Home / Commercial cleaning cost
Commercial cleaning cost and rates per square foot
Price tables for routine office and commercial cleaning in 2026, built from janitor wages and cleaning hours rather than survey averages, so you can see why a price is what it is. Updated October 2026.
The short answer
- Office, 5 nights a week, per sq ft a month
- $0.16–$0.28
- Office, 3 times a week, per sq ft a month
- $0.10–$0.17
- Price per cleaning hour
- $30–$41
- Warehouse, 5 nights a week, per sq ft a month
- $0.087–$0.15
At the US median janitor wage, $17.71 an hour.
Calculate your building's costCost per square foot by facility type
What a 10,000 sq ft building costs to clean, by type. The differences come from how long each square foot takes: disinfection, sinks in every exam room and locker rooms slow cleaners down, open warehouse floor speeds them up.
| Facility, 10,000 sq ft | Per sq ft a month, 5 nights a week | Per month, 5 nights a week | Per month, 3 times a week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Office | $0.16–$0.28 | $1,640–$2,780 | $1,020–$1,740 |
| Medical or dental | $0.28–$0.48 | $2,830–$4,810 | $1,770–$3,010 |
| School or daycare | $0.24–$0.41 | $2,410–$4,110 | $1,500–$2,570 |
| Retail or restaurant | $0.18–$0.31 | $1,810–$3,120 | $1,130–$1,950 |
| Warehouse or industrial | $0.087–$0.15 | $870–$1,460 | $540–$910 |
| Church | $0.14–$0.23 | $1,370–$2,320 | $855–$1,450 |
| Gym | $0.25–$0.44 | $2,540–$4,350 | $1,590–$2,720 |
| Apartment or HOA common areas | $0.13–$0.22 | $1,270–$2,190 | $795–$1,370 |
Office cleaning prices by size
Monthly cost of routine office cleaning. Small offices pay more per square foot because a visit has a minimum length; large buildings pay less because cleaners work longer runs with fewer room changes.
| Size | Once a week | 3 times a week | 5 nights a week |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2,500 sq ft | $135–$220 | $395–$585 | $660–$940 |
| 5,000 sq ft | $220–$370 | $580–$970 | $930–$1,560 |
| 10,000 sq ft | $390–$670 | $1,020–$1,740 | $1,640–$2,780 |
| 25,000 sq ft | $885–$1,530 | $2,290–$3,940 | $3,670–$6,300 |
| 50,000 sq ft | $1,670–$2,910 | $4,330–$7,480 | $6,920–$11,940 |
Rates by city
Labor is about two-thirds of the price, so local janitor wages set the hourly rate. Wages are BLS medians for each metro, May 2025.
| City | Median janitor wage | Price per cleaning hour | 10,000 sq ft office, 5 nights a week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver, CO | $18.67/hr | $32–$43 | $1,730–$2,930 a month |
| Houston, TX | $14.74/hr | $25–$34 | $1,360–$2,320 a month |
| Dallas–Fort Worth, TX | $16.76/hr | $29–$38 | $1,550–$2,630 a month |
| San Antonio, TX | $16.61/hr | $29–$38 | $1,540–$2,610 a month |
| Austin, TX | $17.75/hr | $31–$41 | $1,640–$2,790 a month |
| Atlanta, GA | $17.28/hr | $30–$40 | $1,600–$2,720 a month |
| Chicago, IL | $18.49/hr | $32–$42 | $1,710–$2,910 a month |
| US median | $17.71/hr | $30–$41 | $1,640–$2,780 a month |
How contractors price commercial cleaning
Flat monthly price
The norm for recurring cleaning. The contractor estimates hours per visit, prices them, and quotes one number per month for a written scope and schedule. Easy to budget; make sure the scope is attached.
Per square foot
How buyers compare bids, and how contractors sanity-check their own. Two buildings of the same size can differ by 40% in real cleaning time, so a per-square-foot price is a check, not a method.
