How much to charge for house cleaning (formula + example price list)
Working out how much to charge for house cleaning is where most new cleaning businesses go wrong. They copy a competitor's price, or pick a number that "feels fair", then find they're working hard and barely breaking even. The fix is simple: price from your real costs, add the profit you want, and turn that into a price list customers understand.
The three ways to price cleaning services
- Hourly. You charge for the time the clean takes. It's easy to start with and protects you on messy homes, but customers can't know the final price upfront, and faster cleaners earn less.
- Flat rate by home size. One price by bedrooms and bathrooms (or square footage). Customers love knowing the price before they book, and it rewards you for getting faster. This is what most established residential companies use.
- Per room or per task. Common for add-ons (inside the oven, inside the fridge, interior windows) and specialist work.
A good setup for most businesses: flat rates by home size, plus add-ons, with an hourly rate kept in your back pocket for unusual jobs. Whichever you show customers, you work it out the same way: from your cost per labor hour.
Step 1: Find your true cost per labor hour
Add up what one hour of cleaning really costs you. Here's an example (your numbers will be different):
- Cleaner's pay: $20 an hour. If you clean yourself, pay yourself too. Your time isn't free.
- Payroll taxes, insurance and workers' comp: roughly 15–25% on top of pay for employees. Call it $4.
- Supplies: products, cloths and vacuum bags, spread across your hours. Say $2.
- Overhead: software, phone, gas, marketing and your admin time, divided by your billable hours each month. Say $6.
Total: $32 per labor hour. That's your break-even point. Charge less and every clean loses money.
Step 2: Add your profit margin
Divide your cost by (1 − the margin you want). For a 30% margin:
$32 ÷ 0.70 = $45.70, so about $46 per labor hour.
Why divide instead of just adding 30%? Adding 30% to $32 gives $41.60, which is only a 23% margin. Dividing gives you the margin you actually asked for.
Step 3: Time your cleans
Time your first 10–20 jobs honestly, including setup and packing up, and write down the home size for each. Soon you'll know that a 2-bed, 2-bath standard clean takes you about 3 labor hours (two cleaners for 1.5 hours is also 3 labor hours). Keep updating these times as you get faster.
Step 4: Turn it into a price list
Multiply labor hours by your rate and round to a clean number. Using the $46 example rate:
| Home | Labor hours | Standard clean | Deep clean (×1.5) | Move-out (×1.8) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 bed / 1 bath | 2 | $95 | $140 | $170 |
| 2 bed / 1 bath | 2.5 | $115 | $175 | $205 |
| 2 bed / 2 bath | 3 | $140 | $210 | $250 |
| 3 bed / 2 bath | 3.75 | $175 | $260 | $315 |
| 4 bed / 3 bath | 5 | $230 | $345 | $415 |
An example, not a market rate. Prices vary a lot between cities. Use your own costs and times, then sanity-check against local competitors (step 6).
How to price deep cleans and move-out cleans
Deep cleans take longer: baseboards, inside cabinets, behind appliances, built-up grime. A multiplier of about 1.5× your standard price is a common starting point. Move-in/move-out cleans in empty homes usually include inside every cabinet, the oven and the fridge, so 1.75–2× is typical. Then check against your own timings.
A common rule: a new client's first clean is always a deep clean. Homes that haven't been professionally cleaned take much longer the first time, and pricing that visit as a standard clean is how cleaners lose money.
Step 5: Offer recurring discounts
Regular clients' homes are faster to clean, and you don't have to find them again. It's worth a discount:
- Weekly: 15% off
- Every two weeks: 10% off
- Monthly: 5% off
Put the discount on the booking form, next to the one-off price. When customers see "$140 one-off, or $126 every two weeks", many choose the recurring option.
Add-ons are the easiest extra money. Price them from the time they take: inside the oven, inside the fridge, interior windows, inside cabinets, laundry, baseboards, pet hair. Show them as checkboxes when customers book. It's far easier than trying to upsell at the door.
Step 6: Check your prices against the local market
Look at five local competitors' websites, or ask for quotes. If you're far above them, make sure your reviews, reliability and service justify it. If you're far below, you're leaving money on the table. Don't cut prices below your break-even rate to compete. You'll just get busier while losing money.
Mistakes to avoid
- Not paying yourself. If your price only covers supplies and gas, you're working for free.
- Pricing first cleans as standard cleans. They take longer. Charge for it.
- Never raising prices. Review your rates once a year, and give existing clients 30 days' notice.
- No minimum charge. Set a minimum so a tiny job still covers your travel time.
- Quoting by text, one message at a time. Put your prices on a booking page, so customers get their price and book in one go.
Common questions
Should I charge by the hour or a flat rate for house cleaning?
Most established residential companies use flat rates by home size, because customers like knowing the price upfront. Hourly pricing is useful while you're learning how long jobs take, and for unusual one-off jobs.
How do I price cleaning services for a big or very dirty home?
Quote it as a deep clean, or charge hourly for the first visit. Once you know how long the home takes, move the client to a flat recurring rate.
How often should I raise my prices?
Review them every year, and whenever your costs (wages, insurance, gas) go up noticeably. Small regular increases go down better with clients than one big jump.
Just getting started? Read how to start a cleaning business. Ready to fill your schedule? See how to get clients for a cleaning business.