How to Start a House Cleaning Business

1. Decide what you offer

Start with a short list you can say in one breath. Most house cleaning businesses offer three kinds of clean: a standard clean for homes on a schedule, a deep clean for a first visit or a home that has gone a while, and a move-in or move-out clean for an empty home.

Then the extras, each as its own item: the inside of the oven, the inside of the fridge, the inside of cabinets, interior windows, laundry. An extra with a name and a price can be said yes or no to. An extra without one gets asked for free.

Decide early what you do not do, and say it the same way every time. A short list done well is easier to price, to schedule and to explain than a long one.

2. Add up what it costs you

Before you set a price, write down what the business will cost you to run. The amounts are yours: they depend on what you already own and how far you drive. Write your own amount next to each.

What it costs you	Your amount
Equipment: vacuum, mop, buckets, caddy
Supplies you use up each month
A vehicle and fuel
Phone and the software you run the business on
Insurance, if you carry it
The first month with few customers

Add the column up twice: once for what you need before the first job, once for what a normal month costs. The second number is the one your prices have to cover.

3. Set your prices

A price for a clean has three parts: the size of the home, the kind of clean, and the extras. Many cleaners set a base price for a small home and add a fixed amount for each extra bedroom and bathroom, so they can quote on the phone from the number of rooms.

The house cleaning price calculator does that count. It opens with the starting prices OnsiteBoard gives a new house cleaning account; put your own in their place and save them as your price list.

Open the house cleaning price calculator

4. Find your first customers

Tell the people who already know you, and ask each of them to pass your name on. A first customer who is happy is the best advertisement a cleaning business has.

Set up your Google Business Profile as a business that travels to its customers, with the area you serve and your hours. Ask every customer for a review.

Have one link you can send anyone: a booking page where a customer picks a day and a time window and tells you about the home. It saves the back-and-forth of finding a time by text.

Answer quickly, with a clear price and a day.

5. Quote, clean, get paid

Write the quote down, even for a small job: the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the kind of clean, each extra on its own line, and the total. If the home turns out bigger than you were told, change the quote to the rooms that are there before you start.

When the job is done, the same lines go on the invoice. Send it the same day. Customers can pay by card from the link you send. Card payments run through Stripe; its standard fees apply.

6. Keep the regulars

A cleaning business becomes steady when visits repeat. Offer a schedule on the first visit: every week, every two weeks or every month. If you give a lower price for a schedule, put the discount on the quote as its own line with the schedule next to it.

Put regular customers on a schedule and bill per visit or once a month.

Start with your price list. Then send your first estimate.

OnsiteBoard starts a new house cleaning account with a service list and starting prices to change to yours. Schedule the job, send the estimate, do the work, send the invoice and get paid.

Create your account

14 days free, no card to start.

If you choose a plan after the trial: OnsiteBoard Pro $49.99 /mo or $479.00 a year, billed through the App Store or Google Play; it renews until you cancel.

Questions about starting

What do I need to start a house cleaning business?

A short list of what you offer, the equipment and supplies for it, a way to get to the customer, prices that cover your costs, and a way to quote and get paid. What you need to register and whether you need a license differs by state and city, so check yours.

Do I need a license to clean houses?

What you need to register and whether you need a license differs by state and city, so check yours.

How do I price a first clean?

Many cleaners price it as a deep clean, because the first visit takes longer. Say so in the quote, and say what the price will be from the second visit on.

Should I charge by the hour or by the job?

Either works. A job price suits homes you can size up from the number of rooms. An hourly rate suits a first visit or a home you cannot judge before you see it.

What should a cleaning quote say?

The number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the kind of clean, each extra on its own line, the total, and how long the price holds.

This is general information, not tax or legal advice.

the house cleaning price calculator · the house cleaning estimate template · the house cleaning invoice template · House cleaning app and software

How to start a house cleaning business