How to price a cleaning job without forgetting your unpaid time
A practical estimating method for independent cleaners. The figures below are examples, not suggested market rates.
Quick formula: Job price = (labour cost + supplies + travel/other direct costs + allocated overhead) ÷ (1 − target profit margin).
1. Estimate the work from arrival to departure
Start with the actual work: the cleaning itself, preparation, packing supplies, and the time spent at the location. A visit advertised as “two hours” can use more than two hours of your working day. If you have a team, include each person’s labour. If you work alone, include the wage you intend to pay yourself as a business cost; otherwise a quoted “profit” may just be unpaid wages.
Example: 2.5 hours of cleaning and setup at a target labour cost of $28/hour is $70. That $28 is an illustrative internal wage cost, not an industry benchmark.
2. Include supplies and the full cost of the trip
Supplies are more than bottles of cleaning solution. Consider disposable cloths, gloves, equipment wear, and laundry. Travel has at least two parts: vehicle expenses and your time getting to and from the job. If your travel time is already part of the labour estimate, do not charge it twice in your internal costing.
For our example, assume $9 of supplies, $8 of vehicle costs and 30 minutes of additional travel labour costing $14. Total direct costs so far: $70 + $9 + $8 + $14 = $101.
3. Allocate monthly overhead
Business insurance, phone service, bookkeeping and equipment replacement still cost money in weeks with fewer jobs. A simple starting method is to divide estimated monthly fixed expenses by the number of realistic billable jobs, not the maximum possible workload.
Suppose fixed expenses are $600/month and you realistically complete 30 jobs. The allocation is $20/job, giving total estimated job costs of $121.
4. Decide on a margin, not just a markup
A markup is calculated on cost. Margin measures the portion of the final selling price remaining after cost. If your desired profit margin is 20%, divide costs by 0.80: $121 ÷ 0.80 = $151.25 before any sales taxes.
That produces a $30.25 contribution above the costs included in the model. It does not guarantee cash profit: unexpected delays, rescheduled visits, refunds or undercounted overhead can change the result.
5. Compare the estimate against the actual job
After completing a few jobs, record actual time, material use and travel. Revisit each assumption rather than guessing. Record recurring add-ons such as extra bathrooms, pet hair, appliances and heavy-soil work as separate scope items.
Checklist before sending the quote
- What is included and excluded in the cleaning?
- How many people and billable hours will it take?
- Have you counted travel, materials, overhead and your own labour?
- Is the quote fixed-price, hourly, or subject to a walkthrough?
- Are cancellations, access issues and add-ons documented?
Open the free job pricing calculator →
Illustrative arithmetic, not tax or accounting advice. Market conditions and legal requirements vary by location.