How to Make Money With Your Washing Machine (2024)

This post is sponsored by Laundry Care. As always, all reviews and opinions expressed in this post are my own personal view.

The other day, as I heard the washing machine ding from my office and popped up to move clothes into the dryer, I wondered how people ever did laundry by hand. It feels like one of the boys has always spilled something on their clothes, left their blanket in the dog bed, or wiped paint on my pants. Ah, motherhood!

Today, laundry is a simple part of our routine. But it doesn’t mean some people don’t struggle to get it done. Or hate doing it. Which means, there is a business opportunity. One that you can turn into an efficient way to make money doing laundry from home with a company called Laundry Care.

Laundry Care providers do laundry at home for people in their area and are earning over $15 an hour for the work. Even beginner providers and people in new regions are making on average $150 a week. And if we know the power of a $200 a month side hustle, what could $600 do for your budget and goals?

How Does Laundry Care Work?

Before we dive into how to make some extra cash with Laundry Care, let’s chat about what the company does.

Laundry Care is an app-based network of at home laundry service providers that help busy parents, businesses, college students and anyone who needs help tackling their laundry. Laundry Care providers pick up bags of laundry at their clients’ homes, take it home to wash, dry, and fold, then drop it back off.

I love the idea of sending gift cards for a few loads of laundry to new parents! All sleep-deprived new parents have to do is choose a pick-up time in the app, stuff their dirty laundry in a 13-gallon kitchen trash bag, and get it back beautifully clean and folded. So much better than another stuffed animal or baby blanket…

Cost of Laundry Care

Standard wash and fold service is charged per bag. As much as can fit, as long as the bag closes and nothing is hanging out of the top. The cost per bag depends on your location and includes any items needing special care such as hand-wash or stain treatment. If you live in Pitman, NJ, for instance, your cost per bag would be $35. Each bag holds 2-3 loads of laundry, depending on the size of your machine.

Laundry that is not clothing – like cleaning rags, tablecloths, or comforters – are priced by quantity. And if you want your clothes ironed, it runs $3 per item.

For general service, your laundry is returned to you two days after it is picked up. But if you need it back sooner, you can get it back next day or same day. But there is an additional fee.

Where Laundry Care Operates

Laundry Care is rapidly expanding but is still only limited to just over 40 service areas. (You can see existing locations in the map below!)

But, if you want to side hustle doing laundry for Laundry Care and you don’t see a dot in your area of the country, don’t worry! The company is always looking to expand into new areas with the right person.

Laundry Care is targeting metro areas with populations over 250,000 or locations that are popular vacation destinations or have a large college or university. The first thing that popped out to me when I looked at the map was that my old ‘hood, Boston, doesn’t yet have its own little arrow! With so many colleges and busy professionals, this seems like a major hole. If you’re a Bostonian reading this, jump on this opportunity!

What Do You Need to Make Money With Laundry Care?

Alright, alright, Laundry Care makes it easy to have your laundry picked up and returned to you folded. But how can you make money?!

Signing up as a provider with Laundry Care is fast and easy. On average, the application process takes about a day; then it takes 3-5 days to get your initial supplies. The only cost is $30 for the initial supply kit, which includes five reusable Laundry Care nylon bags, clear garment covers, and plastic bag tags for serving your first few customers.

To be a provider you need to be 18 or older, have a washer and dryer, have some availability during regular business hours, and have a valid drivers license. There are a few other minor requirements, but in general, this is the best fit for stay-at-home and work-at-home individuals who have a little bit of flexibility in their schedule.

One of the best things about this side hustle is that you have total control. Providers can set a service area where they are comfortable traveling for pickups and deliveries, note which dates they are available for pickups, and can easily communicate with their customers in the app.

Providers get paid $19 to $20 per bag of laundry, which is usually 2-3 loads depending on the size of your washing machine. You can also earn more with ironing add-ons, dry cleaning courier services, and rush orders.

Why Laundry Care Instead of Starting Your Own Business?

Starting a business takes time. You’ve got to create marketing materials, get the word out, find clients, coordinate pick-up and drop-off with clients, make sure you get paid, deal with customer service. Do I need to go on?

With Laundry Care, they take care of all of that. They handle new customer inquiries, payment processing, tools and resources on running your business, marketing materials, and more. You just set your available pick-up days, grab the laundry from the addresses the app alerts you to, and return it cleaned and folded.

You can gain clients faster by helping get the word out about your services, including putting up flyers at local colleges and metro areas, posting in local Facebook groups, and talking about your business. But Laundry Care provides great marketing materials to help you jumpstart.

The Application Process

To become a Laundry Care provider, the application takes a couple of steps that happen in quick succession.

