Buying a laundromat typically costs between $125,000 and $600,000 for an existing business, depending on location, equipment age, and annual earnings. The process involves finding a viable operation, verifying its income independently, securing financing, and negotiating both the purchase price and the underlying commercial lease. Here’s how to work through each step.
How Laundromats Are Priced
Laundromat sale prices are based on a multiple of the owner’s discretionary earnings, which is the annual profit left after all operating expenses but before the owner’s salary and personal expenses. Based on actual sale transactions from 2021 through 2025, the median multiple is 3.5 times annual earnings, with most deals closing between 2.72 and 4.5 times earnings.
The median discretionary earnings for sold laundromats during that period was $76,560, while the average was $115,541. That means a mid-range laundromat generating about $76,000 in annual owner earnings would typically sell for roughly $265,000. A higher-performing operation earning $138,000 or more could command $500,000 to $620,000 or higher.
What pushes the multiple up or down? Laundromats with consistent revenue, newer equipment, low owner involvement, growth potential, and a seller willing to finance part of the deal trade at the upper end. Businesses with thin margins, aging machines, heavy competition nearby, and an owner who works the floor full time sell at the lower end.
Where to Find Laundromats for Sale
Business-for-sale marketplaces like BizBuySell, BizQuest, and LoopNet list laundromats regularly. You can filter by asking price, revenue, and location. Many deals also flow through business brokers who specialize in laundromats or coin-operated businesses. A broker typically represents the seller and earns a commission from the sale, but they can still be a useful source of listings you won’t find online.
Another path is direct outreach. If you’ve identified a neighborhood where you want to operate, visit local laundromats and talk to the owners. Many laundromat sales happen off-market because the owner is ready to retire or move on but hasn’t formally listed the business. A simple conversation or a letter expressing interest can open a door.
Verify the Income Before You Buy
Laundromats are historically cash-heavy businesses, which makes reported income easy to inflate. You need independent verification beyond the seller’s profit-and-loss statements. The most reliable method is a water bill analysis.
Water bills show exactly how much water the location consumed each month. You can work backward from that number to estimate revenue. Take the total water usage (often measured in units called HCF, where one HCF equals 748 gallons), divide by the gallons each washer uses per cycle, and you get an approximate number of wash cycles sold that month. Multiply by the price per wash, and you have estimated washer revenue.
Dryer income runs between 25% and 40% of washer income. Using the conservative end of that range (25%) gives you a floor estimate for total revenue. If the seller claims the business earns significantly more than your water-bill math suggests, that’s a red flag worth investigating before you go further.
Request at least 24 months of water and utility bills directly from the utility company or ask the seller for originals, not photocopies. Also review tax returns, not just internal bookkeeping. Tax returns are harder to fabricate because the seller filed them with the IRS.
Financing the Purchase
Most buyers don’t pay all cash. The two most common financing paths are SBA loans and seller financing.
SBA 7(a) loans are backed by the U.S. Small Business Administration and offered through participating banks and lenders. To qualify, the business must operate for profit, be located in the U.S., and meet SBA size requirements. You’ll need to demonstrate creditworthiness and show a reasonable ability to repay. Most lenders funding laundromat purchases through SBA programs expect a down payment of 10% to 20% of the total project cost, a personal credit score in the mid-to-upper 600s at minimum, and a business plan showing how you’ll maintain or grow profitability. Loan terms can stretch to 10 or 25 years depending on what the funds cover (equipment versus real estate).
Seller financing is when the current owner agrees to accept payment over time instead of requiring full cash at closing. This is common in laundromat transactions. A typical structure might involve 20% to 30% down with the balance paid over three to seven years at an agreed interest rate. Seller financing can speed up the deal and sometimes gets you a lower overall cost because neither side is paying bank fees. It also signals that the seller is confident in the business’s ability to generate the income needed to cover your payments.
