Power Washing / Exterior Cleaning vs Print-on-Demand, startup cost comparison, StartupLenz

Power Washing / Exterior Cleaning

Higher net

Mobile exterior cleaning. Homes, driveways, decks, fleets. Capital-intensive at the start, real margins once routes get dense.

Gross$6,859

Net profit$2,748

Margin40.1%

Orders/mo25

Crew wages$1,893 28%

Chemicals$449 7%

Card fees$199 3%

Vehicle (truck/trailer)$750 11%

Equipment payment$200 3%

Insurance$220 3%

Software + tools$50 1%

Marketing$350 5%

launch · 1–3$1,021

traction · 4–8$3,081

scale · 9–12$5,407

Strong service margins. Add a second rig and a part-timer before adding more marketing.

Apparel, posters, accessories — POD providers fulfill, you design and market.

Gross$2,586

Net profit$604

Margin23.3%

Orders/mo60

POD product cost$1,008 39%

POD shipping$330 13%

Refunds$66 3%

Platform fees$75 3%

Ad spend$400 15%

Fixed costs$169 7%

launch · 1–3$17

traction · 4–8$604

scale · 9–12$1,307

Healthy POD margins. Watch for AOV creep and price-tested upsells to push higher.