House Cleaning Business
Everything a solo house cleaner needs to price the work, get legal, and stop losing money on the parts nobody mentions.
The short version
$38–52/hr · $130–280 per visit · ~$340 to start
House cleaning has the lowest startup cost of any home service trade and no state trade license in most places. The hard part is not the work. It is the price.
Start here
Typical rates at a glance
Recurring-visit prices for a solo cleaner. First cleans run 1.5 to 2 times higher because they take 1.5 to 2 times longer.
| Job | Typical price | Time on site |
|---|---|---|
| Hourly rate | $38–52/hr | — |
| Studio / 1-bed apartment | $85–130 | 1.5–2 hrs |
| 2-bed, 1-bath | $110–180 | 2–3 hrs |
| 3-bed, 2-bath (recurring) | $130–280 | 3–4 hrs |
| 3-bed, 2-bath (first clean) | $200–480 | 5–7 hrs |
| 4-bed, 2.5-bath | $180–340 | 4–5.5 hrs |
| Move-out clean | +50–100% of base | 5–8 hrs |
| Inside oven (add-on) | $35–60 | 30–45 min |
| Inside fridge (add-on) | $30–50 | 25–40 min |
Full breakdown, including how to quote a house over the phone and how to raise rates on existing clients, is in the pricing guide.
The four things that decide whether this works
- Your price covers your costs. Self-employment tax 15.3%, card fees ~2.9%, insurance $40–75/mo, supplies $6–12 a visit.
- You are licensed where you work. Most states do not license cleaning; nearly every city requires a general business license.
- You are insured. $40–75 a month. Customers ask for proof before handing over a key.
- Your customers are recurring. One-time cleans are a job. Every-other-week clients are a business.
What the price difference looks like
Two cleaners in Omaha, same 3-bed house, same three-and-a-half hours. One charges $130 because it felt safe. One charges $185 because she called three local cleaners first and asked.
Over a year of every-other-week visits that is $3,380 for the same work, on one client.
The most expensive mistake in this trade is a low starting price. Raising a price on an existing customer is far harder than setting it right the first time. Before you quote your first job, call three cleaners in your town as a homeowner and ask what they charge for a 3-bedroom.
A normal first year
A cleaner in Wichita starts in March with $340 of supplies and a $60 city license. She texts 22 people she knows, posts once in a neighborhood group, and has 3 clients in 11 days for $0 in advertising.
By mid-May, referrals put her at 7 recurring clients — about $1,100 every two weeks. She does not spend a dollar on ads until October.
Common questions
How much do house cleaners charge?
Typically $38 to $52 an hour, or $130 to $280 for a recurring visit to a 3-bed, 2-bath home.
First cleans cost 1.5 to 2 times more because they take 1.5 to 2 times longer. Full rate tables here.
Is house cleaning a good business to start?
It has the lowest startup cost of the home service trades, about $300 to $700, and no state trade license in most places.
The honest trade-off: it is physical, and income stays modest until you build a full recurring schedule, which usually takes six to twelve months.
Do you need a license to clean houses?
Most states do not license house cleaning as a trade, but nearly every city or county requires a general business license.
Some states also charge sales tax on cleaning services. Rules vary — check your state Secretary of State site, your state Department of Revenue, and your city's licensing page.
How many houses can one person clean in a day?
Two to three recurring homes is a normal full day for a solo cleaner once drive time is counted.
Deep cleans and move-outs usually take the whole day on their own, so price them accordingly.
What software do house cleaners use?
Under about 50 jobs a month, most use a free calendar, a spreadsheet, and Square. That genuinely works.
Above that, ZenMaid ($19–49/mo), Jobber ($29–229/mo) and Housecall Pro ($59–299/mo) are the common choices. Compared here.
How much can you make cleaning houses?
Two homes a day, five days a week, at $160 a visit is roughly $83,000 a year gross.
After self-employment tax, supplies, gas, insurance and cancellations, take-home usually lands nearer $50,000 to $58,000. Many cleaners deliberately run a smaller schedule that fits school hours.
Free tools
Rates are compiled public ranges for solo operators as of August 2026, not a survey we conducted. Licensing and tax statements vary by state and city — confirm on official state and city sites before acting.