Laundry Store Simulator is a first person shop management game from Indonesian studio Akhir Pekan Studio, published by PlayWay and released on 9 December 2024. You start with a small laundromat, a handful of second hand machines and a stack of decorations you can sell for startup cash, and you build it into a business with coin operated self service, a minimart, a screen printing bench, carpet and shoe cleaning and a bakso cart out front. Progress runs on a Laundry Rank that rises as you serve customers, and each rank up hands you a challenge asking for a set number of repetitions of a specific task before it unlocks. Machines matter more than they first appear: the starting Cheap Used washer costs eleven dollars and takes 45 minutes a cycle, while the Waffles Series 77B costs 786 dollars, needs Rank 8 and cuts that to about 20 minutes. There are 75 achievements, a skill tree, phone based quests and a rotating cast of troublesome customers, and the whole thing is far denser than the storefront screenshots suggest.
This guide covers everything you need: core mechanics, the best builds, equipment worth investing in, location progression, and the tips that actually make a difference.
Core Mechanics
Laundry Rank and rank up challenges
Every completed transaction awards experience, and hitting the threshold triggers a challenge rather than an instant promotion. The challenge asks for a set number of repetitions of one task, such as washing a certain number of loads or serving a number of customers, and only completing it raises the rank. Ranks gate almost everything worth having: the minimart employee needs Rank 6 together with the storage room unlocked, and the Waffles Series 77B washer needs Rank 8.
Washer and dryer tiers
Washing machines run from the Cheap Used unit at eleven dollars with a 45 minute cycle up to the Waffles Series 77B at 786 dollars, which drops the cycle to roughly 20 minutes. Faster machines cost more but they also break down less often, so the real saving is fewer repair interruptions rather than the raw time. Dryers work the same way and become the bottleneck once your washers are quick, because clothes queue between the two stages.
Coin laundry self service
The Coin Wash Room is the single best early unlock because coin washers earn without you touching them. They run from 39 dollars to 201 dollars with cycle times from two hours down to one hour twenty, and customers pay a fixed rate no matter which machine they use, so the cheap ones are not obviously worse per transaction. Customers also leave clothes behind in coin machines, and those can be sold at the secondhand shop across the street for a dollar or two each.
Employees at two dollars a day
Every employee costs two dollars a day, which is trivial against what they earn, so hiring early is close to free money. They are not equal: Ellen handles folding and ironing well enough to be the first hire most players make, Tannahill runs the cashier position and becomes far more useful once the 1,100 dollar minimart upgrade is installed, and Alva is slow enough at washing and drying that many players skip her. Special employee upgrades let staff handle minimart stock, fur removal and other tasks they cannot do by default.
Side businesses and the minimart
The laundry itself is only part of the income. A minimart sells retail products at prices you set daily, screen printing lets you make custom shirts with variable ink costs, carpet cleaning and shoe cleaning unlock as separate services, and a bakso cart sells food to a separate customer type. Fully upgrading the bakso cart unlocks a dedicated bakso employee. Setting up the minimart early is the standard advice because it produces steady income that does not compete with your machine time.
For a deeper dive into how these systems interact, see our Laundry Store Simulator combat guide.
Builds Overview
| Build | Tier | Playstyle | Key Stats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cashier | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Washing and drying staff | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Folding and ironing staff | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Minimart clerk | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Bakso vendor | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
For full build breakdowns with gear and stat priorities, see our Laundry Store Simulator builds guide. For rankings, check the tier list.
Equipment Guide
| Equipment | Why It Matters | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Cheap Used washing machine | The eleven dollar starter unit with a 45 minute cycle, and the machine most players are stuck with for the first shift or two. | The opening shift before you have sold enough decorations to afford anything better. |
| Waffles Series 77B washing machine | The top tier washer at 786 dollars, gated behind Laundry Rank 8, cutting the wash cycle to roughly 20 minutes. | A full service laundry where washer throughput is the bottleneck on how many orders you can accept. |
| Coin washer | Self service machines costing between 39 and 201 dollars with cycles between two hours and one hour twenty. | Passive income while you work the service counter, and the single best early investment in the game. |
| Dryer | The second stage of every service order and the place your queue backs up once washers are fast. | Any shop where clean laundry is piling up waiting for a free drum. |
| Screen printing press | The custom shirt equipment in the back room, producing printed apparel for customers who order it. | A second income stream that runs between wash cycles rather than competing with them. |
Cheap Used washing machine: The eleven dollar starter unit with a 45 minute cycle, and the machine most players are stuck with for the first shift or two. It is slow and breaks often, so it is a stopgap rather than something to buy several of.
Waffles Series 77B washing machine: The top tier washer at 786 dollars, gated behind Laundry Rank 8, cutting the wash cycle to roughly 20 minutes. Higher quality machines also break down far less, so the saving is in uninterrupted running as much as in cycle time.
Coin washer: Self service machines costing between 39 and 201 dollars with cycles between two hours and one hour twenty. Customers pay a fixed rate whichever machine they use, so cheap coin washers generate almost the same revenue per customer as expensive ones.
Dryer: The second stage of every service order and the place your queue backs up once washers are fast. Upgrading dryers matters less at the start than it does the moment you install quicker washing machines.
Screen printing press: The custom shirt equipment in the back room, producing printed apparel for customers who order it. Ink cost varies with the design, so the margin on a complicated print is thinner than the sale price suggests.
Full breakdowns in our Laundry Store Simulator weapons guide.
