House Cleaning Cost Calculator

Cleaning the house is a necessary evil for many people. While it requires a considerable amount of time and energy, the benefits of having a spotless home are amazing. The good news is that you can enjoy the results of a clean home without lifting a finger when you hire professional maids to the work for you. Are you wondering how much a professional cleaning service will cost?

Home square feet

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1,000 sq. ft.2,000 sq. ft.3,000 sq. ft.4,000 sq. ft.5,000 sq. ft.6,000 sq. ft.

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Bedrooms

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1 bedroom2 bedrooms3 bedrooms4 bedrooms5 bedrooms6 bedrooms

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Bathrooms

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1 bathroom2 bathrooms3 bathrooms4 bathrooms5 bathrooms6 bathrooms

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Change bedsheets

Fridge cleaning

Cabinet cleaning

Dusting blinds

Oven cleaning

Window cleaning

Wash & dry laundry

Baseboard cleaning

Estimated total cost

$0-$0

Add-on	Average cost
Cleaning bedrooms	$75-$130 per bedroom
Cleaning bathrooms	$55-$75 per bathroom
Changing bedsheets	$10
Dusting blinds	$20
Fridge cleaning	$12 to $50
Oven cleaning	$15 to $35
Window cleaning	$149 - $295
Wash & dry laundry	$10 - $20
Cabinet cleaning	$7 - $18
Baseboard cleaning	$10 - $20

How Much Does a Maid Cost?

It makes sense to shop around and compare the rates from multiple cleaning companies in the Chicago area before you make a hiring decision. However, you should avoid making your final selection based on cost alone. Consider, for example, that the cost may vary depending on how many maids will work in your home at the same time, what services are included and more. Because of this, it is not always possible to make an apples-to-apples comparison when you compare quotes from the different maid services in the local area.

Here is a look at Merry Maids’ price breakdown to give you an idea:

The costs listed here are subject to change, so you may want to check the company’s site directly. Keep in mind that these are starting costs, and the price can increase based on the size of your home.

Here’s another maid cleaning service- Molly Maids- to give you an idea of what the competition is like:

Once again, the prices are variable, and the rates will increase based on the size of the house, but this gives you an idea of the starting rate you’ll be looking at.

There are also home-specific factors that impact the cost to consider. What are some of these factors?

• The Size of Your Home. When you initially contact a maid company to request a quote, you may receive a rough estimate based on the number of bedrooms and bathrooms in the space. However, that initial quote is often subject to an in-person review of the home. At that time, the company will look at the size of each room. After all, it will take your house cleaners far more time to clean a large, gourmet kitchen than a tiny, galley kitchen, for example.

• Tailored Services.  Some people want their entire home cleaned from top to bottom, but others are only interested in getting the bathrooms or kitchen professionally cleaned. Do you plan to do some of the cleaning chores yourself, or are you ready to hand the mop and duster completely over to the pros?

• The Scope of the Work. Different people have unique expectations for maid services. Some want a professional cleaner to cover the basics each week. Others want a more thorough cleaning every month. Many people will initially start with a deep cleaning service before getting on a regular schedule that is aligned with their budget and expectations.

The Average Cost for Home Cleaning Services in the Chicago Area

Before you go through the time and effort of getting customized quotes for maid service for your home, you understandably want to get a ballpark idea. After all, this can give you an indication of how affordable and realistic it is for you to take advantage of cleaning services. What is the average cost for housecleaners?

You should be aware that the cost of cleaning services varies considerably by location. Generally, however, you can expect to pay between $24 to $30 per hour. This average cost typically is for the services of one cleaner. Two or more cleaners can complete the work much more quickly than one maid can do, but you will pay a higher rate. For example, a team of three or four maids may cost $45 to $65 per hour. Because of the efficiency of a team of cleaners, you may not actually save money by paying the lower hourly rate for one maid.

