A Guide to Maximizing Your Profit Potential Through Price
As a car detailing business, setting your prices can be a challenge. But when you create a pricing strategy based on data, you can ensure that you’re maximizing your profit potential. If you know what others are charging (and what customers are paying) this can give you a good benchmark to work from. Below, we’ve used data from Yelp to find the low, average, and high car detailing prices in Illinois. We’ve then compared the cost of car detailing services, so that you can see how your pricing stacks up.
You don’t want to undercut your competitors, because then you start a race to the bottom. The idea is to bring prices up so that customers understand the value of a job well done and it helps pricing across the industry as a whole.
By looking at average car detailing prices in your state, you can gain insight into how your pricing compares. If you can set your prices to align more closely with auto detailing businesses in your city and state, you can ensure you are making the most money for every job.
Hopefully this gives you the confidence to create pricing packages that make the biggest impact to your bottom line. (For help on how to raise your detailing prices, check out the Mobile Tech RX detailing app that helps you create perfect estimates.)
Average Car Detailing Prices in Illinois
The average price of a car detailing service in Illinois is $187.14. That’s almost 17% more than the rest of the country and the national average of $160.16. That’s encouraging news for detailers in the state, as it suggests that customers are willing to pay more for a good service. But, of course, this only tells us part of the story.
Most and Least Expensive Cities in Illinois
The cities with the most expensive car detailing prices in Illinois are Glenview, Elk Grove Village, and Elmhurst with prices of up to $400 at the top end of the scale. This is significantly higher than the national average. In fact, a detailer in Illinois could be making 150% more than in other states.
The least expensive cities are Springfield, Wheeling, Elgin, Peoria, Arlington Heights, and Plainfield where you can get a car detailing service for as little as $75. Four of those cities charge as low as $100.
These figures highlight a huge variation in car detailing prices between cities. A detailer in Glenview may be making more than four times more that of a detailer in Springfield. Given that Springfield’s population is more than double of Glenview’s, we might expect prices to be lower. That’s because a higher population, means higher demand, more competition, and lower prices. However, for Springfield to be charging a quarter of Glenview prices is a huge discrepancy.
Range of Car Detailing Prices in Illinois
The range of car detailing prices in Illinois can be seen across the state, but also within the same cities. In Elmhurst, for example, there is a $230 difference between the highest and the lowest price.
That’s because you can get a detailing service for $165 and up to $395. So a business in one part of the city could be making more than double of that in another. This highlights that even within the same cities in Illinois there is a large variation.
From a customer perspective, it would be difficult to justify spending more depending on where they go in the city. And it’s even harder for detailing businesses to handle those types of customer objections on price.
Interestingly however, the low end of the scale in Elmhurst is still higher than the national average. This illustrates that people in Illinois are willing to pay more for a detailing service. Meaning there is lots of scope to make money, especially if you do a great job.
This is where knowledge of the data is key. Detailers should know their worth and have the confidence to set prices that align more closely with the high end of the state average. In Illinois, which is above the national average pricing, there is the opportunity to help raise prices for the industry as a whole.
Illinois Detailing Prices by the Numbers
| City | Low | Medium | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago | $120.00 | $180.00 | $275.00 |
| Aurora | $140.00 | $170.00 | $234.00 |
| Naperville | $120.00 | $200.00 | $299.00 |
| Springfield | $75.00 | $150.00 | $150.00 |
| Elgin | $100.00 | $150.00 | $202.00 |
| Peoria | $100.00 | $182.00 | $231.00 |
| Arlington Heights | $100.00 | $110.00 | $140.00 |
| Schaumburg | $120.00 | $145.00 | $170.00 |
| Palatine | $128.00 | $180.00 | $250.00 |
| Orland Park | $140.00 | $150.00 | $250.00 |
| Mount Prospect | $125.00 | $125.00 | $145.00 |
| Hoffman Estates | $160.00 | $175.00 | $252.00 |
| Glenview | $295.00 | $399.00 | $400.00 |
| Elmhurst | $165.00 | $250.00 | $395.00 |
| Plainfield | $100.00 | $185.00 | $299.00 |
| Lombard | $120.00 | $160.00 | $250.00 |
| Wheeling | $89.00 | $89.00 | $99.00 |
| Addison | $140.00 | $180.00 | $215.00 |
| Glendale Heights | $150.00 | $250.00 | $300.00 |
| Elk Grove Village | $225.00 | $275.00 | $400.00 |
| Mundelein | $147.00 | $225.00 | $275.00 |
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The Bottom Line
Look beyond your local competition when setting your prices and don’t be afraid to revisit pricing on a regular basis. Of course, there are other factors to consider, including the population size and the number of car detailing services. But by coming up with a pricing strategy based on statewide data, you’ll ensure that you’re maximizing your profit potential.
Research Methodology
To pull numbers for this report, we used data from Yelp to find the low, average, and high price for auto detailing in cities around the state of Illinois. We listed the 40 most populous cities in Illinois and compiled pricing data by city where car detailing prices were available.
For more ways to make money, learn more about the country’s number one Detailing Business App.