Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Daily revenue
$6,260
Cars washed per day
462
Monthly revenue
$190,307
Retail (non-member) cars/day
162
Member cars/day
300
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How to use this
- 1Enter tunnel capacity (cars/hr).
- 2Enter operating hours per day.
- 3Enter average utilization (%).
- 4Enter share of washes from members (%).
- 5Enter average retail ticket ($).
- 6Enter revenue value per member wash ($).
- 7Read your daily revenue on the right — it updates as you type.
- 8Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Tunnel car washes make money on volume, not margin per car, so throughput assumptions drive the whole pro forma. This calculator takes your tunnel's rated cars-per-hour capacity, expected utilization during operating hours (rarely 100% except at true peak), average ticket price across your menu of wash packages, and computes daily car count and revenue. It also splits revenue between single-wash retail sales and unlimited monthly membership plans, since most modern express tunnels now generate 60-80% of revenue from memberships rather than one-off washes, which changes both the cash flow pattern and the churn risk you're managing.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Tunnel capacity: 120 cars/hr
- Operating hours per day: 11
- Average utilization: 35 %
- Share of washes from members: 65 %
- Average retail ticket: 22 $
- Revenue value per member wash: 9 $
Results
- Daily revenue: $6,260
- Cars washed per day: 462
- Monthly revenue: $190,307
- Retail (non-member) cars/day: 162
- Member cars/day: 300
What each field means
Inputs
- Tunnel capacity (cars/hr)
- The tunnel capacity used in the calculation, measured in cars/hr. Starts at 120 cars/hr so you have a working example on load.
- Operating hours per day
- The operating hours per day used in the calculation. Starts at 11 so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 4–16.
- Average utilization (%)
- The average utilization used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 35 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 5–100 %.
- Share of washes from members (%)
- The share of washes from members used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 65 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–100 %.
- Average retail ticket ($)
- The average retail ticket used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 22 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Revenue value per member wash ($)
- The revenue value per member wash used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 9 $ so you have a working example on load.
Results
- Daily revenue
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Cars washed per day
- Returned as a whole number. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Monthly revenue
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Retail (non-member) cars/day
- Returned as a whole number. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Member cars/day
- Returned as a whole number. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
What utilization rate should I assume for a new site?
New sites often open around 15-25% average utilization and grow to 30-45% by year two or three as membership base builds. True peak-hour utilization can spike near 80-90% on Saturday mornings, but the daily average across a full operating day is what drives the pro forma.
How is 'member value per wash' different from the membership price?
A $30/month unlimited member who washes 6 times a month generates $5 of revenue per visit, not $30. Divide monthly membership revenue by average visit frequency (typically 2.5-4 washes/month) to get a realistic per-wash value for this line.
Why do most tunnels push membership so hard?
Membership converts unpredictable retail traffic into recurring revenue and dramatically increases visit frequency (members wash roughly 3x more often than retail-only customers), which raises total volume even though per-wash revenue drops. It also improves cash flow predictability for financing.
How much does site location affect achievable utilization?
Traffic count is the single biggest driver — sites need roughly 20,000-25,000+ vehicles per day passing the location to hit strong volume targets, along with good ingress/egress and stacking lane capacity so cars don't back onto the street during peak periods.
Accuracy and limitations
- Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.
- Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.
- This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant.
Related tools
Car Wash IBA (In-Bay Automatic) Membership Value Calculator
Compare in-bay automatic single-wash economics against unlimited membership breakeven visits.
Car Wash Chemical Cost Per Car Calculator
Break down soap, wax, and drying agent cost per vehicle to true up wash package margins.
Car Wash Membership Churn & Lifetime Value Calculator
Turn monthly churn rate and membership price into customer lifetime value and payback on signup cost.
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Car Wash Tunnel Revenue Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/car-wash-tunnel-revenue
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/car-wash-tunnel-revenue" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Car Wash Tunnel Revenue Calculator — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Car Wash Tunnel Revenue Calculator — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/car-wash-tunnel-revenue) (2026).