Quick Answer: Commercial cleaning is quoted per site, not sold from a rate card. The price is set by square footage, task list, and services per week. We walk the space with you, then send a written scope and price within 24 hours. We don't bill by the hour.
"How much do commercial cleaners charge?" is one of the most-searched questions in commercial cleaning, and most answers online give a per-square-foot range. The trouble is that the range is wide enough to be useless, and the number you're quoted over the phone often isn't the number on the invoice three months later. Here's what actually decides the price, so you can compare quotes on the things that matter.
The Three Things That Set the Price
- square footage. How much floor we clean. It's the starting point, but on its own it tells you surprisingly little: a warehouse office and a medical suite of the same size are different jobs.
- task list. Exactly what gets done each visit. Restrooms, break rooms and kitchens take the most time per square foot; open desk space takes the least. Trash, floors, glass, high-touch disinfecting and any periodic extras all go on the list.
- services per week. How many times a week we come. More visits means more total labor, but each visit is usually lighter because less builds up in between.
That's the whole formula. Anything else a quote mentions — the neighborhood, the type of business, the building's age — matters only because it changes one of those three.
What Pushes a Commercial Cleaning Quote Up or Down
Restrooms and kitchens. The single biggest driver of time on site. A small office with three restrooms can take longer than a larger one with one.
Foot traffic. A waiting room or retail floor that sees the public all day needs more attention than an office where the same ten people come and go.
Floors. Carpet, tile and sealed concrete clean at different speeds. Periodic work like machine scrubbing or carpet extraction is quoted separately so it doesn't hide inside the routine price.
Clutter and access. Clear desks and open floors are faster. Multi-tenant buildings with elevator schedules, loading-dock rules or badge access add time, and a good quote accounts for it up front.
Supplies. Whether the cleaner carries paper products and soap, or you stock them, should be written into the scope. If it isn't mentioned, ask.
Janitorial Service vs. One-Time Office Cleaning
People searching "how much does janitorial service cost" and "how much does office cleaning cost" are often asking about two different arrangements:
- One-time office cleaning is a single job with a start and an end — before a move-in, after a buildout, ahead of an inspection or a client visit. It's priced as one scope.
- Janitorial service is a standing schedule: the same task list on the same space at an agreed frequency. It's priced per visit or per month from the scope and the frequency.
We do both, and we'll tell you which one your space actually needs.
Want the Real Number for Your Space?
Tell us your square footage, task list, and how many visits a week. After a walkthrough, you'll have a written quote within 24 hours.
Why Per-Square-Foot Prices Mislead
A per-square-foot rate quoted before anyone has seen your space has to cover the worst case or undercut it. If it's padded, you overpay. If it's low, one of two things usually happens: the scope quietly shrinks — the checklist that was complete in month one is thinner by month six — or the price goes up once the cleaner sees what the job really is.
The fix is dull but reliable: a walkthrough, then a written scope listing every task, how often it's done, and what's deliberately excluded. Compare quotes on that list, not on the headline number.
Questions to Ask Any Commercial Cleaner Before You Sign
- ✓ Will I get the scope in writing — every task, its frequency, and what's excluded?
- ✓ Is the price for the scope, or by the hour?
- ✓ What happens if something is missed?
- ✓ What liability insurance do you carry, and if my lease requires a bond, can you meet it?
- ✓ Are cleaners background-checked?
- ✓ Who holds keys and alarm codes, and how is lock-up handled?
- ✓ How much notice do I get before the price changes?
Our answers: the scope and price are in writing, we price the scope and never the hour, anything missed is re-cleaned within 24 hours, we carry $2 million in liability insurance and are insured but not bonded, every cleaner is background-checked, and access and lock-up are agreed in writing before the first visit. The Valley Clean Team is veteran-owned and woman-owned.
Commercial Cleaning Near You
Each market has its own page covering the neighborhoods we serve, the kinds of buildings we clean there, and how after-hours access works locally:
- Commercial cleaning in Huntsville, AL
- Commercial cleaning in Madison, AL
- Commercial cleaning in Athens, AL
- Commercial cleaning in Decatur, AL
- Commercial cleaning in Florence & the Shoals, AL
- Commercial cleaning in Birmingham, AL
- Commercial cleaning in Mountain Brook, AL
- Commercial cleaning in Nashville, TN
Get a Written Quote
Walkthrough first, then the scope and price in writing within 24 hours.