Why Go Cashless? Because Coins Are Costing You More Than You Think...

Let’s face it—coins might be great for parking meters and wishing wells, but in laundromats, they’re more trouble than they’re worth, and costing you more than you realise.

You know what’s worse than an out-of-order sign? A crowbar through your washers coin box. Vandalism for the sake of a few coins can be a real problem for coin-operated laundries. And here’s a stat that might knock the lint out of your filter: 90% of maintenance callouts disappear when laundries go cashless. That’s right—no coins, no break-ins, no out of order machines, and no emergency technician visits.

This is a new one for us : our best guess is someone used a portable angle grinder to cut the entire front off the coin box receptacle.

coin box

More Revenue, Less Fuss

Cashless systems aren’t just safer—they’re smarter for business. Here’s something we’ve seen time and time again across the industry: in coin laundries, the smallest, cheapest machines get used the most. People are counting every dollar. But once you change to card payment - the larger machines suddenly become the stars of the show.

Why? Because card payment shifts how people think. Instead of asking “how many coins do I have?”, they start asking “what do I actually need washed/dried?” Customers focus on convenience, not constraint—and that often means higher-ticket cycles, more turns, and better revenue for you.

The Curious Case of Machine #2

Here’s a fun side note. In quieter laundries, the second machine from the entrance tends to get about 40% more use than the first one. Something about not wanting to be too close to the door, perhaps?

This doesn’t hold as true in busy laundromats (when customers just use whatever machine is available), but in slower laundromats, machine #2 is where the magic happens. For Speed Queen owners, you'll be able to see this information in Speed Queen Insights - which gives advanced visibility an analytics on your machines.

Final Spin

Coins have had their time. They’re noisy, grubby, and apparently irresistible to vandals with portable tools. Going cashless doesn’t just make your laundry safer—it makes it smarter, more efficient, and more profitable.

Because in the end, laundry should be about fresh sheets, not fresh crimes.

Cashless Is Cleaner—For Machines and Margins