How To Start a Cleaning Business The Right Way

To start a cleaning business the right way: decide whether to begin as a sole proprietor or a larger company, research your local market and pick a niche, register your business and choose a structure (an LLC protects your personal assets), get licensed, bonded, and insured, set rates that cover labor plus taxes and overhead (not just your hourly wage), and then win your first clients through word of mouth, online listings, and local outreach. The sections below walk through each step in detail.

Cleaning is something everyone deals with but few truly enjoy — and for those who do, it can be a lucrative living. The upsides include setting your own hours, choosing clients you like, escaping a desk or hard-labor job, and plenty of exercise. Cleaners typically earn more than minimum wage, and the best can command much higher rates once they’ve built a reputation. Whether you want to work solo or build a company employing several cleaners, it’s an industry that’s always in demand.

How to start a cleaning business from scratch

Starting any business from nothing is daunting. How much do you invest? What if something goes wrong? How do you find your first customers and employees? At Pro Housekeepers we’ve grown cleaning companies from nothing into the top-rated businesses in their areas, and this guide shares what we’ve learned so you can launch yours successfully.

The first thing to decide is how big to start. Many cleaners begin as sole traders with a handful of clients and build up over time; others set up a larger enterprise immediately, which means more upfront costs — employee wages, advertising, equipment, taxes, and insurance. Starting solo is cheaper at first but can be harder to scale later.

Before launching, study the competition. How many cleaners already operate in your area? How many commercial and residential properties are there? Decide which market you’ll target. Cleaning companies often mix residential and commercial work, but specializing can give you an edge. Some industries require specific solutions or equipment that need training — an upfront cost, but one that lets you charge more.

Once you have a concept, you can start getting established. Gaining industry certifications is a good first step — the American House Cleaners Association offers certification courses for residential cleaners, and other bodies certify commercial and specialist cleaning. As a Pro, you (and your staff) will be expected to know how to clean a wide variety of surfaces and stains effectively. Certification improves your skills and builds trust with clients.

What you need to start a cleaning business

Beyond certification, it’s good practice to set your company up professionally from the start. A sole trader technically just needs a paying client, but establishing a proper business now saves headaches later at tax time or when you expand or restructure.

First, your business needs a name. As a sole trader you can work under your own name, but if you ever want to grow, a brandable name helps. Independent contractors can register another name with a Doing Business As (DBA) application — check local regulations for requirements. A DBA is usually the cheapest, easiest way to establish a company name, with a small registration fee and sometimes a local newspaper announcement.

Choose a name that’s easy to spell and pronounce, memorable, and not too similar to other cleaners nearby. Mind local ordinances as well as federal naming and registration requirements — even a sole proprietor needs to register a business name if they’re not trading as themselves.

Also consider your business structure. Setting up as a sole contractor is fastest and cheapest, but it leaves you personally exposed if something goes wrong. Forming a limited liability company (LLC) can protect your personal assets in case of a cleaning disaster. It’s worth consulting the SBA or an attorney about the best structure for your model.

Common types of business structure

• Sole proprietor / self-employed — working by yourself, under your own name (e.g. John Smith)
• DBA — a sole proprietor doing business under another name (e.g. John Smith trading as Mr. Mop)
• Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) — two or more co-owners of the business
• Limited Liability Company (LLC) — protects personal assets from company liabilities
• S-Corp — an independent corporation that passes profits and losses through to the owner’s personal income
• C-Corp — an independent corporation taxed separately from the owner’s income

Do you need a license to clean houses?

Once your business is established, you need to become licensed. Businesses regulated by a federal agency need its approval (the ATF regulates alcohol and tobacco sellers, for example). Cleaning businesses generally don’t require federal approval, but if you clean in a niche industry or use restricted solutions, confirm whether you do.

Even without federal approval, you still need to register your business for income tax. You’ll also need a vendor’s license to calculate and pay sales tax — apply with your city clerk or local administrator.

Before launching, talk to your city clerk about local ordinances to ensure you’re fully compliant. Some cities or counties require cleaning services to be bonded, and even where it isn’t mandatory, many large clients won’t hire an unbonded company.

