Price = (crew hours × labor + rig cost + chemicals + travel + overhead) ÷ (1 − margin)
Crew hours are sq ft ÷ your production rate. Add setup and teardown for every night on site, then check per sq ft, because Housecall Pro's 2026 guide puts parking lots at $0.08-0.25. In the worked example below, a 20,000 sq ft strip mall comes to $1,815, about $0.09/sq ft.
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Most bidding guides stop at "consider your costs", and Hulo's worked example never reaches a final price. Here is one bid, start to finish. Every input is an example, so swap in yours.
The job is 20,000 sq ft of storefront walkways and drive lanes, worked after the stores close. Soil is moderate, but gum builds up at the entrances and there is oil in the stalls. The crew is two people with one 8 GPM hot-water rig and a 24-inch surface cleaner, 30 minutes from the shop.
Pick a Production Rate You Can Hit
Rates reported on PressureWashingResource run from 8 GPM with a 19-inch cleaner at about 800-1,200 sq ft/hr on dirty concrete (2022), through 8+ GPM hot water with 24-48-inch cleaners at 3,000 to 10,000+ per worker (2014), up to a 10 GPM rig on a lightly soiled lot that "consistently" does about 9,000 (2022).
This example uses 2,500 sq ft/hr, under the 2014 range, for the gum, the oil and the edging. Bid at 9,000, clean at 2,500, and the job takes 3.6 times as long as you priced. If you have never timed a lot, start low. Keep this job's hours as the baseline for the next bid (measure your own rate).
Build the Hours
| Line | Calculation | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Surface cleaning | 20,000 ÷ 2,500 sq ft/hr | 8.0 |
| Edging, pre-treat, rinse | Helper, at the same time | 0 |
| Setup and teardown | 1 hr × 2 nights | 2.0 |
| On site | 10.0 | |
| Drive | 1 hr round trip × 2 nights | 2.0 |
| Paid hours per person | 12.0 |
Eight hours of cleaning plus setup won't fit between close and open here, so the job splits into two nights. Each night needs its own setup and its own round trip for two people, and first-time bidders forget that line. The helper handles edging while the first person runs the surface cleaner, so that row adds no hours to the clock, but you still pay both people for every hour, which is why labor in the next table is 2 people × 12 hours.
Cost It, Then Price It
| Cost line | Calculation | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Labor (night rate, example) | 2 people × 12 hr × $35 | $840 |
| Rig cost (engine and burner fuel, wear) | 8 hr × $15 | $120 |
| Chemicals (degreaser, gum) | Example | $80 |
| Truck fuel | 2 trips × $20 | $40 |
| Overhead share (insurance, certificates, bid time) | Example | $100 |
| Water reclaim, if required | Get a local price | not included |
| Break-even | $1,180 | |
| Price at 35% margin | $1,180 ÷ 0.65 | $1,815 |
| Per sq ft | $1,815 ÷ 20,000 | $0.09 |
| Per hour on site | $1,815 ÷ 10 | $182 |
The margin is 35% here where our residential examples use 30%, because you'll wait for the money (see below) and commercial work brings paperwork like insurance certificates and vendor portals. Rig cost is charged on the 8 cleaning hours only. If the spec or the city requires wash water recovery, you add equipment and time, plus disposal, and we have no reliable price to publish. Divide by 0.65 rather than multiplying by 1.35 (markup vs margin).
Check It Against the Market
Parking lots run $0.08-0.25/sq ft in Housecall Pro's March 2026 guide, which is $1,600-5,000 for 20,000 sq ft. QuoteIQ's calculator says $0.08-0.20 for commercial flat concrete. Hulo, a vendor whose figures are unsourced, suggests $0.10-0.20 for lots and a $350-500 per-visit minimum, with revenue of at least $250 an hour.
Our $1,815 sits at the floor, and $182 an hour is under Hulo's target. That's the production rate talking. Don't trim margin to win, because the levers are a faster rig, a second surface cleaner, or more frequent service. An underbid becomes the reference price:
"hey you did our other property for $3750… why isn't this one the same"
OhioFloMo, PressureWashingResource forum, Apr 2025
Discount Recurring Service From Savings, Not From Hope
Monthly service keeps the lot lighter, so it cleans faster. As an example, your rate rises to 3,200 sq ft/hr, cleaning takes 6.25 hours, and the job fits one night.
| One-time | Monthly (example) | |
|---|---|---|
| Production rate | 2,500 sq ft/hr | 3,200 sq ft/hr |
| Nights | 2 | 1 |
| Break-even | $1,180 | $841.25 |
| Price per visit | $1,815 | $1,634 (10% off) |
| Margin | 35% | 48.5% |
Monthly break-even: 2 people × 8.25 hr × $35 = $577.50, rig 6.25 hr × $15 = $93.75, chemicals $50, fuel $20, overhead $100.
The property gets 10% off and you keep a fatter margin, because the savings are real. Put a re-price clause in the service agreement in case they aren't.
Payment Terms Are the Cost Nobody Bids For
The hosts of the Wash Bros podcast (March 2025) described net-90 terms, roughly $30,000-40,000 in receivables for part of a year, and a $13,000 card payment that came with a fee. Ask about terms before you bid and price them in. Ask for ACH on big invoices and invoice the night the work is done. QuoteIQ puts invoices and card or ACH payments on every plan and adds QuickBooks Online sync from Pro ($199.99/mo, as listed on QuoteIQ's pricing page, October 2026).
What Goes on the Bid Sheet
- Each area with its sq ft and a map screenshot.
- Scope, and which stains are excluded or priced separately (rust, set-in oil).
- Work window, frequency and rain-day policy.
- Water source, and whether reclaim is required.
- Price per visit and the frequency discount.
- The contract term.
- Payment terms and the insurance certificate.
- The re-price clause.
Start from our estimate template, then run your numbers below. Bidding two nights? Double the drive time and add the second setup to the hours.
Questions Owners Ask
How much should I charge per sq ft for commercial pressure washing?
Housecall Pro's 2026 guide lists commercial flatwork at $0.08-0.40/sq ft and parking lots at $0.08-0.25. Build from your costs, then use those as a check.
What production rate should I use to bid a parking lot?
Your own, measured on similar work. Forum reports run from about 800 sq ft/hr (dirty concrete) to about 9,000 (10 GPM, light soil). Unmeasured? Bid conservatively.
Should I discount monthly commercial service?
Only from savings you can name, such as fewer nights, fewer setups and lighter soil. In the example, 10% off still raised the margin from 35% to 48.5%.
Sources
- Housecall Pro, "Pressure Washing Pricing Guide: 2026 Rates", Mar 9, 2026: commercial and parking lot ranges. Software vendor.
- QuoteIQ, "Free Pressure Washing Cost Calculator", 2026: commercial flat concrete. Software vendor.
- Hulo, how to bid commercial pressure washing jobs, Apr 3, 2026: lot rates, minimum, revenue per hour (unsourced). Software vendor.
- PressureWashingResource, "Square feet per hour", 2014: 8+ GPM rates.
- PressureWashingResource, surface cleaning efficiency thread, Sep 2022: 8 GPM and 10 GPM rates.
- PressureWashingResource, big job estimate thread, Apr 11, 2025: OhioFloMo.
- The Wash Bros Podcast, Season 2 Episode 4 (cash flow and commercial), Mar 2, 2025: payment terms (paraphrased).
- QuoteIQ pricing page, October 2026: invoices, payments, QuickBooks sync.