She Earns $2,000 a Month Doing Laundry from Home — Here’s How

When Melia Long first heard she could earn extra money washing other people’s laundry, she was intrigued — but skeptical. After nearly two decades working in healthcare as a medical assistant, she wasn’t interested in a late-night gig driving around town.

Laundry seemed different: she could work entirely from home and pick gigs that fit her schedule.

Initially, the money just funded dinners out and helped pay down bills. But when Melia was unexpectedly laid off from her healthcare IT role in early 2025, her laundry side hustle became a lifeline.

Today, she averages $2,000 per month through Poplin, a laundry-service app that connects her with local customers.

But how much of that does she actually keep — and what does it really take to build a profitable laundry side hustle from scratch?

From Skeptic to Side Hustler

Melia first heard about Poplin from a coworker at the medical clinic where she worked. The woman had been earning extra money doing laundry on the side and encouraged Melia to check it out. “I didn’t even know laundry services like this existed,” Melia said. Curious but cautious, she downloaded the app and decided to try it for herself.

Poplin connects Laundry Pros — like Melia — with people in their area who need help with washing, drying, and folding clothes. The idea was immediately appealing. After nearly two decades in healthcare, Melia wanted a gig that didn’t require long shifts on her feet. Laundry, she realized, could be done entirely from home and on her own time.

Still, the beginning wasn’t glamorous. “Starting out, you feel like you’re making pennies,” she said. She didn’t always get great orders at first, and some required more driving than she liked. But she stuck with it — and over time, the jobs improved. The app began sending repeat clients, higher tips, and more consistent work.

Now, Melia regularly works with customers she’s served for years. “You’ll get better and bigger orders,” she explained. “You just have to put in the time at the beginning and be willing to take the small jobs first.”

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How a Laundry Job Works Start to Finish

Melia doesn’t spend time chasing down clients. Instead, she checks the Poplin app throughout the day, picks the orders that fit her schedule, and plans accordingly. Each job includes key details like the number of laundry bags, distance, payout estimate, and any special instructions from the customer.

Once she accepts a job, the app walks her through each step — from pickup to washing, drying, folding, and delivery. “One of my best customers is a massage therapist,” she said. “Her bags are all thick blankets and sheets. It can take an hour just to wash and dry three blankets.” Other times, she’s handling a couple of bags of family laundry, which might stretch into a four-hour process by the time she’s folded and sorted everything.

To stay efficient, Melia batches nearby orders and maps out smart routes. “You have to be strategic about where the jobs are,” she said. “If I see a few in the same city, I’ll grab them all and make one trip.” She also uses downtime wisely. “You’ve got a full hour while something’s drying — so I’m usually doing other things around the house.”

Of course, not every job is perfectly timed. Instructions can be inconsistent, and deliveries don’t always align as neatly as planned. But over time, Melia has developed a system that works — and a loyal customer base that values her reliability and attention to detail.

For her, consistency and care have been just as important as speed.

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How Much Melia Earns (and Keeps)

Melia brings in around $2,000 a month through Poplin — but after expenses like detergent, gas, utilities, and the platform’s service fee, her monthly profit usually lands between $750 and $800. “I’d say I clear about $750 to $800 a month after all that,” she said.

She typically works 4–5 hours a day, though not all of it is hands-on. The job is flexible, but staying profitable still requires planning and consistency.

Her highest-earning week so far brought in $450, thanks to a steady stream of regular clients, strong tips, and platform bonuses. But like most gig work, the pace can vary depending on how many jobs she takes and what kind of orders come in.

To keep her costs low, Melia buys detergent in bulk at Costco and maps out smart delivery routes to avoid unnecessary mileage. Utility costs run her an extra $30 to $40 per month. While it’s not a high-margin hustle, the money adds up — and for Melia, it’s become a reliable buffer while she figures out her next career move.

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How Melia Set Up Her At-Home Operation

When Melia was laid off from her full-time job, one of her first thoughts was to scale her existing small-scale business. “One of the first things I said to my husband was, ‘Let’s go buy another washer and dryer so I can do more laundry,’” she said.