Bonding means paying a surety company a sum that insures your business against client claims. Unlike standard insurance, you pay the full bond amount upfront and reimburse the surety for any claims paid out. Being bonded protects your clients and shows you’re reliable and trustworthy.

Sole proprietorships have a lower barrier to entry, but that doesn’t mean you can skip licensing and bonding — always check with your city clerk or state business office.

How much money do you need to start a cleaning business?

There’s no single answer, but starting a sole proprietorship as a residential cleaner is far cheaper and easier than setting up an LLC with multiple employees in a niche industrial field.

Even though starting cheap is a big advantage, it’s worth spending a little extra on insurance even when it isn’t legally required — especially for sole traders, since there’s no separation between business and personal liability. Drop a family heirloom on a marble floor and you could be on the hook for thousands.

Starting a cleaning business checklist

Every business has its own requirements, but here’s a basic starter checklist.

How much to charge when starting a cleaning business

Deciding what to charge is one of the most important early steps. Working solo, it’s easy to think your hourly rate is the only number that matters — but even the smallest business has more expenses than just your wages, and self-employment taxes can quickly eat into profits.

Start with your hourly rate. According to Freshbooks, most cleaners charge roughly $25–$90 per hour depending on area and expertise. Check local competitors to see the going rate. Yours should be competitive, but if you price higher, add value — including extras like making beds, sweeping outdoor spaces, or washing windows as standard can set you apart from companies that charge separately for them.

Next, factor in taxes. The federal self-employment tax rate is 15.3 percent — twice the employee rate — on top of other income taxes. So a self-employed cleaner earning $25/hour owes about $1.90/hour more in tax than an employee at the same rate.

As a rule, small business owners should set aside about 30 percent of income for taxes. Adding that on top of the rate you want to take home raises your price from $25 to $32.50/hour; paying it out of a flat $25 instead drops your take-home to about $17.50/hour.

There are other overheads too — bookkeeping, transportation, travel time between jobs, advertising, and supplies and equipment. Cleaners rarely bill a full eight hours in one property, so account for that downtime to stay profitable.

Here’s a worked example. Say your rate is $25/hour. To estimate hours, visit the property — a rough rule is 1.5 hours per 1000 square feet, though a minimalist apartment cleans faster than a cluttered home with kids. Establish your own baseline and adjust for kids, pets, delicate items, and extras like vent or window cleaning. Rate × hours is your labor cost and the basis of your estimate.

Assume 4 hours to clean a two-story family home at $25/hr — a base labor cost of $100. Add 30 percent for taxes, bringing it to $130. Add about 5 percent for supplies and PPE (gloves, booties, eye protection), bringing it to $136.50. (If you work a niche using specialist solutions, calculate exact per-job costs — $50 of cleaning solution per client meaningfully cuts your profit.)

Then add overheads — the everyday costs of running the business, like licenses, advertising, website hosting, admin, and travel time. A home-office sole trader keeping their own books has low admin costs; a large operation with several employees might see admin costs climb to 50 percent or more. Assuming 25 percent here brings the 4-hour clean to $170.63.

Finally, add your markup — your profit and a buffer against underestimates or overruns. Around 33 percent is a good rate, bringing the final price to $226.94, a long way from the $100 you started with. And always make invoices for clients — they’re invaluable at tax time.

Pro tip: Check out our ultimate guide to setting your price for house cleaning.

How to pay employees in a cleaning business

As we’ve seen, pricing involves far more than labor costs. If you plan to employ staff — or expand a sole proprietorship to take some on — you need a plan for payroll.

Payroll services distribute wages on your behalf for reasonable fees. For a small-to-medium business, expect roughly a $50–$100 monthly base fee plus $5–$15 per worker — so about $150/month for five employees. That’s worth paying to keep paychecks and earnings calculations correct, and most services also handle direct deposits and file tax forms for a small additional fee.

Even with one employee, keep payroll accounting in order and separate from the rest of your income. It makes audits easier and helps you understand how wages affect your overall profit and loss.

