On-premises or outsourced
What does commercial laundry cost?
Two completely different jobs get called the same thing. Buying or leasing machines for your own laundry room is a capital and running-cost question. Sending it out to a commercial laundry is a price-per-kilo or price-per-item question. The cost drivers barely overlap, so we have kept them apart. Tell us which you are pricing and UK suppliers will quote your actual site.
65°C for 10 min
or 71°C for at least 3 minutes: the thermal disinfection cycle HTM 01-04 treats as satisfactory for health and social care linen
12(2)(h)
the CQC regulation that puts assessing and controlling the spread of infection on the registered provider
Notify first
altering the water system in premises other than a house is notifiable to your water undertaker before work starts
Three steps
- Tell us the route, the sector and the weekly volume. Two minutes, no account.
- We pass your details to commercial laundry suppliers covering your postcode, and to no one else.
- They quote your actual site: machines, lease terms or price per kilo. Compare, choose, or walk away.
Commercial Laundry Cost is a free introduction service operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd; we pass your details to relevant commercial laundry equipment and service suppliers, who quote you directly. We may receive a fee from providers; you pay nothing and are under no obligation. We are not affiliated with NHS England, NHS Scotland, the Care Quality Commission, HSE or any supplier named, and nothing here is regulatory, clinical or legal advice, check the current version of any guidance before relying on it.
What sets a commercial laundry bill, 2026
Last updated
The cost drivers for both routes, on-premises equipment and outsourced service, in one table. Take it into every supplier conversation and make them answer the right-hand column, because that is where the quotes stop looking alike.
This is a cost-driver table, not a price list. We publish no headline price for commercial laundry because the two routes are priced on different units entirely: machines are quoted as capital or a monthly rental against a term, and outsourced laundry is quoted per kilo, per item or per bed, with collection frequency built in. A single number covering both would be meaningless. Each row names the driver, explains why it moves the bill on either route, and gives the question that makes two quotes comparable. Rows marked with a regulation cite the source inline in the guides.
| Cost driver | Why it moves the price | What to ask for |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly volume and peak day | Machines are sized on the worst day, not the average. Outsourced pricing is banded on volume, and the band boundary is where the rate changes. | Your peak-day kilos in writing, and the rate at the next band up and down. |
| Machine capacity and cycle time | Two 10 kg machines and one 20 kg machine cost different money to buy, install and run, and give very different throughput when one breaks. | Loads per day at your actual cycle times, and what happens to the laundry when one machine is down. |
| Thermal disinfection capability | Care, clinical and some hospitality work needs a machine that can hold a validated disinfection temperature. Domestic-spec machines cannot, and buying one is a false economy that fails an inspection. | Confirmation the machine holds and records a disinfection stage, and how validation is evidenced annually. |
| Gas versus electric drying | Drying is where the energy goes. Gas dryers usually cost less per load to run and more to install, because they need a gas supply, flue and a registered gas engineer. | Cost per cycle at your tariffs, plus the installation cost of getting gas to the room. |
| Water, drainage and services | Machines need water at the right pressure, drainage that can take the discharge rate, ventilation, and floor loading. Altering the water system in non-domestic premises is notifiable to the water undertaker before work starts. | A site survey covering water, drain rate, ventilation, power, floor and access, before you sign. |
| Buy, lease or rent | Buying is cheapest over a long life and worst for cash flow. Rental bundles service and replacement into a monthly figure and costs more in total. Lease sits between and can be structured either way. | Total cost over the full term, the end-of-term position, and what happens if you exit early. |
| Service contract and response time | A machine down in a care home is an operational emergency. Response time, parts inclusion and loan machines are the difference between two contracts that look identically priced. | Response time in hours, what is excluded, and whether a loan machine is provided. |
| Labour and floor space (on-premises only) | The staff hours to run a laundry, and the room it occupies, are the costs most often left out of the comparison against outsourcing. | Hours per week at your real wage cost, and what the room would otherwise be used for. |
| Collection frequency and linen stock (outsourced only) | More collections mean less linen stock tied up but a higher service charge. Rental linen shifts capital to opex and adds loss and damage charges. | Price per kilo or item at your frequency, plus the loss, damage and rejected-item charges in full. |
- HTM 01-04 treats a laundry disinfection cycle as satisfactory when the water temperature is raised to 65°C and held for not less than ten minutes, or to 71°C for not less than three minutes.