While some Laundry Pros invest in commercial machines or use laundromats to handle higher volume, Melia found that keeping things simple worked best. Her setup at home is organized, consistent, and optimized for efficiency. It lets her stay in control of her time — and her profits.

Where she really sets herself apart is in the presentation. She folds everything neatly, ties bundles with ribbons, and even sorts children’s clothing by size when needed. “I just did laundry for a single mom using Poplin for the first time,” she said. “She was blown away by how beautiful the presentation was.”

These small details may not take much time or money, but they leave a lasting impression. One of her longtime customers has several kids, and Melia now pre-sorts the laundry so each bag is ready to go straight into drawers — no extra work needed on the customer’s end.

“It’s not just about clean clothes,” she said. “It’s about creating an experience that makes people want to come back.”

Her Best Tips for Running a Profitable Laundry Gig

These aren’t generic tips — they’re the kinds of strategies Melia has learned from experience, not from a help center or welcome email. After years of working as a Laundry Pro, she’s figured out what actually makes a difference — what gets better customers, higher tips, and a smoother, more profitable workflow.

If you’re just getting started or want to make money from platforms like Poplin, here are Melia’s top tips — along with the small decisions that have helped her side hustle succeed:

• Say yes early, even when the jobs aren’t ideal. “You just have to put in the time at the beginning and be willing to take the small jobs first,” she said. Completing more jobs early on helps you build trust — both with the platform and with potential long-term clients.
• Stack your orders smartly to save time and gas. Instead of taking jobs as they come in, Melia scans for clusters. “If I see a few jobs in the same city, I’ll grab them all and make one trip.” Grouping orders means fewer miles, more efficiency, and less burnout.
• Don’t waste your drying time. “You’ve got a full hour while something’s drying,” she said. Melia uses that time to prep other orders, tidy up, or handle personal tasks around the house. That built-in flexibility is one of the biggest perks of this hustle.
• Presentation is everything. Neat folding, ribbons, and thoughtful packaging go a long way. “People remember those little touches,” she said. Melia even sorts kids’ laundry by size and bundles outfits when it makes life easier for the customer. It’s the kind of thing that quietly earns five-star reviews — and generous tips.
• Over-communicate with new clients. “Do you want your flat and fitted sheets folded together or separate?” she’ll ask. Small clarifications like that set the tone for a smooth experience. “It sounds small, but it matters.”
• Buy supplies in bulk and watch your margins. Melia stocks up on detergent at Costco and keeps a close eye on recurring costs like water, energy, and gas. She estimates her added utility bills are just $30 to $40 a month.
• Work with the platform, not against it. Melia doesn’t advertise her services elsewhere — she just pays attention. By staying active and responsive in the Poplin app, she gets regular orders and takes advantage of occasional bonuses or high-value regulars.
• Treat it like a business, not just a task. From how she folds clothes to how she handles pickups, Melia approaches each order with care. “You’re not just doing laundry — you’re building trust,” she said. That shift in mindset, more than anything, has helped turn this into a steady source of income.

Melia’s approach is far from flashy, but it works. And while she’s still figuring out what’s next career-wise, this side hustle has helped her stay afloat — while even making room for a little fun along the way.

How a Bag of Laundry Paid for a Cruise

Just before a recent cruise with her husband, Melia took on as many laundry orders as she could. “That’s the money we used for drinks, excursions, and souvenirs,” she said. “It was exclusively my Poplin earnings that paid for all the extras — and it meant we didn’t have to touch our regular savings.”

It’s moments like that — not flashy windfalls, but quiet wins — that remind her why she stuck with it.

If she had to start over, Melia said the smartest thing any new Laundry Pro can do is say yes often and get a few good reviews under their belt. “You’ve got to build that reputation early,” she said. “The worst mistake is rushing through the folding or making the bags look sloppy. That’s the first thing people notice.”

Today, laundry is more than a chore — it’s a reliable income stream she controls from her own home. And while it’s not a forever career, it’s helped her bridge the gap between layoffs and new opportunities, one bag of clean clothes at a time.

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