British valeting prices are published as complete grids by mobile operators, which makes this the second best-documented market in this trade. What it does not publish is a minimum charge, and it prices the mobile visit in pounds rather than as a percentage — both of which the calculator above follows rather than smoothing over.
How the calculator works
- Package and size pick the cell. Three tiers by three sizes.
- Mobile adds £15, not a percentage. The market prints an absolute figure and on a £25 job a percentage would not cover the trip.
- Condition moves the quote up the range rather than adding an invented line.
- Your region. Prices are adjusted by a regional labour-cost index.
- Your economics. “Your costs and margin” uses the hours the operator prints beside the price and shows what the grid leaves you before VAT.
Typical UK valeting and detailing prices in 2026
| Package | Small car | Medium car | Large SUV or van | Hours, small car |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry — mini valet | £20–£30 | £25–£35 | £30–£45 | 30–45 min |
| Standard — full valet | £75–£120 | £90–£150 | £120–£200 | 2–4 |
| Premium — full detail | £150–£300 | £200–£400 | £300–£500+ | 4–8+ |
Operators bill £25–£50 an hour on this work. All figures exclude VAT.
Two independent sources, and they agree
The reference grid comes from a mobile valeting operator publishing five packages by three sizes. A second source, updated January 2026, is independent of it and lands in the same place: full valet £60–£120 against £75–£120, and a premium full valet £120–£200 against the same £120–£200 for a large car. When two unrelated price lists overlap like that, the band is doing its job.
Where the British numbers are thin, said plainly
No published minimum charge. Not in either source. The £20 floor in the calculator is the bottom of the mini valet band, which is the practical minimum for a job rather than a stated policy.
Every size is the operator’s own printed cell. The calculator reads the medium and large prices from the grid rather than scaling the small-car price. The hours for the larger sizes are not printed: they are the small-car hours scaled with the price, so the implied hourly rate stays the same across the three sizes.
VAT treatment is our reading. Neither source states it. Every figure here is treated as excluding VAT because that is how trade quotes work, and the assumption is recorded rather than hidden.
Worked example
A large SUV or van, premium tier — a full detail in British terms — mobile, heavily soiled. The mobile visit adds £15 rather than a percentage, because that is how the British market prices it. The quote lands at £435 (range £375–£495). The job takes about 12.3 hours, and at £12.71 an hour the cost comes to about £208, leaving £227, a 52% margin before VAT. The hours for a large vehicle are scaled from the small-car hours, not printed, so check them against your own before you trust the margin. The “Fill with sample data” button loads this exact job.
What this calculator does not price
Ceramic coating, which runs £200 to £1,500 and takes “a full day” — not an hours figure. Machine polishing and clay bar work, sold as their own lines at £150–£400 and £50–£100. Interior-only and exterior-only valets, whose published hours contradict the full-valet hours. Quote those from your own records.
The calculator gives you the number. For typical rates and how to build a quote, read our US car detailing pricing guide. Its rates are in US dollars.