It can be difficult to determine how much time it will take a pro or a team of pros to clean your house. Consider that a relatively tidy home will take much less time to clean than a cluttered, filthy home. It will also take much less time to do a basic cleaning service than a deep cleaning service. With a basic cleaning service, dusting, mopping, wiping down counters and other essentials may be completed. However, you would need to request a deep cleaning service to cover the baseboards, ceiling fan blades, interiors of the appliance and other areas. With this in mind, you can see that many different factors must be reviewed together to determine the cost of using Chicago home cleaning services.

Our house cleaning cost calculator can help you to more closely estimate the cost before you request quotes from specific companies. Once you use our calculator and determine that you want to take the next step, you can conveniently request customized quotes. Be aware that different cleaning companies include different services in their basic and deep cleaning service packages. When you compare quotes, make sure that you look at the specific services that are included in each quote.

If you have not already been using the services of a maid, you should expect the first cleaning session to take more time. As a result, it may be more expensive than subsequent services. This is because many people who clean their homes on their own do not cover all of the tasks that maids do. As a result, there may be built-up dirt that requires more time to initially work through.

Which Cleaning Services Are Right for Your Home?

House cleaning companies often offer a variety of service packages to meet varied needs. In some cases, your personal budget may be a limiting factor to the type of package selected. In other cases, it may boil down to a matter of preference. While each maid service company in the area may offer slightly different services in their packages, they largely break down their services in the same way. What should you know about the types of cleaning services that are available for your home?

• Basic Cleaning
  This service covers the basics that are necessary for a tidy home and may be selected for weekly or biweekly cleaning sessions. It covers essentials like straightening up, vacuuming, wiping down counters, mopping, dusting and more.

• Deep Cleaning
  This service builds on the basic home cleaning service. The specific additional services offered with deep cleaning vary, but some of the more common services included are cleaning the light fixtures, oven, baseboards, ceiling fans, walls and more. If you have a busy home with kids and pets, you may want deep cleaning done every few months. Otherwise, many people schedule this service twice a year.

• One-Time Cleaning
  There are some times in life when you need a little extra help at home, but you may not want to commit to regular services. For example, you may be preparing to host a party, or perhaps you need help cleaning up over the event. Both moving in and out of a home are also times when professional cleaning services could be beneficial.

When you are speaking with a house cleaning company about any type of services or packages they offer, ensure that you receive a full list of tasks that will be performed by the cleaners. This will help to ensure that you are not disappointed at the end of the service.

Strategies to Manage House Cleaning Costs

While you understandably want to take full advantage of the benefits of maid services, you may not be thrilled about paying for them. It is always important to hire a quality team of cleaners from a trusted company. However, you do not want to pay more for great cleaning services than necessary. What can you to do reduce the cost of professional cleaning services for your home?

Because many maid services charge by the hour, you can dramatically reduce the cost of your next cleaning session by doing a few of the tasks yourself. For example, you may tackle cleaning your home office yourself, or you may dust all of the furniture the morning before the maid arrives. Make sure that you tell the cleaning crew to skip the areas you have already covered.

Keep in mind that some rooms may not need to be cleaned as frequently. For example, if you have not hosted overnight guests, you may request that the maids skip over this room. Other rooms, such as a formal dining room, may only need to be cleaned every other session.

You can also ask about special discounts. For example, you may be able to purchase a month of services at a lower rate than you would if you set up individual services as needed. Each company has a different fee structure. By taking the time to learn about different discounts available to you, you can set up a cleaning plan that suits your needs and your budget.

As you compare the costs charged by different companies, pay attention to the services offered. You can save money by avoiding paying for services that you do not actually need. With this in mind, look for a plan that most closely meets your regular needs. However, inquire about the ability to adjust specific services as needed.

The Importance of Cleaning Your House Regularly

There are many benefits associated with cleaning your home regularly and properly. With maid cleaning services, you can enjoy all of these benefits without having to do any of the tiresome tasks yourself. What can you expect when your home receives the regular attention that it needs from a quality housekeeping service?

