Getting a professional cleaning service is the perfect way to get more time to do the things you love. If you're thinking about hiring a cleaning service, don't let the price scare you away! Most people find that the investment pays big dividends in terms of regained time as well as mental and physical health benefits.

Cleaning Cost Breakdown

Cleaning businesses may charge based on square footage, price per hour, or price per room. When it comes to cleaning service prices, every home and business is different. Many cleaning services offer online "quotes" using calculators - this practice often leads to a subpar experience and can be wildly inaccurate.

Here at Alkemi Clean, we believe in personally meeting with you discuss details and pricing out every just before we begin service. This helps guarantee the best possible service for the appropriate price at your home, and gives us an opportunity to answer your questions and take notes on your biggest cleaning concerns. 

Let's look a little closer at the different ways the cost of your home cleaning might be calculated.

Price per hour

Typically most cleaning companies charge by the hour, or at least based on an hourly rate. The national average cost of house cleaning is $25 to $90 per hour per cleaner. As you can see, prices have a wide range, and there are outliers that may even be lower or higher than the average range. Your local area might have a tighter price range - for example, where we operate our business in Greensboro NC, local prices are closer to $35 to $65 for a professional cleaning service. 

Price per square foot

The majority of cleaning companies charge by the hour or by the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, but some charge by square foot. Factors that determine the cost will be total square footage needing cleaning, and the type of cleaning service they are providing. Price per square foot national averages range between 10 cents to 50 cents per square foot. This format is most often used by janitorial services serving large businesses, but is sometimes applied to homes as well. 

Price per room

Some companies prefer to price by number of bedrooms and bathrooms. While the price of this varies based on location, some example prices for a one bedroom one bathroom cleaning starts at around $100-$125, and goes up the more rooms there are. This is the format favored by most services using an online calculator to offer prices.

Cost of eco-friendly cleaning products

Many cleaning companies are seeing the benefits of using green products, as they are easier on the environment and ourselves. According to the EPA, many cleaning products are known to contain toxic chemicals that are dangerous to the environment, adults, and children. They may contain chemicals associated with skin, eye, or respiratory irritation, as well as other human health issues. This makes a green company particularly attractive. Alkemi Clean is dedicated to our environment only uses the highest quality eco-friendly products. In general, using eco-friendly supplies may cost the client a little more - perhaps $5 to $10 extra.

What else affects the cost?

Other factors to take into account are how often you want the space cleaned, as well as what type of cleaning you want. 

Different types of house cleaning include:

Standard/Maintenance cleaning: Includes all the usual wiping, dusting, scouring, vacuuming, mopping, tidying up, and sometimes extras like trash removal or changing bed sheets. Quality will vary depending on the expertise of your cleaner, so it is important to use a reputable cleaner or cleaning service that you can reliably expect great results from.

Deep Cleaning: Removes a deeper, heavier level of dirt and grime around the house, and could also include appliances, windows, and hard-to-reach areas that might not be included in standard maintenance cleaning. It requires much more time and labor (and therefor monetary compensation) than a standard 

Move-out/move-in cleaning: This is essentially a deep clean performed on a space without furniture or other personal items. This allows a complete and detailed cleaning of the entire interior of your home. This includes cabinets, closets, appliance interiors, walls, and other areas that might not have been cleaned in a very long time.

How to save money on house cleaning

The easiest way to save money per service on housing cleanings is to book regular cleanings. Weekly or biweekly cleanings will generally cost less per cleaning than a once a month service. You can also do some basic preparation before service to make sure you get the best bang for your buck (ask your cleaning service for tips on how to do this).

That said, having service less frequently, such as monthly or every 4 weeks, generally results in a lower total yearly cleaning cost. There are downsides to this approach though, since your home will accumulate more dirt and grime between services. This results in a higher price per service, as well as a dirtier home between appointments.

Tips for hiring a great cleaning company

Get referrals. Ask friends and family for referrals for cleaning services they have used over time. As with so many other things in life, a referral is one of the best ways to find reliable and trustworthy people to work in your home.

Make sure they are insured. This protects you and your property from any liability in case of damage. Uninsured individuals will be able to clean more cheaply, but this could come with significant and surprising hidden costs if something goes wrong.

Look at reviews. See what other people are saying about them on google, facebook, and other social media. This will let you know if they are doing good work. Using an individual with no reviews or poor reviews is not advisable, regardless of price.

Ask how long they have been in business to see how stable they are. 

Compare prices. A company that quotes you significantly cheaper may not be operating legitimately. It is often said that "You get what you pay for," and that is most often true with home services.