Post job

Car wash attendant vs car cleaner

The differences between car wash attendants and car cleaners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a car wash attendant has an average salary of $30,843, which is higher than the $29,423 average annual salary of a car cleaner.

The top three skills for a car wash attendant include visual inspections, menu options and competent demeanor. The most important skills for a car cleaner are clean windows, vehicle damage, and customer service.

Car wash attendant vs car cleaner overview

Car Wash AttendantCar Cleaner
Yearly salary$30,843$29,423
Hourly rate$14.83$14.15
Growth rate6%6%
Number of jobs49,51241,909
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 57%High School Diploma, 59%
Average age3838
Years of experience--

What does a car wash attendant do?

As a car wash attendant, they wash and polish car exteriors and interiors. They often clean tires, dust, drying, applying soap solutions, vacuuming car interiors, scraping loose specks of dirt, cleaning seats, and removing the trash on a car. This type of job requires reliability, communication, physical fitness, and customer service skills. Formal education is not fully required though most of them hold a high school diploma. However, their attention to detail and good customer service may increase their employment opportunities.

What does a car cleaner do?

Car Cleaners are Responsible for cleaning and washing vehicles for their exterior and interior. Their duties include greeting customers, soap application, cleaning dirt and spraying rims and tires, spray windows using cleaning agent, wax application, rinsing away soap, car debris removal, vacuuming to suck debris and dirt, applying upholstery cleaner for stains and dirt removal, rear window cleaning, as well as cleaning console and dash using a soft cloth. Other duties include processing payments, managing the cash register, ensuring vehicle valuables remain undisturbed, delivering receipt, directing the client to the car after service, and handling customer complaints.

Car wash attendant vs car cleaner salary

Car wash attendants and car cleaners have different pay scales, as shown below.

Car Wash AttendantCar Cleaner
Average salary$30,843$29,423
Salary rangeBetween $24,000 And $39,000Between $23,000 And $36,000
Highest paying CityBrentwood, CASeaTac, WA
Highest paying stateWashingtonWashington
Best paying companyCharles River CenterDXC Technology
Best paying industryTechnologyManufacturing

Differences between car wash attendant and car cleaner education

There are a few differences between a car wash attendant and a car cleaner in terms of educational background:

Car Wash AttendantCar Cleaner
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 57%High School Diploma, 59%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common college--

Car wash attendant vs car cleaner demographics

Here are the differences between car wash attendants' and car cleaners' demographics:

Car Wash AttendantCar Cleaner
Average age3838
Gender ratioMale, 84.4% Female, 15.6%Male, 81.6% Female, 18.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 4.1% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%Black or African American, 13.3% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 5.2% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage5%5%

Differences between car wash attendant and car cleaner duties and responsibilities

Car wash attendant example responsibilities.

  • Manage stock of the vehicles; document vehicle locations and individual VIN numbers.
  • Manage to sweep and mop floor; clean bathroom and empty trash and dryer lint traps.
  • Clean and service cars for Daimler Chrysler.
  • Make change for customer purchases, pre-soak customer cars, clean and scrub all machines and walls.
  • Inspect and maintain operation of all equipment including arches, guns, dryers, lights, chain, and vacuums.
  • Maintain facility cleanliness to standards.
  • Show more

Car cleaner example responsibilities.

  • Inspect transit equipment and vehicles for cleanliness and damages to insure compliance with standards and transit regulations.
  • Use equipment such as sanders, grinders, automate immersion unit, high pressure spraying units, and vapor units.
  • Work in the sanitizing section with the duties of maintaining, cleaning, and prepping full face respirators for re-issue.
  • Couple air and electrical connections between locomotives.
  • Clean multiple commercial building using industrialize buffers, scrubbers and/or vacuum equipment.
  • Disassemble finishing booths and trolleys.
  • Show more

Car wash attendant vs car cleaner skills

Common car wash attendant skills
  • Visual Inspections, 46%
  • Menu Options, 24%
  • Competent Demeanor, 7%
  • Customer Service, 5%
  • Cleanliness, 4%
  • Work Ethic, 3%
Common car cleaner skills
  • Clean Windows, 41%
  • Vehicle Damage, 28%
  • Customer Service, 16%
  • Clean Vehicle, 11%
  • Vehicle Exterior, 2%
  • Cleanliness, 1%

Browse transportation jobs