Numerous indoor air pollutants circulate throughout homes regularly. Some of the more common pollutants found in most homes are dirt, dust, pollen, pet dander and mold spores. These pollutants can cause respiratory distress and other unpleasant symptoms. By cleaning your home regularly, you can reduce the number of pollutants in the air. As a result, you will be able to breathe cleaner, healthier air at home.

Allergies are only one of many health concerns that are associated with a dirty home. Surfaces like counters, doorknobs, cabinets, toilet handles and a variety of other areas that are frequently touched may be covered with bacteria and other pathogens. Exposure to these germs can cause a variety of symptoms as well as gastrointestinal illnesses and more. A quality housekeeping service will thoroughly clean and sanitize these and other areas. In the process, the maids will reduce the likelihood of you contracting an illness at home.

There are other great benefits associated with cleaning your house regularly that go beyond physical health. For example, by cleaning your house regularly, dirt and filth will not have a chance to build up. This makes your future cleaning sessions will be much easier to complete in the future. More than that, your maid service will handle all of the chores that you request, and this means that you may only need to straighten up from time to time between services to keep your home clean.

For many people, time is severely limited. You may have a demanding job, a busy home life or other responsibilities that consume most of your home each week. As a result, you may regularly let important cleaning chores slide. Perhaps you do allocate time to clean your home, but it pulls time away from other responsibilities. When you use a cleaning service, you can enjoy the clean home that you deserve without having to spend your valuable time doing the chores.

The Question of Tipping Your Maid

Many people wonder if they should tip their home cleaners on top of their stated fee. How much should you tip if you do? Many service professionals are tipped for their hard work, and housecleaners are a part of the service industry. Because of this many people will tip their cleaners. However, this is not required. There are two primary reasons why tipping should be considered.

The first reason is if you are aware that your housecleaners are not well-compensated by their cleaning company. The second reason is if they do a particularly great job for you. The tip serves as a positive reinforcement for them to continue maintaining their high standards for quality in your home. If an area of your home is particularly soiled and filthy, you may consider tipping the maids for their extra effort.

You are free to tip your housecleaners as much as you prefer. However, it is customary to use the same rate as you would pay a waiter. This is 10 to 15% for good service and up to 20% or more for amazing service. Keep in mind that you do not need to tip your maids after each service. Some people will tip at the end of each month or even over the holidays as a special way to say thanks. In this case, the amount of your tip should reflect the maids’ cumulative efforts over the entire time period.

Deciding Which Housecleaning Service to Use

Now that you have decided to take advantage of the benefits of housecleaning services, you need to select a service company to visit your home. You understandably want to find the best deal available in your area. Value is a combination of both quality and cost.

You can easily use our housecleaning costs calculator to estimate the typical cost for the services you need, but keep in mind that this is only an estimate. When you start getting quotes, you will find that actual costs come in both higher and lower than the estimate.

Comparing the quotes requires you to look at two important factors. One of these is the company’s reputation. You can get referrals from friends and neighbors. Reading reviews online is also a great way to learn more about the experiences that other people have had with specific companies. Then, you should take a closer look at the services that are included in the quotes. Because the included services can vary, it is not generally advisable to compare cleaning services on cost alone.

Before you sign a lengthy contract for numerous services, consider setting up an initial service. This will give you a first-hand experience with the company’s cleaners as well as the results that they will deliver.

See How Affordable Housecleaning Services Can Be

Are you still trying to decide if housecleaning services are affordable for your budget? Perhaps you are on the fence about the results that professional services can deliver. If you have never used housecleaning services, these are understandable concerns that require your attention. The only way to fully experience the benefits of housecleaning services is by using them. At that point, you can determine if these are services that you want to enjoy regularly. To get started, use our housecleaning costs calculator to get a better idea about what maids in your area may charge.