How to Set Prices for a Cleaning Service
People who are planning to start a cleaning service will need to know how to set their prices for the services they offer. Some factors to consider when setting rates are cleaning time, current market rate, gas for travel and desired hourly wage.
- Determine the amount of time to clean each space in a house. Use a timer when cleaning the bathroom and record the time on a piece of paper. You want to time yourself cleaning every room in the home. Another thing to consider is size of the job. It will take more time and cleaning products to clean a 5 bedroom house than a 2 bedroom apartment. Come up with a price list for cleaning different size rooms.
- Estimate how much money you have to make per hour. If you are planning to work 40 hours a week and want to make $560 a week, then charge an hourly rate $14.00. You should factor income tax in the weekly amount as well. Business owners will have to keep a record of their income and set aside the correct amount for the IRS.
- Compare the hourly rate of different cleaning companies. If it takes you one hour and 30 minutes to tidy up and clean a 2000 square-foot home and you have to make $15 per hour, then you should charge $30 an hour for cleaning houses that are 2000 square feet. Call different cleaning services to find out how much they would charge for the same cleaning job. Adjust the price for cleaning jobs by checking the going rate from other companies.