Step 1 – Initial Application: First, you’ll answer eight yes or no questions that range from whether you have a valid drivers license and the ability to provide pick-up and delivery to whether you have a fully functional washer & dryer and whether you’ve ever been convicted of a felony. You’ll also be asked if you can understand care labels on clothing. (But we all know there is Wikipedia for that.)

In the next stage of the application, you’ll enter your home address and tell the company a little bit about yourself. You’ll be asked to explain your laundry process, so Laundry Care can understand precisely what you do. Finally, you’ll upload a picture of your laundry room. Make sure your space is clean and organized!

Step 2 – Define Your Service Area: How far from home are you willing to drive to pick up and drop off laundry. Make sure you understand the drive time (and how that might impact your earnings). Laundry Care typically targets service areas of about 10 miles.

Step 3 – Video Interview: This part can be a little awkward. But that’s because it’s a self-guided interview, which means it can feel a bit like you’re talking to yourself. Set yourself up in a clean, well-lit spot to give detailed answers to their questions. Aim to make a professional impression!

Finally, all three parts of your application are reviewed by the Laundry Care team! It typically takes about a day to process your application, then 3 to 5 days to get your materials if you are approved.

Start your Laundry Care application today!

Getting Started

Like any new business, getting started can be slow. In your first week, you might only earn $20 to $60. And at times, it will be variable. A few one-time orders could mean you have a great week one week, and a slow one the next.

You can get the ball rolling by spreading the word, however. Post in local groups about the Laundry Care service put up flyers in local colleges and hangouts, and go through Laundry Care’s resources for new providers.

Many existing providers always recommend, always providing the most professional service possible. Show up on time, make sure to follow all cleaning and folding requests, and go the extra mile by investing in hangers or plastic garment bags. This makes it easier to convert one-time or as-needed customers into recurring, long-term customers.

Tips to Earn the Most With Laundry Care

Offering add-on services – like ironing, dry cleaning courier services, or quick turnaround – can boost your earnings per customer and profit margin. It can mean building in a little more flexibility in your schedule, but the value can be worth it. Some high-earning Laundry Care providers bring in $600 to $700 a week!

The most significant benefit, by far, is cultivating a group of recurring customers. People who want your service every week or every other week, creating a stable level of earnings that can help you pay down debt, save for that next big vacation, or fund a future goal. Always go above and beyond with regular customers. Ask about their preferences, leave a nice note in their bag, and be upbeat and professional when you see them at their home.

Another great option is to advertise with local businesses. From AirBnB managers who want laundry services for sheets and towels to spas and restaurants with regular laundry needs, Laundry Care offers specialized offerings to businesses that can bring in consistent income.

Even if you earn the $150 a week many providers in new locations bring in, that’s over $7,000 a year!

How Much Can You Really Make With Laundry Care?

Provider pay can vary quite a bit, depending on the demand for services in your area, your availability, and how long your business has been in operation.

Laundry Care let me peek at some provider data, which showed that top providers in larger and more established cities earned an average of $485 a week. (That’s almost $2,000 a month!) With some making much more than that! Comparatively, providers in smaller cities or in new locations that are just getting started earn about $150 a week.

Let’s say you’re cleaning 8 bags a week for $160. Assuming it takes you an hour to pick up your customer bags each week, 5 minutes to load the washer, 2 minutes to move clothes into the dryer, and 10 minutes to fold each load, then another hour to drop the clothes back off, that is 7.7 hours of active work. Or $20.78 an hour. This is in line with Laundry Care providers saying they earn over $15 to $20 an hour. (And much better than so many people on Etsy making less than minimum wage.)

Costs are minimal, including fuel, detergent, fabric softener, and dryer sheets. (I would opt for dryer balls, which last for 1,000 loads and are better for the health and efficiency of your dryer!) Also remember to keep track of invisible expenses, like miles driven, as you can deduct 53.5 cents per mile driven from your earnings to reduce how much of your earnings you’ll need to send to Uncle Sam!

Even after expenses, I estimate an average provider can earn over $19 an hour. Impressive, when you consider that you still get to read books with your kids, do the dishes, or write a blog post while the washing machine runs.

Is This the Right Side Hustle for You?

An extra $600 or more can mean a lot for your budget. But is working with Laundry Care right for you? It depends on how much you love laundry!

If adding a few extra loads of laundry to your week sounds fun and easy, and you have some flexibility in your day, Laundry Care can be the perfect side hustle. It is fast and cheap to get started, and there are no new skills to learn. Just keep doing the laundry, the way you have for years!

What do you think of Laundry Care as a side hustle or service? Drop a note in the comments and let me know!