Comparison · updated 2026-04
DetailingStack vs Mobile Tech RX
Mobile Tech RX is the default choice for solo mobile detailers — it's capable, it works, and it's been around. This page is for the shop owner asking “is switching actually worth the migration pain?”— sourced from each vendor's public pricing and product docs as of 2026-04. If a row feels wrong, email support@detailingstack.com with a source and we'll correct it within a week.
| What you care about | DetailingStack | Mobile Tech RX |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue you stop losing | ||
Lost Saturdays to no-shows 20% no-show rate × 6 jobs/day × $145 avg = ~$43,500/yr leaked | 25% deposit collected at booking via Stripe, included on every plan — shops report ~80% fewer no-shows | Deposits supported, but in-app payment processing carries a 3.25% + $0.15 transaction fee on top of the monthly subscription |
Chasing customers for payment after the job | One-tap Stripe invoice from the phone; customer pays before you've packed up | Invoice + payment supported through the mobile app and desktop |
Repeat customers forgetting you exist | Automatic 90-day rebooking-nudge SMS to dormant customers; sends at tenant-local 9 AM | Manual follow-up; no automated rebooking cadence advertised |
Google reviews you never get around to asking for | Automated post-job review-request SMS with your Google Business Profile link; TCPA-ready, opt-outs honored | Review request feature available but not configured automatically per-job |
Recurring monthly memberships sold to customers Monthly maintenance wash plans — the single biggest untapped revenue lever for a mobile rig. | Customer memberships: tenant defines a plan, customer checks out via Stripe Subscription, a job auto-creates on each renewal (Settings → Memberships) | No recurring-membership product advertised; you'd roll it manually in Stripe outside MTX |
Promo codes for seasonal pushes + first-time-customer discounts | Tenant-defined coupons (percent or amount off, min subtotal, max redemptions, expiry) that work at booking and on ad-hoc invoices | Manual discount lines per quote; no first-class coupon codes |
Billing a customer for incidentals (damage fee, add-on work) | One-off invoices without a parent Job — free-form line items, sent via Stripe, tracked on the unified Payments page | Invoices tied to the job record; ad-hoc billing is a manual workaround |
| Operations — the back-office work nobody markets | ||
One screen that shows every deposit, invoice, and refund | Unified /dashboard/payments: gross / refunded / net tiles + filtered table + CSV export | Payments live across transactions + invoices screens; aggregation is DIY |
In-product conversation with the customer | Message Center (tenant ↔ customer threaded chat) auto-chooses SMS / email / in-app by customer contact | SMS reminders on, but 1:1 conversational thread with attachments isn't first-class |
Tracking consumables (wax, compound, microfiber) | Products catalog + inventory ledger with low-stock alerts; stock deducts on Job completion | No inventory module advertised |
Who changed what, and when | /dashboard/activity renders 90 days of audit rows, filterable by actor / entity / action; CSV export | No tenant-visible audit log advertised |
Undo an accidental delete | Soft-delete by default + 30-day /dashboard/trash with one-click restore | Deletes are permanent in the UI; recovery requires support |
Calendar with agenda / day / week / month | /dashboard/calendar with keyboard shortcuts (T / J / K); status-color-coded jobs | Calendar surface exists; desktop-heavy |
| Time before you're taking real bookings | ||
Signup → first bookable link | < 5 min, self-serve; signup page → booking slug live with no sales call | Sales demo + onboarding walkthrough; days, not minutes |
Pricing you can compare without a phone call | $39 Starter / $89 Growth / $189 Pro posted on /pricing; Stripe Checkout self-serve | Entry plan advertised ~$30/mo; higher tiers quoted after a sales conversation |
Migration from your current tool | Direct MTX CSV importer at /migrate-from-mtx — drops customers + vehicles in one upload | You're migrating AWAY from here |
Signing in without remembering a password | Magic-link signup + sign-in by default — type email, click link, you're in (password optional) | Email + password login flow |
| How it feels to work on-site | ||
Uploading before/after photos from the driveway | Native iOS/Android camera (Capacitor) + offline photo queue that syncs when you hit LTE | Mobile app available; photo capture works on LTE, limited offline-queue behavior |
Quoting ceramic + PPF without filling line items by hand | AI assist drafts per-panel ceramic + PPF quotes from short notes; Stack copilot | Quote templates supported; AI-drafted quoting not advertised |
UI that doesn't feel like 2017 | Modern 2026 UI (Linear-grade), native dark mode, mobile-first on every surface | Functional but visibly older admin surfaces; mobile app carries the modern feel |
| Cost per month (solo mobile rig) | ||
Baseline monthly subscription | $39/mo Starter (1 seat, 75 jobs/mo) or $89/mo Growth (3 seats, unlimited jobs) | ~$30–$90/mo depending on plan and add-ons |
Payment-processing surcharge | Stripe standard pricing (2.9% + $0.30) — nothing extra from us on top | 3.25% + $0.15 per transaction when using in-app payments |
SMS reminders included vs per-message | Generous built-in SMS on Growth+; Twilio passthrough + 20% for overages | SMS bundled with plan; overage rates vary by tier |
| Data you own vs data you rent | ||
Exporting your whole customer book | One-click CSV on every plan + full public REST API + MCP bridge for AI agents | Export tools available via the product UI |
Programmatic access (Zapier, custom scripts, AI agents) | Full /v1/* OpenAPI 3.1 — every CRUD surface is a scoped API key away | Limited public API; integrations are vendor-curated |