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Route planning for mobile dog groomers: less driving

Group nearby bookings by area and day, see travel time and mileage, and open the route in Google Maps. GroomSlot. From about $32£24€29A$46C$45 a month.

At a glance

  • What it costs$27–32£20–24€24–29A$38–46C$38–45 a month

  • Worth, in extra profit or time saved in the worked example$259£195€232A$374C$367 a month

  • Pays for itselfIn about a week

  • Sign up and configure; no technical skills neededEasy to set up

Figures come from the worked example below, using its stated assumptions. Tool prices checked . How we check prices

The problem

A mobile groomer books dogs in whatever order owners ask, so some days zig-zag across town and back. If poor ordering adds 20 minutes and 8 miles a day over 5 days, that's about 7.2 hours and 172 miles a month (times 4.3) spent driving instead of grooming.

What the AI does

GroomSlot's route planning page says it plans your day by clustering nearby bookings, calculating travel time and turning your schedule into an optimized route, showing travel time, service time, mileage and total day length before you leave. Online booking shows owners recommended slots near your other appointments. You can set a service radius, day zones for particular areas on particular days and a maximum daily travel distance, and open the multi-stop route in Google Maps with one tap.

A worked example

A mobile groomer in Hampshire with a converted van covers Winchester, Andover and the villages between. Bookings used to land in any order, so some days ran Andover, Winchester and back to Andover. They set day zones in GroomSlot, Winchester on Mondays and Thursdays and Andover on Tuesdays and Fridays, and let owners book online into the recommended slots.

Before

About 20 extra minutes and 8 extra miles a day from back-tracking, 5 days a week

After

Bookings grouped by area and loaded into Google Maps in order, saving about 20 minutes and 8 miles a day

What it's worth

About $259£195€232A$374C$367 a month: roughly 7.2 hours of driving saved (20 minutes a day, 5 days a week, times 4.3), worth $190£143€170A$275C$269 at $27£20€24A$38C$38 an hour, plus 172 miles (8 a day, 5 days, times 4.3) at an assumed 30p a mile for fuel and wear, about $69£52€62A$100C$98. That is against $32£24€29A$46C$45 a month for GroomSlot, or about $27£20€24A$38C$38 paid yearly. The 20 minutes and 8 miles are assumptions; measure your own mileage for a month before and after.

How to set it up

  1. Set your home base, service radius and maximum daily travel distance in GroomSlot.
  2. Set day zones so each area has its own days, and tell regular owners which days you're in their area.
  3. Let new owners book online, where GroomSlot shows its recommended slots near your other bookings.
  4. Each morning, check the day's travel time and mileage, then open the route in Google Maps.
  5. Compare a month's mileage log with the month before to see what it saved.

What goes wrong

  • Day zones mean saying no to some times owners would like. Keep a little flexibility for long-standing clients.
  • The route is only as good as the addresses. Check the post code and access notes for every new client.
  • Travel time estimates can't know about road works or a dog that takes longer than planned, so leave a buffer in the day.

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Last updated October 17, 2026.