What should you actually charge to clean a driveway in Australia?

Most new operators pick their price by looking at what someone on Facebook charges. That is how an entire market ends up working for wages.

## The base numbers Australian residential pressure cleaning generally sits between $1.50 and $5.00 per square metre, with smaller jobs at the top of that range. A standard double driveway of 40 to 60 m² lands somewhere around $180 to $350, and larger or heavily soiled driveways run $300 to $700.

Hourly, operators are typically targeting $120 to $165 of effective rate.

## The multipliers nobody quotes Area is the least interesting variable. What actually drives the cost:

• Condition. Light maintenance is 1.0. Moderate growth is about 1.2. Heavy lichen and black spot is 1.45. A neglected slab with fifteen years of oil is 1.75, because it needs a degreaser, a soak and several passes.
• Access. No tap, long hose runs, stairs, restricted hours. Up to 1.5.
• Travel. Anything past about 20 km round trip is a real cost.

## Why $150 is worse than nothing Travel there and back, 40 minutes. Setup and pack-down, 25 minutes. Cleaning, 35 minutes. Invoicing, 10 minutes. That is 1 hour 50 minutes for $150, less about $18 of fuel and chemicals.

$72 an hour — before tax, insurance, super and the machine's depreciation. And the slot was not available for a $600 house wash.

## Set a minimum $180 to $250 as a floor. Say it plainly: "Our minimum for a site visit is $220 — that covers getting the truck there and set up. Most people add the paths to make the visit worth it."

A surprising share of customers add work rather than decline.

## The real fix Stop quoting a driveway. Quote three options: driveway, front-of-house package, full exterior. The middle option gets chosen, your travel is unchanged, and your ticket goes from $290 to $380 for about twenty extra minutes on site.