Hiring cleaners also affects your rates if you step back from doing the work yourself, since your income becomes an overhead rather than a labor charge. The more staff and work you have, the smaller a share your own wages become — but a sole proprietor relying on the profit from one or two employees may need to rethink their rates to maintain their income.

How much does a cleaning business make in a year?

Cleaning can be very lucrative, but there’s no guaranteed income — some companies scrape by while others are highly profitable. Key factors that determine success:

• Competition — fewer competitors in your area or niche means more available clients
• Reputation — new businesses can struggle to start; work hard to build client trust
• Price — the cheapest cleaners may be busiest but not most profitable; find the right price point
• Size — more employees can mean higher profits, but also greater liabilities if work dries up
• Niche — domestic cleaning is most common but not most profitable; specialist work can raise income

Unique cleaning business ideas

To stand out, develop a Unique Selling Proposition (USP). Start by looking at the businesses around you. Commercial cleaning is one option, but so is residential cleaning tailored to local workers — for example, out-of-hours service for shift-working medical staff near a hospital. Other ideas:

• Pool cleaning
• Appliance cleaning
• Electronics cleaning
• Boat and RV cleaning
• Waste disposal
• Air duct and dryer vent cleaning
• Graffiti cleaning
• Exterior cleaning
• Rental property and Airbnb cleaning
• Foreclosure cleaning
• House-showing cleaning
• Cemetery headstone cleaning
• Eco-friendly cleaning
• Pet-friendly cleaning
• Post-construction cleaning
• Mattress and furniture cleaning
• HOA cleaning
• …and much more

How to get clients for a cleaning business

Once you’ve settled on structure and the type of cleaning you’ll do, you need clients. This is often the hardest part, because reputation and trust matter enormously — especially in residential homes. Landing those first clients (and reviews) is critical to getting off the ground.

Pitch family and friends

Cleaning your mom’s house won’t make you rich, but word-of-mouth recommendations are the most trusted and effective. Ask people you know to spread the word to friends, relatives, and coworkers — you may be surprised how many will trust a recommendation from someone they know.

Cold-call local businesses

For commercial work, draw up a list of businesses that could use your services. They may already have a cleaner, but you don’t have to compete on price alone — offer extras others charge for. And don’t overlook commercial demand for domestic cleaning: property managers, realtors, and Airbnb hosts can mean bulk contracts cleaning domestic properties.

Go online

Set up business pages on Facebook and Yelp, create a Google Business Profile, and build an inexpensive website on Squarespace or WordPress. Domain registration can cost as little as $10 and basic hosting under $5/month. A web presence makes you easier to find and more credible — even if it’s just you and a mop.

Get reviews

After your first jobs, ask customers to review your business. Reviews provide “social proof” — people trust a service others vouch for, so the more reviews you gather, the better you’ll do.

Join an online marketplace

Home-service sites let you promote your business and find clients. Thumbtack and Handy connect homeowners with local providers. Competition is higher and prices often lower, but they’re a good place to start building a reputation.

Start a postal campaign

It’s old-fashioned, but mailed flyers still work. Services like Vistaprint offer low-cost printing, and advertising materials are deductible business expenses. It’s a great way to target neighborhoods where you’d prefer to work, cutting travel time.

Advertise locally

If your area has a local paper or businesses with notice boards, use them. Many people still rely on classified ads to find nearby service providers.

Promote repeat services

The best way to stay in the black is repeat custom — it’s far easier to convert a one-time client into a weekly or monthly customer than to find a new client every time. Offer discounts for recurring service and consider selling packages of 10 or 15 cleanings to lock in returning customers.

Final thoughts

Cleaning is always in demand, and many people would happily stop doing it themselves — even knowing a clean home is a healthier, happier home — so there’s no shortage of potential clients wherever you are. Starting a cleaning business can be as simple as picking up a mop, but doing it right means setting up properly. That protects you against unexpected taxes and liabilities, and it’s the best way to make your business profitable for years to come.