Why So Many Commercial Cleaning Contracts Are Underpriced — And How to Fix It
I have spent 40 years in the commercial cleaning industry, and one question comes up again and again: “How much should I charge for this cleaning contract?”
It’s a question I have heard from cleaning business owners, operations managers, and even on social media groups where cleaning companies ask each other for advice.
Unfortunately, many of the answers lead businesses into the same problem — underpriced contracts.
And once a contract is underpriced, it becomes very difficult to recover from.
My Experience in the Industry
Over the past four decades I have worked across many parts of the cleaning industry.
I started my own contract cleaning business, worked for a major cleaning supplier, and held operational leadership roles including Operations Manager and Regional Cleaning Manager.
During that time I have managed contracts ranging from:
Small offices requiring just 2 hours of cleaning per night
Large schools and multi-site pub chains
Major distribution centres operating 24/7, including waste management operations
I have also been responsible for winning contracts and managing large operational portfolios, including National Distribution Centres for companies such as Tesco, M&S and Amazon.
Across all of these roles, one challenge has remained constant: Getting the pricing right at the tender stage is so important.
The Biggest Mistake Cleaning Companies Make
The most common pricing approach I see looks something like this:
Estimate the hours required
Multiply by the hourly wage
Add something for equipment and materials
Then the business owner wonders why the contract is not making any money.
Another common problem is simply guessing the price - If you put your finger in the wind and guess a contract price, you will almost always get it wrong.
Why Cleaning Contracts Become Unprofitable
In many cases, contracts become unprofitable because key costs were never included in the tender.
For example:
Sick pay
Holiday pay
Training costs
Wage increases
Supervision and management time
Labour calculations are often misunderstood, and hidden operational costs are rarely accounted for properly.
Many cleaning companies also rely on information provided by the client — such as estimated cleaning hours — without verifying whether those hours are actually realistic.
Why Some Pricing Methods Simply Don’t Work
Over the years I have seen many pricing “shortcuts”.
Some companies charge per square metre of floor space, others simply quote based on hours suggested by the client. The problem is that buildings are not all the same.
For example, two buildings may both be 5,000 square metres, but one might contain six sets of toilets and multiple kitchens, while the other has none. The cleaning time required can be completely different.
Without understanding the actual cleaning specification and operational demands, pricing becomes guesswork.
What a Good Cleaning Pricing Model Should Include
A strong pricing structure should always include:
The correct labour hours required to deliver the cleaning specification
Allowances for training and staff development
Costs for cleaning equipment and consumables
Operational overheads
A realistic profit margin
Without profit, a cleaning business cannot grow.
And when a contract is underpriced, the usual outcome is reduced staff hours and declining cleaning standards — which ultimately damages both the contractor and the client relationship.
Something Many Clients Don’t Realise
One important thing people outside the industry often don’t understand is this:
Clients don’t want to manage their cleaning contractor and the cleaning service at their place of work - They are too busy doing their own job.
They want to know that the service is running smoothly and that complaints from staff about cleaning standards are minimal.
For that to happen, the contractor must be properly resourced — which starts with accurate contract pricing.
Why I Built CleanQuote Solutions
After decades in the industry, I realised that many new and growing cleaning companies struggle with the same issue.
Pricing cleaning contracts can feel like navigating a minefield.
That’s why I decided to build CleanQuote Solutions.
The goal was simple:
Help cleaning companies structure their pricing properly
Reduce the risk of underpriced contracts
Save time when preparing tenders
Produce professional proposals
CleanQuote Solutions is designed to help cleaning businesses structure their contract pricing and produce professional proposals with confidence.
The Outcome I Want for Cleaning Businesses
Ultimately, I want cleaning companies to succeed.
Better pricing means:
More profitable contracts
More confidence when quoting
More professional proposals
And when cleaning businesses price their contracts correctly, it benefits everyone — the contractor, the client, and the cleaning teams delivering the service.
If you are in the commercial cleaning industry, I would be interested to hear your experience. How do you currently price your cleaning contracts? __________________________________________________________________
Key Takeaway
After more than 40 years working across the commercial cleaning industry, one lesson has remained constant: the success or failure of a cleaning contract is often decided at the pricing stage.
Many cleaning businesses unintentionally underprice contracts because they rely on guesswork, simplified calculations, or incomplete cost assumptions rather than a structured pricing approach. When key factors such as realistic labour hours, supervision, training, consumables, and operational overheads are not properly accounted for, even a contract that appears profitable can quickly become unsustainable.
By taking the time to calculate the true cost of delivering the service and building pricing around real operational requirements, cleaning companies can quote with confidence, protect their margins, and build stronger long-term client relationships.
A Smarter Way to Price Cleaning Contracts
Many cleaning companies still rely on spreadsheets or rough estimates when quoting contracts. While this may work for smaller jobs, it often becomes difficult to maintain accuracy as contracts grow in size and complexity.
CleanQuote Solutions was created to help cleaning companies calculate labour requirements, estimate operational costs, and price commercial cleaning contracts with greater confidence.
Using a structured pricing approach helps ensure every quote is built on real operational data rather than assumptions.
Try the CleanQuote Pricing Calculator
If you're curious how accurate your current pricing model is, you can try the CleanQuote pricing calculator and compare the results with your usual quoting method.
Many cleaning companies use it to sense-check contract pricing before submitting proposals, helping them avoid underpriced work and improve long-term profitability.
About CleanQuote Solutions
CleanQuote Solutions provides a professional pricing calculator designed for commercial cleaning companies. The platform helps contractors estimate labour hours, calculate cleaning costs, and produce accurate contract pricing for commercial cleaning tenders and proposals.
Further Reading
• Commercial Cleaning Profit Margins Explained (2026)
• A Step-by-Step Guide to Pricing a Commercial Cleaning Contract
• The Hidden Costs of Underpricing Cleaning Contracts
CleanQuote Solutions — The Pricing System for Professional Cleaning Companies. Helping cleaning businesses quote with confidence, win more contracts, and grow with clarity. cleanquotesolutions.co.uk