How to price house cleaning jobs: a cost-first method

A step-by-step way to price a cleaning job from your own labor, supplies, travel and overhead, with a worked formula you can copy.

Most pricing advice starts with what other cleaners charge. That number tells you what the market will accept, not whether a job pays you. This guide starts from your own costs, then checks the result against the market. Every number below is an example: swap in your own.

1. Know your true hourly labor cost

Take the hourly pay for each person on the job and add the extras you pay on top of wages (payroll taxes, workers' comp, any benefits). Your accountant or payroll provider can tell you the right percentage for your business.

labor cost per hour = pay rate × (1 + payroll extras %)

2. Estimate the time on site

Time a few real jobs of each type (standard clean, deep clean, move-out) and write down hours per person. Rooms, bathrooms, square footage and condition all move the number, so note them next to each timing. After a handful of jobs you'll have your own table instead of a guess.

3. Add supplies, travel and overhead

Cost	How to estimate it
Supplies	Monthly supply spend ÷ jobs per month
Travel	Round-trip miles × your per-mile cost, plus drive time paid to the crew
Overhead	Monthly fixed costs (insurance, phone, software, marketing) ÷ jobs per month

4. Price to a target margin

Add it up to get the job cost, then divide by one minus the margin you want to keep.

job cost = hours × crew × labor cost per hour + supplies + travel + overhead
price = job cost ÷ (1 − target margin)

Worked example (made-up numbers): 3 hours × 2 cleaners × $20 labor cost = $120; supplies $8; travel $10; overhead $12. Job cost = $150. At a 30% target margin: $150 ÷ 0.70 = $214.29, so you might quote $215.

5. Sanity-check against your market

Compare your number with what local competitors publish. If you're far above, look for time you can cut; if you're far below, you may be leaving money on the table. Either way, the cost-first number tells you your floor.

Do it in a spreadsheet

The Spreadoodle cleaning Profit & Expense Tracker + Job Pricing Calculator runs this exact method: hours, team size, pay, payroll extras, supplies, travel and overhead give a suggested price at your target margin. To turn the price into a written estimate, see the Quote & Estimate Builder.

To get the per-job supplies and overhead numbers, set up a cleaning business expense tracker spreadsheet.

This guide is general information, not tax, legal or accounting advice.