In the past month, you’ve probably seen a few flawlessly wrapped cars drive past you. If you’re a business owner, maybe you’re wondering if they’re the right fit for your business too. Professional, sleek, colourful…you also probably have the feeling that they don’t come cheap.
They say nothing worth having ever does, and the advantages of car wraps truly do go on and on for years until the day you decide to peel yours off. This post will walk you through the cost of a car wrap, the application process, benefits, and alternative options. Let’s start with what goes into the cost of a wrap job.
How cost is calculated
Something cool about car wraps: they’re incredibly versatile. How much of your car you cover is completely up to you. So what are your options?
Full Coverage
If you’re looking to change the colour of your car completely and want graphics or text from hood to trunk, you’ll need a full-coverage job. These types of jobs will, of course, cost more than partial jobs, but they give you the advantage of having your vehicle seen from all angles.
Partial Coverage
For this type of job, you’ll pick and choose where you want your wrap applied. Perhaps you want just the doors of your van covered on either side. Maybe you’d rather have just the hood and the back. Whatever your preferences, the size of your wrap job will determine the overall price.
Colours, Graphics & Text
The busier the look of your wrap is, the higher in cost it will be. Adding additional graphics and text to the vinyl requires higher costs in the printing stage of your wrap, and it’s usually a rule of thumb that colour ink is more expensive than black.
Car Size & Shape
Small car? Less wrap will be used for the job which will, in turn, lower the overall cost. Since wrapping smaller vehicles uses fewer materials and labour time, you can assume that if you have a large vehicle like a truck or van, the end cost will be higher. But just as size matters here, so does your vehicle’s shape. Known for their straight lines, vans are usually the easiest to cover — unless they’re curvy. Trucks have a lot of tricky angles and so the application time for them may be higher.
What to consider when choosing your wrap
Since the main goal of having a car wrap is to get your business noticed, at the very least, you’ll want to include your logo. After that, you have some important choices to make in regards to colour and finish.
Colour
At the end of the day, you want your car wrap to represent your business. If your business colours are yellow and blue, then your wrap should be designed to match. Another advantage of choosing car wraps is colour options. Since the colours for graphics are printed off from a computer program, you’ll have access to a certain shade that regular paint may not be able to match.
Finishes
Just like paint, vinyl wraps have special finishes. For example, matte is a big trend right now, but if you prefer a traditional paint-like look, you can also opt for a pearl finish. The finish you choose greatly affects the overall cost of your job since certain types of vinyl are more expensive than others.
How much do car wraps cost?
Since you know that the more colour and graphics you add to your wrap, the more expensive it will be, the answer to this question is: it varies. On average, for a midsize vehicle, overall costs clock in somewhere between the $2,500-$5,000 range.
If you have a larger vehicle with an intricately designed wrap, you’re looking at about $8,000. Interested in a solitary sticker? They usually start at $150.
Since car wraps can last 7+ years, considering their reach, they’re one of the smartest investments you can make. If you’d like a more accurate estimate for your unique job and vehicle, it’s important to talk to a shop directly.
Benefits
Car wraps are becoming one of the most popular ways for businesses to advertise. Turning your car into a mobile billboard, there are a ton of reasons why choosing them is a smart move for your business.
Make 30,000+ impressions every day
Depending on where you live and how far you travel with your vehicle, this number could be much higher. Some estimate the number goes upward of 80,000 times your car is seen each day. Choosing a car wrap ensures your business is seen.
Looks Professional
This one depends on who did the job and how clean it looks. The look of your wrap tells customers a lot about your business, so if you decide to tackle the job DIY-style and apply it crookedly, rip the vinyl, or leave bubbles, customers may turn their heads and search for a business with a more professional look.
Studies say that within the first 7 seconds of meeting someone, an impression is made, and this is true for vehicle wraps as well. People notice more than you think.
‘Round-the-clock, mobile advertising
Why spend thousands to advertise in a magazine for people to only flip past your ad? Billboards seem like a great alternative, but they stay in the same place. Unless you park your vehicle in a garage by itself, choosing a car wrap gets your business noticed at all times of the day.
Tons of design & colour options
Unlike paint, customization options are endless with vinyl wraps. When creating a design for your vehicle, you’ll have tons of choices for graphics, colour, text, and placement — all of which work together to get your vehicle, and thus, your business noticed.
Protects your car
You know all that dirt, grease, and those tiny rocks that ruin your fresh-looking paint? Car wraps protect your actual vehicle from all of them. When it comes time to remove your wrap (unless you had any major ding-ups), the surface of your vehicle should be as flawless as the day you covered it.
Lasts 7+ years
Some say car wraps can last up to 10 years when cared for properly. That means an investment of under $1,000 per year. That’s pretty impressive for 24/7 advertising considering a single billboard ad can cost you $750-$14,000 per month.
To get the most out of your vehicle wrap, you’ll need to make sure you care for it properly. Washing your wrap 2-4 times per month with a vehicle sponge and gentle cleaner will help lengthen its lifespan.
Alternatives
There’s just one alternative to car wraps, and that’s paint. But in the grand scheme of things, there’s really no comparison. Though a paint job is less expensive, where do professional-looking graphics come in?
Paint also won’t protect your car as a vinyl wrap does, and therefore, you’ll be freshening it up every few years. Paint jobs can cost between $500-$2,000, and though they certainly look fresh once they’re out of the shop, the actual job can take over a week, and you just won’t make the same impression as you would with a wrap.
Professional vs DIY
We’ve touched on the importance of choosing a professional service for your car wrap, and though it is possible to apply the vinyl yourself, it’s a job that requires special tools, experience, two people, and an enclosed space with ample room — not to mention the right software and printing technology! Leaving things to the pros ensures the job will be done right.
If you have a plain ol’ company car you drive to work each day, then really, you’re missing out big time on attracting business. Making meaningful impressions on potential customers and clients, the right wrap and wrap job could be the difference between a surviving business and a thriving business.
Since the cost of your wrap job depends on your unique vehicle, coverage, and the particular design you’d like, contact us to get a custom estimate.