Hourly
Common for small offices, one-time deep cleans and emergency calls. Ask how many hours a visit takes and how they're verified.
Per job
Carpet extraction, floor stripping and waxing, windows and post-construction cleanup are priced per job or per square foot, on top of routine cleaning.
What moves the price
- Frequency. Visits per month drive the total. Cutting from 5 to 3 visits a week saves about 38%, not 40%, because each visit takes longer.
- Restrooms. Each toilet, urinal and sink adds minutes to every visit, whatever the square footage.
- Floors. Carpet is vacuumed quickly; hard floors are mopped, which takes longer.
- Local wages. The wage gap between cities passes straight through to the price.
- Scope. Restroom paper, floor care, windows and a day porter can each add hundreds a month.
- Building size. Bigger buildings cost less per square foot; small offices hit the minimum visit.
Prices contractors publish
Quoted from the websites of contractors in the cities we cover, including floor and carpet care that is billed on top of routine cleaning.
- Denver, ColoradoProfessional floor cleaning in Denver "typically ranges from $0.25 to $0.75 per square foot for standard services." Published by Denver Cleaning Service Company.
- Denver, ColoradoA monthly disinfection subscription for a business up to 5,000 square feet: $120 per month, with a surcharge for larger spaces. Published by Flanagan Cleaning Services.
- Dallas–Fort Worth, TexasEmergency cleaning requests: $75 per hour. Published by JDM Janitorial.
- San Antonio, TexasCommercial cleaning plans "starting at $175/month," with no contract and a free 14-day trial. Published by 1st Call Cleaning Services.
- San Antonio, Texas"Most businesses can expect to spend between $0.10 and $0.25 per square foot" on janitorial services in San Antonio. Published by Crystal Clean Janitorial (cost guide).
- Austin, Texas"Offices cleaned five nights a week typically run about $0.12 to $0.25 per square foot per month." Published by BrightWorks Facility Services.
- Austin, TexasRecurring cleaning "starts at $750 a month" (minimum for that contractor). Published by BrightWorks Facility Services.
- Atlanta, GeorgiaCommercial carpet cleaning: $0.35 per square foot. Published by The Dusting Dude.
- Chicago, IllinoisCommercial and office cleaning: "Only $31 per hour." Published by Master Green Cleaning.
- Chicago, IllinoisRetail store cleaning in Chicago "typically costs between $100 and $180 per visit." Published by Quick Cleaning.
- Chicago, IllinoisNew-client offer for recurring service of $500 per month or more. Published by TopTier Cleaning Solutions.
Questions about commercial cleaning prices
What is the average cost of commercial cleaning?
For a 10,000 sq ft office cleaned 5 nights a week, about $1,640–$2,780 a month at the US median janitor wage. A small 2,500 sq ft office cleaned 3 times a week runs about $395–$585. Local wages move these figures by up to about 20%.
What are commercial cleaning rates per hour?
About $30–$41 per cleaning hour at the US median janitor wage of $17.71. That hourly price covers the cleaner's wage, payroll taxes, workers' comp, insurance, supervision, supplies, overhead and profit. One-time, emergency and specialty work is usually priced higher.
Is commercial cleaning priced per visit or per month?
Recurring contracts are almost always a fixed monthly price. Some guides quote rates such as "$0.05–$0.20 per square foot" without saying whether that is per visit or per month; at 5 visits a week, a per-visit rate that high would add up to $1–$4 per square foot a month, far above what offices pay. For an office cleaned 5 nights a week, expect about $0.008–$0.013 per square foot per visit, or $0.16–$0.28 a month.
Why is medical office cleaning more expensive?
Exam rooms need disinfection of every touch point, most rooms have a sink, and floors are hard surfaces that must be mopped. A 10,000 sq ft medical office cleaned 5 nights a week costs about $2,830–$4,810 a month, against $1,640–$2,780 for a general office.