Car Wash Memberships: How Unlimited Wash Clubs Make Money

In February 2026, a private equity firm agreed to pay about $3.1 billion for a car wash company.

Not a software company. A car wash.

Mister Car Wash had 548 locations at the end of 2025. But that's not what Leonard Green & Partners, already its controlling shareholder, was really buying. It was buying a monthly club.

Mister Car Wash sells an Unlimited Wash Club: one monthly fee, as many washes as you like, at any location. Here's what that club has become:

• 71% of total wash sales in 2023, 74% in 2024 and 79% in 2025;
• about 2.3 million members in 2025, up 7%;
• 2025 revenue of $1.05 billion, up 6%.

The club is the business. A rainy month used to be a disaster for a car wash. Now it's a month where members pay and don't come in.

So, can a local car wash or detailer do the same? Yes, if you understand why it works for Mister Car Wash and where it breaks for everyone else.

Why does "unlimited" work for car washes?

In the book I describe the unlimited content model: pay a monthly fee and get unfettered access. I also point out that the "unlimited" bit doesn't have to mean infinite volume. It means unrestricted access.

Car washes are the perfect case, for two reasons.

Usage is naturally capped. Nobody washes the same car three times a day. Most members come a few times a month.

Marginal cost is low. In an automated tunnel, an extra wash costs water, chemicals and electricity. The equipment, land and staff are already paid for.

Compare that with Panera, which had to cap its "unlimited" drinks club at 30 redemptions a month in August 2026 and drop the word "Unlimited." A drink is easy to overuse. A car wash isn't.

The unlimited content model page covers where unlimited works and where it doesn't.

How much should a car wash membership cost?

US plans at single sites commonly sit in the US$25 to US$40 range. One New York wash, reported by trade media, charged US$24.99 a month for a basic plan, US$29.99 for its triple-foam plan and US$37.99 for its top unlimited plan, with an RFID tag on the windshield.

In Australia, many hand-wash businesses sell packs rather than unlimited plans. Star Car Wash, for example, promotes five or ten-wash saver packs at 20% off and a "Regular Care" pack of express and premium washes at 30% off, and says a single express hand wash commonly starts from around A$25.

Here's an illustrative three-tier offer for an Australian tunnel wash. Prices include GST.

For a hand-wash or detailing business, use the same structure with caps: for example, two hand washes a month for A$69, or a monthly wash plus a quarterly interior detail for A$129.

How do you know if your wash club is profitable?

Let's compare a tunnel and a hand wash. Same price, very different businesses.

That's the whole story of car wash subscriptions in one example.

Member contribution = (Price ÷ 1.1) − (average washes × variable cost per wash) − payment fees

If your variable cost per wash is low, price for the average member and let the heavy users enjoy it. If it's high, cap visits and price per visit.

Test your own site in the Subscription Price Calculator, then model what converting a third of your regulars does to revenue and cash flow with the Subscription vs One-off Profit Calculator.

How do you launch a car wash membership?

1. Know your cost per wash for each package, split into variable costs (water, chemicals, power, labor) and fixed costs.
2. Choose unlimited or capped based on that variable cost.
3. Set up effortless check-in. A windshield tag or plate recognition, so members drive straight in. If members have to queue at a kiosk, the club stops feeling special.
4. Price per vehicle, with a discount for extra household cars.
5. Sell it at the pay station. The best time to sell a membership is when someone is paying A$25 for a single wash.
6. Write clear terms: one vehicle per plan, how to transfer a plan to a new car, how to pause and how to cancel online.
7. Track the member share of revenue every month. Mister Car Wash reports it because it's the number investors care about most.

What are the pitfalls?

Unlimited on a labor-heavy service. The hand-wash example above. Don't do it.

Plan sharing. Without vehicle-linked tags or plates, one membership turns into a family's three cars.

Relying on members who never come. Gyms famously need many more members than they can fit, because so many never show up. If your numbers only work because members forget to wash their car, they'll eventually notice the charge and cancel. And from 2027 in Australia, the prescribed reminders are expected to make sure they notice.

Growth stalls. Even Mister Car Wash saw comparable sales growth slow from 6.0% in Q1 2025 to 1.6% in Q4. A club depends on signing new members as well as keeping existing ones. Keep marketing.

Capacity at peak times. Saturday mornings plus a large member base can mean queues out the driveway. Members who wait twenty minutes start doing the maths on canceling.

What do Australian car washes need to know?

As at October 2026, three areas matter. This is general information, so get advice on your own terms.

Subscription rules from 1 July 2027. The Unfair Trading Practices Act 2026 requires you to state upfront that the plan is a subscription, with the price, renewal and how to cancel, to send prescribed reminders, and to provide an easy, straightforward cancellation method, online if customers can join online. A "cancel in person only" policy won't survive. See the subscription trap laws guide and the AU compliance checklist.

Privacy. Number plate recognition and member accounts mean you're collecting personal information. Check whether the Privacy Act applies to your business and tell members what you collect and why.

GST. Prices to consumers must include GST. Prepaid wash packs and annual plans are income received in advance until the washes are used.

The accountant's angle: why buyers pay more for a wash club

A car wash without members is a weather business. Revenue swings with the forecast, and a buyer prices in that risk.

A car wash with members has a base of monthly recurring revenue that arrives regardless of the forecast. It makes cash flow predictable, supports financing for new equipment, and shows a buyer a retention history they can underwrite. The lesson from Mister Car Wash for small operators is to track the share of revenue from members, because it's the number a buyer will look at first.

If you're thinking about selling in the next few years, start building that number now. The valuation estimator shows how growth and retention change a revenue multiple, and the Mister Car Wash case study has the full story.

Free Subscription Profit Review

Australian business owners can book a free 30-minute review with a BPAG Accountants adviser. An honest conversation about:

• whether a subscription model could work for your business
• how recurring revenue could cover your fixed costs each month
• how it could lift what your business is worth

Book my free review Call 1300 272 422

No cost, no obligation. General information only until we understand your situation.

What to do next

Work out your true variable cost per wash for each package this week. That single number tells you whether you can sell unlimited, or need caps.

Then put a simple sign at the pay station: "Wash twice a month? Join the club and save." Count how many people ask.

For a related business that also sells service around the car, see the mechanics and auto services playbook, or browse all industry playbooks.

Frequently asked questions

General information only, current as at October 2026. It isn't legal, tax or financial advice and doesn't consider your circumstances. Speak to a qualified adviser before acting.

Robert Coorey, MBA

Robert is the author of The Subscription Playbook and Feed a Starving Crowd and a Director at BPAG Accountants in Sydney. More about Robert.