What’s the Best Way to Price Your Cleaning Services?
If you’re running a cleaning business, you’ve probably wondered: “What’s the best method to price my cleaning work?” Whether by the hour, by the square foot, or per visit, finding the right pricing strategy is key to running a successful cleaning service. Let’s dive into some of the most popular methods and discover which might work best for your business.
Understanding Your Pricing Options
Over on the Maid In Business Facebook page, I get tons of messages from cleaning business owners like you. One common question is about how to price cleaning work effectively. The simple answer? It all depends on your business model, client expectations, and what makes your operation profitable. Remember, if your business is thriving, you’re already doing something right!
Pricing by the Hour
How Does It Work?
Pricing your cleaning services by the hour is a straightforward approach. Here’s a quick formula:
- Staff Pay Rate: Start with what you pay your team, including employer contributions.
- Materials & Supplies: Add around 10% for cleaning supplies.
- Overheads: Factor in roughly 15% for business expenses.
- Profit Margin: Finally, add your desired sales margin (often around 40% for regular services).
This method makes invoicing easier—since you can directly match invoices to employee timesheets—and offers clients a clear picture of what they’re paying for.
Why It Might Be Right for You
Many clients appreciate the transparency of an hourly rate. They know exactly what they’re getting for every hour of service. Plus, if you started out doing the cleaning yourself, you already have a solid benchmark for how long a job should take.
Pricing by Square Foot
The Basics
Another common approach is pricing by the square footage of the property. This method is especially popular in the USA but can be adapted elsewhere. You need to know:
- The total size of the area to be cleaned.
- The specific areas that require cleaning (excluding spaces like cupboards and stairwells).
- The time it typically takes to clean these areas.
Once you have this information, add your percentages for supplies, overheads, and profit—similar to the hourly method.
Is It a Good Fit?
This method works well if you’re dealing with larger properties or commercial spaces where measuring square footage is standard. However, in regions where homes aren’t typically measured in square feet, it might feel less intuitive.
Pricing Per Visit
The Approach
Pricing per visit focuses on the overall service rather than the time or space involved. You estimate how long a visit will take and what tasks will be completed. The challenge here is ensuring that the time you allocate covers all the work without running at a loss.
Pros and Cons
While this method can sometimes allow for extra profit margins, it can also lead to confusion if the client isn’t sure what “a visit” entails. It might also result in variability in service duration, which could make scheduling and invoicing trickier.
Which Method Is Best for Your Cleaning Business?
There’s no one-size-fits-all answer. Some business owners find that hourly pricing offers the best transparency and consistency, while others might prefer the simplicity of a per-visit fee or the detailed approach of square footage pricing.
Thought-Provoking Question:
Have you considered how your pricing strategy might evolve as your cleaning business grows and diversifies?
Ready to Elevate Your Pricing Strategy?
If you’re looking for more insights on pricing cleaning work like a pro, I’ve got something special for you.
Sign up now for our free slides and workbook that accompany our exclusive video on pricing strategies! These resources are designed to help you refine your pricing model, improve your profit margins, and take your cleaning business to the next level.
What do you think of today’s MIB Q&A? How do you price up cleaning works for your business?
Please share in the comments below, and let’s swap best practices.
Do you have a question you’d like me to answer about your cleaning business? Contact me, and I’d be happy to help
Until next time, stay sparkling
K x
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Hi Kelly,
Thank you for always providing such helpful information.
I have a question that I was wondering if you could possibly cover.
I am currently entering the VAT threshold and have also increased my staffs hourly wage to fall in line with the new living wage and I also have to opt in this year to the new government pension scheme, all of which is going to have an effect on my COTD cost.
Therefore my question is how do you successfully increase the amount you charge a customer without losing them ?
Many Thanks
Lou
Hi there Louise,
Thank you for taking the time to comment, I appreciate it
Great question and one I very much feel you on… I run a domestic and a commercial business and have also been hit by the increase in the living wage, hitting the VAT threshold and the new mandatory pension schemes.
The way I handle a price increase, or adjust my business model is by:
1) Targeting the right demographic of client – the people that you serve now, have you targeted them specifically? In my domestic business, my ideal clients are a professional working couple, earning £50,000+pa, with children and ideally pets! This type of client i) can afford my service ii) needs my service as they are time poor iii) Will need a weekly service because of the traffic in the house; making this type of client a high value, recurring income.
Having the ‘right type of client’ can cut down on the worries of a price increase
Think about: Are you serving the people you want to be serving? How could you target your ‘ideal client’?
2) Knowing my business – For example, there are certain areas in my geographic location I don’t serve through choice. I do this because I want to be known as only cleaning for a certain type of client, for only being obtainable by a certain type of person, and for being at a certain ‘class’ – Not everyone can drive a Porsche type of thing…
By ‘know your business’ I mean that if you know who you want to sell to and why you want to sell to them, it can be very powerful for not only your marketing and branding but for your pricing structure too
Think about: Who is your ideal client? What geographic areas do you wish to dominate? What is your unique service offering?
3) Knowing my value add – Do you know what you do what other cleaning providers in your area are doing that you’re not? Do you know what you are doing better than the competitors in your area? Do you even know what your competitors are offering?
I always like to keep my eye on my competitors, and from time to time, every 3-months or so, I re-visit my competitor file and see what’s new in the local area. I follow my competitors online, I check out their blog posts, heck, I sign up for their newsletters. In my start-up days, I had my competitors give me quotes!
I feel it is important to know your place in the market and who you are competing with, as this will help in gauging your pricing structure compared to others – for example, I know my business is more expensive than the local sole traders and cleaning agents, but it is less expensive than the franchise businesses.. I also know I am not interested in competing with sole traders and the cleaning agents as they are not in my space for service offering and for pricing (it all links together)
Think about: What do you bring to the party for a client and what your biggest competitor does – what is unique and fabulous about your cleaning business? What makes you stand out?
4) Education, education, education – This is my go-to answer for most things in life and is normally the fix. On my blog, for my domestic cleaning business, I am currently writing pieces that focus around how it confuses me that people spend so much on their house and decorating and furnishing it but will get any old person to clean it who is cheap?
I write these posts as the start of the mind mapping process that if you value your home and the things in it then you should value who cleans and maintains it
Think about: How you can start to lead your clients towards the change that is coming? How can you educate them about the value of cleaners and having a cleaning service?
At the end of the day, if you provide a great service, you should never feel worried about your price increases. You are a business, and as such, your very job is to make a profit so don’t ever feel sorry for that or like you are being a burden, your business is just as valuable as any other business!
Good luck with this next phase of your cleaning business
Best wishes,
K x