Location Progression
| Location | Level Range | Key Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Coin Wash Room | Unlocks early, prioritise it over service side upgrades | Passive coin income, abandoned clothes worth one to two dollars each |
| Minimart counter | Minimart upgrade costs 1,100 dollars, employee needs Rank 6 | Daily adjustable pricing, steady income independent of machine throughput |
| Storage room | Required together with Rank 6 for the minimart employee | Stock capacity, minimart employee unlock, fewer restocking interruptions |
| Screen printing area | Unlocks through shop expansion | Custom apparel orders, a separate customer type from laundry walk ins |
| Secondhand shop across the street | Available from the start | One to two dollars per abandoned garment, ten cents per empty box |
Coin Wash Room: The self service area, and the most valuable expansion in the early game because coin washers earn money without your attention. Customers regularly leave clothes and underwear behind in these machines, which becomes free stock to sell.
Minimart counter: Retail shelves at the front of the shop selling cleaning supplies and other goods, with prices you can adjust every day. The 1,100 dollar upgrade also makes the cashier employee Tannahill considerably more effective at the counter.
Storage room: The back room that holds stock and is a prerequisite for the minimart employee alongside Laundry Rank 6. Without it you are restocking shelves by hand between every customer, which eats the time you should be spending on machines.
Screen printing area: The back of the shop where custom shirt orders are printed. Ink is consumed per design, so this space rewards batching several orders together rather than running one print at a time between other tasks.
Secondhand shop across the street: Not part of your business, but the place you convert junk into cash. Clothes left behind in coin machines sell for a dollar or two each here, and empty cardboard boxes go for about ten cents, which adds up across a long shift.
See our maps & locations guide for detailed area breakdowns and our walkthrough for the optimal progression path.
Tips That Actually Matter
- Sell the decorations that come with the starting shop before your first customer arrives, because furniture resells for roughly ten percent of its purchase price and that first lump of cash buys your first proper washer.
- Coin washers cost between 39 and 201 dollars and customers pay a fixed rate regardless of machine quality, so buying the cheapest coin machines and filling the room beats buying one expensive unit.
- Every employee costs two dollars a day, which is small enough that hiring as soon as staff become available pays for itself within a single shift.
- Ellen is the strongest early hire for folding and ironing, Tannahill becomes a five star cashier once the 1,100 dollar minimart upgrade is installed, and Alva is slow enough at washing and drying that most players leave her on the bench.
- Open the challenges app on your phone every one or two shifts, because quests pay roughly six to twenty dollars each and they expire if you leave them unclaimed.
- Movement speed upgrades in the skill tree run up to 225 percent, and on a shop with several rooms that is worth more than an extra machine because it cuts walking time on every single order.
- Higher quality machines break down less often, so if you are chasing repair based achievements keep some level 1 coin washers around deliberately until those achievements are done.
- Clothes left in coin machines sell for a dollar or two each at the secondhand shop across the street, and empty cardboard boxes go for about ten cents, so sweep the coin room on every pass.
- The minimart employee needs Laundry Rank 6 and the storage room unlocked together, so plan both before you expect the counter to run itself.
- Fully upgrading the bakso cart unlocks a dedicated bakso employee, which is the only way to serve bakso customers without standing at the cart yourself.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Buying expensive manual washers before you unlock the Coin Wash Room, when coin machines earn without your attention and cost a fraction as much.
- Leaving the starting decorations in place instead of selling them, which delays your first real machine purchase by a full shift.
- Skipping employees because two dollars a day sounds like an ongoing cost, when a single staff member clears more than that in one shift.
- Upgrading washers while ignoring dryers, which just moves the bottleneck one stage down the line and leaves clean laundry stacked up.
- Ignoring the phone quests, which pay six to twenty dollars each and are the steadiest early income in the game outside coin machines.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best first purchase in Laundry Store Simulator?
Sell the starting decorations for cash, then put that money into coin washers once the Coin Wash Room is available. Coin machines cost between 39 and 201 dollars, earn while you work elsewhere, and customers pay the same rate whichever machine they pick, so quantity beats quality here.
How does the Laundry Rank system work?
Serving customers earns experience, and hitting the threshold triggers a challenge asking for a number of repetitions of a specific task. Completing that challenge raises your rank. Ranks gate content: the minimart employee needs Rank 6 plus the storage room, and the Waffles Series 77B washer needs Rank 8.
Are employees worth hiring?
Yes, all of them cost two dollars a day. Ellen is the standout for folding and ironing, Tannahill becomes a five star cashier once you install the 1,100 dollar minimart upgrade, and Alva is slow at washing and drying. Special upgrades let staff handle minimart stock and other tasks they cannot do by default.
What are the disruptive customers?
The game warns you before they arrive. The smoker kills your tips while present, the sprayer blocks other customers from reaching the counter, one visitor sneaks into your office to use your computer, and another requires you to deal with a bomb. Each one is a timed interruption rather than a permanent problem.
What else can I sell besides laundry?
A minimart with daily adjustable pricing, custom shirt screen printing with per design ink costs, carpet cleaning, shoe cleaning, and a bakso cart that serves its own customer type. Fully upgrading the bakso cart unlocks a bakso employee to run it for you.
More Laundry Store Simulator Guides
- Laundry Store Simulator Best Builds
- Laundry Store Simulator Tier List
- Laundry Store Simulator Walkthrough
- Laundry Store Simulator Beginner's Guide
- Laundry Store Simulator Tips & Tricks
- Laundry Store Simulator Weapons Guide
- Laundry Store Simulator Combat Guide
- Laundry Store Simulator Boss Guide
- Laundry Store Simulator Maps & Locations
- Laundry Store Simulator Crafting Guide
- Laundry Store Simulator Classes & Characters
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