Self-service laundry

Several terms redirect here. For other uses, see Coin Laundry (song), Laundry Service (album), Laundromat (disambiguation), and Launderette (disambiguation).

Photo of a laundromat sign in El Paso, Texas, which offers a wash and fold service
A row of washing machines at a laundromat in Walden, New York
Coin laundry in Kanagawa, Japan (2023)
Laundromat in Philadelphia that opened in 1947 and is believed to be the first coin-operated laundromat in the United States

A self-service laundry, coin laundry, or coin wash, is a facility where clothes are washed and dried without much personalized professional help. They are known in the United Kingdom as launderettes or laundrettes, and in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand as laundromats. In Texas and other parts of the south central United States, the term washateria is still used by some older speakers.[1] The first laundromat opened on April 18, 1934 in Fort Worth, Texas.[2]

  1. ^ "A Way with Words | Laundromats and Washaterias". 22 April 2012.
  2. ^ "On this day in history, April 18, 1934, first self-operated 'washateria' opens in Fort Worth, Texas". 20 April 2024.