How to start a spray-on bedliner business

What it costs to start

A basic spray-on bedliner shop starts at about $25,000 for equipment and training, plus a few thousand dollars to set up the building. Choose high-pressure equipment and the equipment figure roughly doubles.

This site is sponsored by ArmorThane USA of Springfield, Missouri, which sells applicator startup packages, including the ones priced below (more about this site).

ArmorThane says its new applicator systems start at $25,000 and that the figure covers what you need to spray a first bed, not just the machine. Rhino Linings says its packages start at $12,000. Compare what each package includes before you compare the prices.

The building does not need to be large. ArmorThane's equipment guide suggests roughly 24 by 30 feet, while its applicator page calls 20 by 20 the low end.

Financing comes from outside lenders. ArmorThane does not finance in-house and publishes no rates, and Rhino Linings also points buyers to third-party financing.

Low-pressure or high-pressure equipment

Most first-time shops choose between a low-pressure system at about $25,000 and a high-pressure polyurea system closer to $50,000. The cheaper rig is easier to learn. The expensive one is faster and opens more kinds of work.

If you expect a few beds a week at first, low-pressure keeps the debt smaller. If your building already has three-phase power or you have commercial coating work lined up, high-pressure is easier to justify.

For a line-by-line look at gear and options, see the bedliner equipment cost guide.

What shops charge per bed

Published 2026 price guides put a standard spray-in bedliner between about $450 and $800, with long beds and custom colors higher. Your local market sets the real number, so check what nearby shops quote before you print a price list.

The guides disagree most on short beds: CostInsightHub starts at $380, while ThePricer starts at $450.

CostInsightHub says an install takes 2-5 hours, which caps how many beds one person can finish in a day.

Material per bed

ArmorThane's cost guide says a bed takes 4-8 gallons at 100 mils, or about 5 gallons for a full-size bed. Aliphatic material, which is UV-stable, adds 30-45% to the material cost. Price it as an upgrade.

Current per-gallon dealer pricing is hard to find in public, and the figures that do turn up are years old.

A worked payback example

This is an example, not a forecast. It uses stated assumptions so you can swap in your own, and the calculator at the top of the page runs the same math.

• Volume: 3 beds a week.
• Price: $575 a bed, the low end of ArmorThane's long-bed range and inside most sources' standard-bed range.
• Material and consumables: $200 a bed. This is a placeholder assumption, not a market price. Replace it with your supplier's quote.
• Startup cost: $30,000, made up of the $25,000 system and $5,000 for the shop side.
• Left out: rent, utilities, insurance, marketing, loan payments, taxes and your own pay.

At 3 beds a week, the example needs 80 beds, or about six months, to cover $30,000 in equipment and setup. Overhead comes out of the same margin, so the real date will land later.

ArmorThane's applicator page says payback on a $25,000 package usually lands in the first several dozen beds. On sales alone that holds up: at $500-$800 a bed, $25,000 is 31-50 beds of revenue. After material, the example above needs about 67 beds to cover the system by itself.

Run your own numbers in the calculator

Step-by-step launch plan

Most of the launch work happens before the first paying bed.

1. 1

   Get trained

   ArmorThane offers several intensive days of on-site training or a self-paced e-training course, and Rhino Linings offers three days on-site. Practice on scrap panels and your own truck before you spray a customer's.

2. 2

   Set up the equipment and shop

   Install dry compressed air, ventilation, lighting and warm drum storage, and confirm your electrical service before delivery. ArmorThane says its dealers get equipment plus on-site training within 30 days.

3. 3

   Handle permits and insurance

   Form a business entity, get a local license, and buy general liability coverage, plus commercial auto if you go mobile and workers' comp once you hire. Ask your city or county whether spraying at your address needs zoning or fire approval, because rules vary by city and state.

4. 4

   Set your prices

   Start from what local shops charge, quote by bed length, and price aliphatic and color jobs as upgrades. Know your material cost per bed before you give the first quote.

5. 5

   Call car dealerships

   New and used dealers can add a liner to a truck at the point of sale. Bring a sprayed sample panel and a dealer price sheet.

6. 6

   Reach fleets and off-road shops

   Contractors, utilities and delivery fleets run work trucks that get loaded hard every day. Off-road and accessory shops can send you Jeep and UTV customers.

7. 7

   Build word of mouth

   Every finished truck parked at a job site shows your work. Ask happy customers for reviews and photos, and hand each one a few business cards.

Add-on work beyond truck beds

The same rig can coat more than beds, and the extra jobs help fill slow weeks. Most of this work is quoted one job at a time.

Whole-truck exteriors carry the biggest tickets, but only one price source covers them. Test local demand before you count on that work.

RV roofs are close to a separate business, with their own per-foot pricing and competitors. Read the RV roof coating business guide before you quote one. Spray foam insulation needs a different rig and market, covered in the spray foam startup cost guide.

Franchise or independent

You do not need a franchise to spray bedliners, and the cost gap is wide. LINE-X's own franchise site lists a $50,000 fee (25% off for veterans) and a total investment of $401,815-$1,002,652, with $100,000 in liquid capital and $350,000 in net worth required.

Ongoing fees add to that. A 2026 FDD listing on Franzy shows a 6% royalty and a 1.5% brand fund, though third-party listings differ on the details. Rhino Linings says it is not a franchise and charges no fees. ArmorThane says it charges no franchise fees, dealer fees or royalties and gives fixed-location dealers a protected territory at no extra cost.

A franchise brings a national name. Going independent keeps more of each bed. The franchise vs independent guide lays out the full comparison.

Risks to plan for

A bedliner shop is a small manufacturing business with chemical hazards and uneven demand. Plan for these problems before you sign for equipment.

Slow months

Bed jobs do not arrive on a schedule. Keep a cash cushion for fixed costs, and use dealer accounts and add-on work to fill the gaps.

Local competition

Many markets already have a national-brand shop and an independent or two. The spread in published prices, from $380 to $900 a bed, shows how much room shops have to undercut each other. Compete on prep quality, turnaround and service, not price alone.

Safety and ventilation

Most polyurea and polyurethane liners contain isocyanates, which can irritate the lungs and skin and cause occupational asthma. The American Chemistry Council's worker protection guide recommends ventilated spray enclosures and says supplied-air respirators can protect workers during spraying. ArmorThane's equipment guide calls ventilation a safety issue, not a comfort one.

Quality and warranty claims

Poor prep shows up later as peeling or lifting, and a redo costs you material, labor and bay time. Put your warranty terms in writing, photograph each bed before and after, and follow the supplier's prep steps on every job.