other fixed costs and owner pay are monthly. Operating profit = sales less all of these.
Break-even: what one self-serve wash earns after card fees, the reserve and its own supplies, divided into the fixed costs (less what full-service earns), and the same with the loan payments added. Shown per open day and per tub.
Return: start-up cost = tubs x cost per tub + square feet x build-out + the other lines. Yield on cost = full-traffic operating profit / start-up cost. Loan = share of start-up cost, level payments. Month by month from opening, traffic ramps in a straight line, and cumulative cash starts at minus your equity. Payback is the first month it reaches zero. If you enter a sale multiple, the shop sells at that many times the last twelve months of operating profit, less the loan balance; with it blank, no sale is assumed.
Not decided: how many dogs your location will bring or how fast; zoning, sewer and water connection fees, interceptor and drainage rules, animal-establishment and sales-tax rules; income tax and depreciation; build-out overruns and rent paid before opening; staff injuries, bites and damage claims; and what a lender will actually offer.

Common questions

How much does a self-serve dog wash make?

It depends on your price, how many dogs each tub washes a day, your rent and what you pay for water and labor. Enter your own figures; the page works out sales, running costs, operating profit, yield on what you spend to open, the loan coverage and how long it takes to get your equity back.

How many dogs can one tub wash in a day?

Divide the open minutes by the minutes a dog spends in the tub plus the minutes to drain and clean it. A 30-minute wash with 10 minutes of clean-up in a 10-hour day is 15 washes at the very most. Real traffic is a fraction of that, and the page rejects a plan that needs more than the tub can do.

How many washes a day do I need to break even?

Two figures are shown: the washes per open day that cover running costs, and the higher number that also covers the loan payment, both per shop and per tub. They come from what each wash earns after card fees, the repairs reserve, water, heat and supplies, set against your fixed costs and attendant hours.

Should I offer full-service as well as self-serve?

Full-service dogs pay more per tub, but they need staff and they use tub time that self-serve customers would have used. The page serves full-service dogs first, caps self-serve at the tub time left, and shows what full-service adds after labor and supplies.

Does this tell me what traffic to expect or whether I can get a permit?

No. It works from your own figures. Wash traffic, local prices, zoning, sewer and water connection fees, interceptor rules and animal-establishment licensing all depend on your location, so check them before you sign a lease.

Is my data uploaded anywhere?

No. Everything is calculated in your browser and nothing is sent; a test in the code asserts there are no network calls.