Some buyers combine both: an SBA loan covers most of the purchase, while the seller carries a smaller note for the remainder. Discuss this with your lender early, since some SBA lenders have rules about how seller notes are structured alongside their loan.
Evaluate the Lease Carefully
Unless the sale includes the real estate (which is less common), you’re buying a business that operates inside someone else’s building. The commercial lease is one of the most important documents in the deal, and getting it wrong can cost you the entire investment.
Lease length matters enormously. For a laundromat with existing equipment in good condition, aim for a remaining lease term of at least 10 to 15 years, including renewal options. If you’re planning to invest in new equipment, push for 15 to 25 years total. This can be structured as an initial five-year term with multiple five-year renewal options. Without a long enough lease, you risk sinking capital into a location and losing it when the landlord decides not to renew.
Clarify utility responsibilities before signing. Know whether the landlord provides heating and air conditioning equipment or whether that’s your cost. Understand who is responsible for maintaining and replacing those systems if they break. For a laundromat, water and sewer costs are a major expense, so confirm how those are billed and whether you have a separate meter.
Other clauses to negotiate include exclusivity (preventing the landlord from leasing nearby space to a competing laundry), rent escalation caps, and assignment rights so you can transfer the lease if you eventually sell the business.
Equipment Costs and Condition
Commercial washers and dryers are the core assets of the business. Prices vary widely depending on brand and capacity. On the lower end, machines from brands like Speed Queen start around $1,500 for a washer and $1,500 for a dryer. Mid-range commercial equipment from manufacturers like Maytag or Dexter runs $2,000 to $6,000 per unit. Premium brands like Electrolux Professional, Girbau, and Wascomat can cost $4,000 to $8,000 per washer and $2,500 to $7,000 per dryer.
A typical laundromat might have 20 to 40 washers and a similar number of dryers. At mid-range prices, equipping a store from scratch could run $150,000 to $350,000 just for machines. That’s why buying an existing laundromat with working equipment is often cheaper than building one from the ground up.
When evaluating a business for purchase, inspect every machine. Find out the age, brand, and maintenance history. Commercial laundry equipment generally lasts 10 to 15 years with proper maintenance, but heavily used machines in hard-water areas may wear out faster. If a significant portion of the machines will need replacement within a few years, factor that capital expense into your offer price.
Steps to Close the Deal
Once you’ve found a laundromat, verified income, and agreed on a price range with the seller, the transaction follows a fairly standard sequence.
- Letter of intent (LOI): A non-binding document that outlines the proposed price, deal structure, and timeline. This gives both parties a framework before spending money on attorneys and inspections.
- Due diligence period: Typically 30 to 60 days. During this window, you review financials, inspect equipment, analyze water bills, examine the lease, and confirm there are no outstanding liens or legal issues. Your lender will also conduct its own review.
- Lease assignment or new lease: Work with the landlord to either assign the existing lease to you or negotiate a new one. Some landlords require a personal guarantee.
- Purchase agreement: The formal contract specifying every term of the sale, including what’s included (machines, signage, customer lists, the business name), any seller financing terms, and representations the seller is making about the business’s condition.
- Closing: Funds transfer, the lease is assigned, and you take ownership. Many buyers arrange a transition period where the seller stays on for a few weeks to introduce you to suppliers, show you the maintenance routine, and walk you through day-to-day operations.
Ongoing Costs to Budget For
Beyond the purchase price, plan for the recurring expenses that determine whether the business stays profitable. Rent and utilities (water, gas, electricity, sewer) are the two largest line items. Water and energy costs alone can consume 20% to 30% of gross revenue. Machine maintenance and parts replacement are ongoing. You’ll also carry insurance, pay for payment system fees if you accept cards or use app-based payment, and potentially employ an attendant or cleaning staff.
Set aside a capital reserve for equipment replacement. Even if machines are in good shape at purchase, budgeting for one or two replacements per year keeps you from scrambling when a unit dies. At $2,000 to $6,000 per machine, these costs add up quickly without a plan.