- NHS Scotland's care home infection prevention and control manual states that domestic-type washing machines are not typically programmed with the temperature settings required for thermal disinfection, so used linen such as sheets needs a machine capable of a validated temperature disinfection stage.
- Extending or altering a water system in premises other than a house is notifiable to the water undertaker in advance under regulation 5 of the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999, which catches most commercial laundry installations.
Cite this page
“What sets a commercial laundry bill, 2026”, Commercial Laundry Cost, https://commerciallaundrycost.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-14). This is a cost-driver table, not a price list. We publish no headline price for commercial laundry because the two routes are priced on different units entirely: machines are quoted as capital or a monthly rental against a term, and outsourced laundry is quoted per kilo, per item or per bed, with collection frequency built in. A single number covering both would be meaningless. Each row names the driver, explains why it moves the bill on either route, and gives the question that makes two quotes comparable. Rows marked with a regulation cite the source inline in the guides.
Worth knowing
The longer answers, with sources.
On-premises laundry or outsourced service: how to decide on cost
The comparison most businesses run wrong. Machines, staff hours, floor space and utilities against a price per kilo, plus the control and risk factors that decide it.
Commercial laundry equipment: sizing, gas or electric, buy or lease
What decides the cost of an on-premises laundry: machine capacity, cycle time, gas versus electric drying, installation services, and the buy, lease or rent question.
Care home laundry requirements: temperatures, machines and evidence
What a care home laundry actually has to do: HTM 01-04 thermal disinfection at 65°C or 71°C, why domestic machines fail, dirty-to-clean flow and CQC regulation 12.
Commercial laundry running costs: where the money actually goes
Water, heat, drying, detergent, labour and servicing. How to build a cost per kilo for your own laundry, and how to test an outsourced quote against it.
Frequently asked
How much does commercial laundry cost?
It depends which route you are pricing. On-premises equipment is quoted as capital or a monthly rental against a term, plus installation and running costs. Outsourced laundry is quoted per kilo, per item or per bed at a given collection frequency. We publish the cost drivers rather than a headline price, because a single figure covering both would be meaningless.
What temperature does commercial laundry need to reach for disinfection?
For health and social care linen, HTM 01-04 treats a disinfection cycle as satisfactory when the water is raised to 65°C and held for not less than ten minutes, or to 71°C for not less than three minutes. Other temperatures held for an appropriate time can be acceptable, and chemo-thermal processes cover heat-sensitive items.
Do we need a commercial machine, or will a domestic one do?
In care and clinical settings, a domestic machine is not enough for used linen. NHS Scotland's care home guidance says domestic-type machines are not typically programmed with the temperature settings required for thermal disinfection and may only be used for residents' personal clothing, while sheets and similar need a machine capable of a validated disinfection stage.
Is leasing commercial laundry equipment better than buying?
Buying costs least over a long life and most in cash flow. Rental with service included costs most in total but removes maintenance risk and gives a clean exit at term. Compare all routes on total paid over the full term, the end-of-term position, and the cost of leaving early.
Does installing commercial laundry equipment need any notifications?
Often yes. Extending or altering a water system in premises other than a house is notifiable in advance to your water undertaker under regulation 5 of the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999, and all fittings must comply with those Regulations. Gas dryers bring the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 into scope for the installation.
Is this quote service really free?
Yes, free to you, with no obligation to accept any quote. We pass your details only to relevant commercial laundry suppliers, who quote you directly; we may receive a fee from those suppliers, which is how the service is funded.