Not sure what to charge for domestic cleaning?
Learn how to set profitable prices, cover your true costs and stop undercharging for your time.
Pricing is one of the biggest worries for domestic cleaning business owners. Charge too much and you fear losing the enquiry. Charge too little and you may win the work, only to discover that you are working incredibly hard without making enough money. Many cleaning business owners start by looking at what other local cleaners charge. It feels like a sensible place to begin, but it can quickly lead you in the wrong direction. You do not know what somebody else’s costs are. You do not know whether they are insured, trained and employing their team correctly. You do not know whether they are making a healthy profit or quietly struggling to pay themselves.
Your prices need to work for your business.
Being busy does not mean your pricing is right
A full diary can give you a false sense of security. You may have plenty of regular clients, a growing team and money coming into the bank every week. However, that does not necessarily mean the business is profitable.
Some of the warning signs that your prices may be too low include:
- You struggle to cover unexpected costs.
- You cannot afford to increase team wages.
- You rarely have money left after paying everybody else.
- One cancellation causes a cashflow problem.
- You are completing quotes in the evenings because there is no money for admin support.
- You feel nervous every time a supplier or wage cost increases.
- You are working more hours than you were when you started.
One of the most frustrating situations is having a business that looks successful from the outside but leaves the owner exhausted and underpaid. That is not a workload problem alone. It is often a pricing problem.
Work out what each cleaning job really costs you
Before setting a price, you need to understand the cost of delivering the service. For an employed cleaning team, this means looking beyond the hourly wage. Your costs may also include:
- Employer National Insurance
- Holiday pay
- Pension contributions
- Travel time
- Mileage
- Cleaning products and equipment
- Uniforms
- Training
- Insurance
- Software
- Recruitment
- Management time
- Sickness and absence
- Payroll and accountancy costs
You also need to cover the wider costs of running the business. Your website, phone, office, marketing and administration still need to be paid for, even though they are not visible to the client during a clean. Finally, the business must make a profit. Profit is not simply whatever happens to be left at the end of the month. It needs to be deliberately built into your prices.
Should you charge by the hour or by the job?
There is no single pricing model that suits every cleaning business. Charging by the hour and charging by the job both have advantages and drawbacks. The right choice depends on your services, clients, team and how confidently you can estimate the work involved.
Hourly pricing is straightforward and familiar. The client pays for the amount of time spent in their home, which can work well when the workload varies or is difficult to predict. The advantages include:
- It is easy for clients to understand.
- You are paid for additional time if a clean takes longer than expected.
- It can suit one-off, initial or highly variable cleans.
- It reduces the risk of underestimating an unfamiliar property.
- It may feel easier when you are still learning how long different jobs take.
The possible drawbacks include:
- Clients may focus heavily on time rather than the overall result.
- Faster, more experienced cleaners can generate less revenue for completing the same work efficiently.
- Clients may expect extra tasks to be fitted into the booked time.
- Income can vary when appointment lengths change.
- You may find it harder to reward efficiency while protecting standards.
Job-based pricing means agreeing a set price for a clearly defined service or result. The amount charged stays the same provided the scope of work does not change. Advantages include:
- Clients know the price in advance.
- The focus is on completing the agreed service to the required standard.
- Greater efficiency does not automatically reduce the value of the job.
- It can make income and margins easier to forecast.
- It may allow more flexibility in how the work is scheduled and delivered.
The possible drawbacks include:
- Accurate quoting is essential.
- An underestimated job can quickly become unprofitable.
- You need clear service inclusions, exclusions and policies for extra work.
- Staff must be trained to deliver consistent standards without rushing.
- It can be harder to price homes where the condition or workload changes regularly.
Some cleaning businesses use a combination of the two. They may charge by the hour for regular maintenance cleans and use fixed job prices for initial or one-off work. Others choose one model across the whole business. Whichever approach you use, make sure your price covers the true cost of providing the service, allows enough time to maintain standards and includes a healthy profit.
Your initial clean should not be priced like a maintenance clean
A common pricing mistake is charging the same rate for the first visit as the regular ongoing service. An initial clean usually takes longer because:
- The property is unfamiliar.
- There may be a significant build-up of dirt or dust.
- Areas may not have been cleaned thoroughly for some time.
- Your team needs to establish a manageable baseline.
- The client’s expectations need to be clarified.
Trying to squeeze an initial clean into a standard maintenance slot puts your team under pressure and increases the likelihood of a complaint.
Charge appropriately for the work required. This may mean a longer appointment, a higher fixed price or a separate initial-clean package.
Being clear at the quoting stage is far better than disappointing the client or exhausting your team.
Set minimum booking values
Small jobs are not always profitable jobs. A one-hour clean may sound easy to fit into the schedule, but the business still has to account for travel, communication, payment processing and administration. By the time those costs are considered, there may be very little margin left. A minimum booking value protects your schedule and helps ensure that each visit is commercially worthwhile. This might be expressed as a minimum number of hours or, preferably, a minimum job price. The right minimum will depend on your service area, staffing model and operating costs.
Stop treating every price objection as a problem
Some potential clients will tell you that your price is too high. That does not automatically mean it is wrong. They may be comparing your fully managed, insured and trained service with an independent cleaner who has a very different business model. They may have an unrealistic idea of how long the work should take. They may simply have a smaller budget. You do not need to convince every person to book. Instead, explain the value of your service clearly. This might include:
- Trained and vetted cleaners
- Appropriate insurance
- Reliable cover arrangements
- Managed quality standards
- Professional products and equipment
- Clear communication
- A business that can respond when something goes wrong
The aim is not to be the cheapest option. It is to be the right option for clients who value what you provide.
Review your prices regularly
Costs rarely stand still. Wages rise. Products become more expensive. Fuel costs change. Software subscriptions increase. New employment obligations may affect the cost of running your team. If your prices remain unchanged while your costs rise, your profit is gradually eroded. Review your figures at least annually and whenever there is a significant change to your costs. It is much easier to make smaller, regular adjustments than to leave prices untouched for years and then need a large increase.
You do not have to work it all out alone
Pricing can feel personal. Many business owners worry that increasing prices will upset loyal clients or make the phone stop ringing. Having the figures, support and confidence to make a sensible decision changes everything. DCBN members can access pricing masterclasses, practical training, templates and discussions with other domestic cleaning business owners who understand the realities of the industry. Members can also use the weekly masterminds and 121 mentoring support to talk through their own pricing concerns. You do not need another generic pricing formula that ignores how your business works. You need to understand your numbers, protect your time and set prices that allow the business to support you properly. Because a cleaning business should not just keep you busy. It should pay you!
Next Steps
If you are tired of second-guessing your prices, DCBN gives you practical training, resources and support created specifically for domestic cleaning business owners. Explore DCBN membership and start building a more profitable, sustainable business.
Cleaning business pricing
What to charge for domestic cleaning
Cleaning business profit margins
Pricing cleaning jobs
Hourly pricing versus fixed pricing
