How Much to Charge for a Bounce House Rental
A standard 13x13 bounce house rents for $150–$250 per day in most mid-sized markets, $200–$300 in metros, and $100–$175 in rural areas. Combo units run $225–$450 and water slides $250–$575. Delivery, setup, and a generator are priced separately, and a same-unit repeat market is what makes the business work — one unit booked 30 weekends a year at $200 outperforms chasing bigger one-off jobs.
Base pricing by unit and market
| Unit | Typical day rate |
|---|---|
| Standard 13x13 bounce house | $150–$250 |
| Combo unit (bounce + slide) | $225–$450 |
| Water slide | $250–$575 |
Market size moves this more than anything else: metros support $200–$300 on a standard unit, mid-sized cities $150–$250, and rural markets $100–$175.
Delivery, setup, and distance
Include a radius — 15 or 20 miles — in the base rate and charge past it. A distant booking doesn’t just cost fuel; it eats a slot you could have filled twice as close to home.
Where the margin actually is
- Generator — required at parks and fields, nearly pure margin.
- Attendant — priced hourly, and often what wins a corporate or school booking.
- Tables, chairs, concessions — riding along on a trip you’re already making.
The utilization math
A single unit booked 30 weekends a year at $200 is $6,000 from one asset. Repeat bookings and referrals beat discounting to win one-off jobs — a unit sitting in the garage earns nothing regardless of what you would have charged for it.
Related: bounce house rental invoice template and rain-date and weather policy.
Frequently asked questions
Should I price by the day or by the hour?
Day rate with a defined window — typically 4 to 8 hours — is standard. Hourly sounds cheaper to the customer but costs you the same delivery and setup labor, so you end up doing identical work for less money.
How much should delivery add?
Include a local radius in the base price and charge $2–$4 per mile or a flat $25–$75 beyond it. A 40-minute drive each way consumes a slot you could have filled locally.
What are the highest-margin add-ons?
Generators, attendants, tables and chairs, and concession machines. They ride along on a trip you were already making, so almost the entire add-on price is margin.