Whether you’re one of the 37 million adults living alone or part of the 54.4 percent of dual-income households, finding time to clean can be challenging. As a result, many households find the idea of hiring a cleaning service incredibly enticing. If you’re one of those people, you probably have questions — how much does a cleaning service cost? What do you get for the money, and should you tip extra? Well, here’s everything you need to know about hiring a cleaning service.
What Do Cleaning Services Do?
In the simplest sense, a cleaning service handles tasks relating to sanitizing surfaces, removing dirt and debris from flooring, taking out the garbage, and similar activities that are commonly viewed as household chores. The exact activities a cleaning service may handle vary, as each company can decide what it does and doesn’t offer.
Cleaning services may also come in just a single time for a particular purpose, such as preparing an apartment after a tenant moves out. However, some households set up recurring appointments, allowing them to keep their homes tidy with regularly scheduled cleaning appointments.
Who Needs Cleaning Services?
Generally speaking, cleaning services are beneficial for any household that feels overtasked, causing them to fall behind on household chores. Households with one single working adult are prime examples, as well as dual-income households where both adults work full-time.
However, any household that could benefit from some cleaning help should consider a cleaning service. Often, it’s easier — and more cost-effective — to set up regularly occurring appointments early on, as the workload for each appointment can remain lower. Plus, it ensures your home is comfortable and healthy, making it more restful.
Is My House Too Dirty for a Cleaning Service?
Overall, no house is too dirty for a cleaning service as long as it’s considered safe. As a result, typical dirt, grime, or similar build-up — even when it’s a bit extreme — isn’t usually enough to stop a cleaning service from considering the property.
In most cases, the main exceptions involve situations like hoarding, as a cleaning service may not be able to navigate the home until the excess stuff is removed. Similarly, any scenario where the house may be legitimately dangerous to move through could make it ineligible for cleaning by a surface.
It’s important to note that an extremely dirty house may lead to a higher quoted price. While cleaning services commonly charge a flat rate for their services, the amount is usually based on the estimated time commitment. Since a particularly grubby home may take more time, the cleaning service costs might be a bit higher.
Why Hire a Commercial Cleaning Service?
Commercial cleaning services typically focus on business properties. By hiring one, it allows company owners and staff members to concentrate on profit-driving activities, all while ensuring the workplace is clean and sanitary.
Essentially, hiring a commercial cleaning service is a cost-effective and efficient alternative to bringing on janitorial employees or having other staff members handle cleaning duties. Plus, many commercial cleaning services can perform tasks after business hours, ensuring your operations aren’t disrupted during the business day.
How Much Is a Cleaning Service?
The cleaning service cost varies based on several factors. First, your location plays a role. Along with determining your general access to services — as low supply and high demand can increase prices — the going rate is impacted by local economic factors, such as the minimum wage in your region.
Second, the size of the property and the tasks you need handled impact the price. The larger the property, the more cleaning services typically cost. Similarly, the more activities you’d like completed, the higher the price, as it takes more time to complete the work.
Often, the cleaning service cost — and quotes — factor in the time and effort required to handle your request. Additionally, there may be cost adjustments based on the cleaners, equipment, and other materials that are necessary to handle the job. However, when a price is quoted, it’s typically presented as a flat rate.
As a result, as long as you were open and honest in regard to your needs at the time the quote was requested, the price won’t shift if the cleaning service slightly misjudged the required commitment.
How Much Do Cleaning Services Charge Per Hour?
As mentioned above, most cleaning services provide flat rate quotes for a particular job, but they base the figures on the number of hours required to handle the work, along with other factors.
Overall, the national average hourly charge for cleaning services works out to around $45 to $50 per hour per cleaner. However, the exact price can vary by location, as well as the nature of the cleaning tasks themselves.
Do You Tip Cleaning Services?
Technically, tipping a cleaning service isn’t required. However, if the cleaners meet or exceed expectations, tipping them is a simple way to demonstrate your appreciation. Plus, it can establish you as a preferred customer, which may come with its own benefits, like preferred scheduling or last-minute assistance.
How to Find a Cleaning Service Near Me
In most cases, the easiest way to find cleaning services in your area is an online search. You can use a search engine, head to sites like Craigslist that host services, check out a cleaning service app like Handy, or explore businesses on social media.
You may also find out about cleaning services through flyers or mailers in your local area. Any place with a community bulletin board may have information about cleaning services in your city, as well.
How to Cancel My Cleaning Service
When you need to cancel your cleaning service, the first step is to contact the provider directly and request the cancellation. In some cases, you may be able to submit the request online, though it’s also possible you’ll need to call the company and speak with a representative for the cancellation to go through.
Ideally, you want to provide as much advanced warning as possible. Many ongoing contracts have requirements regarding the minimum amount of notice, so make sure to review those details to find out if there are any penalties for canceling on short notice.
