The single most important number in laundromat finance is not revenue. It's not even profit. It's turns per day — and specifically, the minimum turns per day you need to cover every expense and debt payment.
That number is your break-even point. Everything above it is profit. Everything below it is a problem.
What turns per day actually means
One "turn" means every machine in your store runs one complete cycle. If you have 30 washers and they each run 4 times in a day, you're at 4 turns per day (TPD).
Industry averages range from 2.5 TPD (low-traffic or overbuilt stores) to 7+ TPD (high-demand locations running at capacity). Most attended laundromats with a reasonable machine mix operate between 3.5 and 5.5 TPD.
The break-even formula
Your break-even TPD is the point where:
Gross Revenue = Operating Expenses + Debt Service
The challenge is that revenue is variable (it changes with TPD) while most of your expenses are fixed or semi-fixed. Rent doesn't change whether you run 2 turns or 6. Labor is mostly fixed during attended hours. Utilities scale with usage but not linearly.
How to calculate it
You need three inputs:
- Revenue per turn. Sum up (machine quantity × vend price) across your entire washer fleet. Add dryer revenue (typically 25–30% of washer revenue). Add WDF and retail if applicable. This gives you daily revenue at 1 TPD — multiply by any TPD to get daily revenue at that level.
- Monthly operating expenses. Fixed costs (rent, insurance, internet, accounting, etc.) plus variable costs (utilities as a percentage of gross, credit card processing, supplies) plus labor (hours × wage × employer tax rate).
- Monthly debt service. Your loan payment. If you bought for cash, this is zero — and your break-even point drops significantly.
The break-even TPD is the point where monthly revenue at that TPD exactly covers monthly expenses plus debt.
Why this matters for every operator
If you're evaluating a store to purchase: the break-even TPD tells you whether the deal makes sense. If break-even requires 5 TPD and the market supports 3.5, walk away.
If you're already operating: knowing your break-even TPD tells you how much cushion you have. A store breaking even at 2.5 TPD and running at 4 TPD has significant margin. A store breaking even at 4.2 TPD and running at 4.5 TPD is one bad month away from negative cash flow.
If you're refinancing or buying equipment: plug the new debt service into the calculation and see how it shifts your break-even point before you sign.
One action this week
Run a full analysis using the Break-Even & Pro Forma Analyzer. Enter your actual machine mix, expenses, and financing. The tool calculates your exact break-even TPD and shows cash flow at every volume level from 1 to 8 turns per day. Print the output — it's formatted for bank meetings.