Cost guide
How much does domestic cleaning cost?
A domestic cleaner costs £15 to £22 an hour outside London and £20 to £30 inside it. A weekly three-hour clean is therefore roughly £45 to £66, or £60 to £90 in London, and an agency adds £4 to £10 an hour on top of a sole trader's rate.
Typical prices
Ranges, not quotes. A quote depends on the hours you book and whether you book direct or through an agency.
| Work | Typical UK price |
|---|---|
| Hourly rate, sole trader, outside London | £15 to £22 |
| Hourly rate, sole trader, London | £20 to £30 |
| Hourly rate, agency or company | £20 to £35 |
| Weekly clean, two-bedroom flat | £40 to £70 |
| Weekly clean, three-bedroom house | £50 to £90 |
| Weekly clean, four-bedroom house | £70 to £120 |
Pay in the middle of your local range rather than at the bottom. The difference over a year is small against the cost of finding and settling in somebody new every spring, and the households that keep a cleaner for years are usually the ones paying fairly and asking for a realistic amount of work in the time.
What moves the price
- Where you are. London and the higher-cost commuter belt run £4 to £8 an hour above the rest of the UK.
- Sole trader or agency. An agency rate carries employer's National Insurance, holiday pay, insurance and cover for sickness, which a sole trader's rate does not.
- How long the visit is. Two hours is the usual minimum, because a one-hour job with a twenty-minute drive each way does not pay.
- Whether products and equipment are supplied. Bringing them is typically £3 to £6 a visit.
- Frequency. Fortnightly visits often cost slightly more per hour than weekly ones, because more has accumulated and the round is harder to plan.
- Parking. In a permit area, a visitor permit or four hours on a meter is a real cost and is usually passed on.
Who quotes for it
1127 of the 2,228 cleaning companies listed on this site take on domestic cleaning.
Spread across: London (28), Brighton and Hove (13), Reading (12), Coventry (11), Glasgow (11).
Questions about domestic cleaning
What is not included in a regular clean?
Inside the oven, inside the fridge, windows other than the glass you can reach, carpets, and anything that needs furniture moved. Those belong to a deep clean, and the guide on what a deep clean includes sets out the difference.
Can I change the hours later?
Yes, and it is better to change the hours than to quietly add jobs to the same three. Keeping the time in step with the scope is what keeps a good arrangement working.