Free Cleaning Estimate Template (Fill In and Download a PDF)

What a cleaning estimate needs to show

A cleaning estimate should state the service level, standard, deep, or move-out, and any add-ons, the same way a finished invoice does, so the customer knows what they're approving.

Name the service address and the date you're quoting it, since a home's condition when you actually arrive can change what a deep clean takes.

Sales tax on cleaning services varies by province and state; some tax it and some don't. Check your local rule before you decide what to charge.

• Business name, address and contact details
• Customer name and the service address
• Estimate number and the date
• Service level and any add-ons, listed separately
• Frequency, if it's a recurring visit
• Tax, shown as its own line
• How long the price is good for

Scope: what's included, and what you'd charge extra for

Write down what the price covers and what it doesn't, like inside the oven or inside the fridge, instead of folding every add-on into one number. A scope line is what keeps a fair price from turning into an argument once the visit is underway.

If you offer more than one level of clean, like standard versus deep, Good, Better and Best options let the customer compare them on one estimate instead of three separate quotes.

Deposits and how long the price holds

For a big one-time job, like a move-out or post-construction clean, consider a deposit before you book the crew. State the deposit amount and the balance due date right on the estimate, not in a side conversation.

Give the price a validity window, often two weeks, since a home left longer between the quote and the visit may need more work than expected. Once the customer approves, their estimate becomes the job, approved estimates become ready to schedule, and nothing needs retyping.

Put the same terms on every estimate, even for a regular customer, so nothing is left to memory.

Common cleaning estimate mistakes

A few habits turn a fair estimate into a dispute later, and none of them look serious when you're writing it.

Most get fixed just by writing down the scope and the price before the work starts, not after.

• One lump price with no service level or add-ons broken out
• No scope line, so extra rooms or add-ons get argued about later
• No tax line, even where cleaning services are taxable
• No deposit on a big one-time job like a move-out clean
• No validity window, so an old price gets honored at old costs
• Quoting a price verbally and writing something different on the estimate

Questions people ask