How to Quote a Cleaning Job: New Zealand Cleaner's Pricing Guide

Cleaning work is won on speed. Most enquiries arrive by phone or message while the client is contacting two or three businesses at once, so the cleaner who sends a clear quote first usually gets the job. There is no licence to clean in New Zealand, which makes a tidy, fast quote your main edge. Here is how to price cleaning accurately and quote it quickly.

Hourly rate vs fixed price

For regular domestic and commercial cleaning, charging by the hour is common. For one off jobs like an end of tenancy clean, clients almost always want a fixed price because they want certainty. The move is to set a fixed price that is built from an honest hours estimate, so you stay protected when the job turns out bigger than it looked.

• Domestic cleaner hourly rate: $35 to $55 per hour per cleaner
• Commercial cleaning: $30 to $50 per hour, or priced per m2 on contracts
• End of tenancy or bond clean (fixed): $220 to $500 for a typical 2 to 3 bedroom unit

Auckland and Wellington sit at the higher end of these ranges, with Christchurch and regional NZ lower.

What a cleaning quote should include

• Business name and contact details, plus your GST number (from IRD) once you are registered
• Quote number and date, plus an expiry date
• Property type and size, bedrooms, bathrooms and approximate floor area
• Clean type, regular, spring clean, end of tenancy, post construction or commercial
• Itemised scope, with general clean, carpets, oven and windows as separate lines
• Crew size and estimated duration
• What is included and excluded
• GST and payment terms

A note on GST: you only have to register with IRD and charge 15 percent GST once your turnover passes $60,000 in a 12 month period. Below that, registration is optional, and many sole operator cleaners hold off until they cross the threshold.

Typical add on rates

The base clean is rarely the whole job. Price the extras as separate line items so the client sees the value and you get paid for the work:

• Carpet steam clean: $35 to $55 per room
• Oven detail clean: $60 to $120
• Interior windows: $5 to $10 per pane, or $80 to $200 per job
• Wall washing and mark removal: $40 to $80 per hour
• Fridge or cupboard interiors: $30 to $60 each
• Deck, balcony or garage: $40 to $110 depending on size

Pricing an end of tenancy clean

End of tenancy cleans are the highest value cleaning quotes and the most likely to be lined up against competitors. Build the price from a base clean by property size, then add carpets, oven, windows and any detailing. State clearly whether the clean is bond back guaranteed and what that guarantee covers, because it gives a property manager a real reason to pick you over a cheaper quote.

Exclusions worth stating

• "Price assumes the property is empty of furniture and personal items."
• "Heavy mould, pet hair or rubbish removal quoted separately."
• "External windows above ground floor not included."
• "Price assumes power and running water are connected on site."

A reusable cleaning quote template

Standardise it: business details, then property and clean type, then line items (base clean plus each add on), then crew size and duration, then subtotal, GST, total, inclusions and exclusions, and payment terms. Once the layout is fixed you can turn an accurate quote around in a couple of minutes, which is the whole game in a trade where the first clear price through usually takes the job.

Related guides

• How to Write a Trade Quote

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