Cleaning is priced sight-unseen over the phone more than any other home service, which is why the businesses that last all use some version of the same model: a formula that turns a home's description into labor hours, and a cost structure that turns hours into a defensible price.
Step 1 — Estimate the hours
A reliable phone formula: 1 hour per 1,000 sq ft, plus 30 minutes per bathroom, plus 15 minutes per bedroom, scaled by condition (well-kept recurring homes ~0.9×, cluttered or pet-heavy ~1.25×, neglected 1.5×+). A 2,000 sq ft, 3-bed/2-bath home in average condition estimates at 3.75 labor-hours. Two cleaners, call it two hours on site. The formula won't be perfect on any single home — it will be close on fifty of them, which is what pricing needs.
Step 2 — Price the hours
- Burdened labor. A $16 wage with payroll taxes, comp, and bonding is $19–20 an hour of real cost.
- The drive. Thirty round-trip minutes is paid time. It's in the price or it's out of your pocket.
- Supplies. $6–10 per visit in chemicals, cloths, and equipment wear. Small, real, and forgotten constantly.
- Overhead. Insurance, scheduling software, advertising, and the quoting you're doing right now: 10–20% on top of direct costs.
- Margin — on the price. 20% margin means cost ÷ 0.80. And enforce a visit minimum ($100–120): below it, the drive eats the job.
The worked example
That 2,000 sq ft home, $16 wages with 20% burden, 30-minute round trip, $8 supplies, 15% overhead, 20% margin:
| Line | Math | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Cleaning labor | 3.75 hrs × $19.20 | $72.00 |
| Drive time | 0.5 hr × $19.20 | $9.60 |
| Supplies | — | $8.00 |
| Overhead | 15% × $89.60 | $13.44 |
| Break-even | $103.04 | |
| Standard visit price | $103.04 ÷ 0.80, rounded | $130 |
| Deep clean / first visit (1.6×) | $195 | |
| Move-out (1.9×) | $225 |
A solo cleaner "charging $80 because it feels fair" on this home is working the drive and buying the supplies for roughly minimum wage after taxes — the arithmetic just hasn't caught up with them yet.
The three pricing rules that protect you
- First cleans are deep cleans. Months of buildup at standard rates is a donation. Quote 1.5–1.8× for visit one, always.
- Flat rate beats hourly. Built from hourly math internally, presented as one number. Why, in detail.
- Raise prices annually. A 4–5% note each January. Recurring clients rarely leave over it; they leave over inconsistency, not price.
Do this in 30 seconds instead
The free calculator runs this exact math with a full quote sheet — standard, deep, move-out, and frequency pricing. The $29 workbook adds team costing, add-ons, commercial bids, and a client book.
Free Pricing Calculator Full Workbook — $29