Price an office cleaning contract by estimating the work required on each visit, then costing the full service schedule. Floor area is a useful starting point, but room use, toilets, kitchens, furniture and access can change the labour required. A square-metre figure alone cannot describe that workload.
Measure cleanable space, not just the building
Confirm which floors, rooms and shared areas belong in your scope. Separate open floor space from congested workstations, stairs, meeting rooms and amenities. Note floor coverings and obstacles, as well as areas excluded because another contractor or the occupier maintains them.
Ask about occupancy, opening hours and current problem areas. Two offices with the same floor area can have different cleaning requirements if one has busy kitchens and frequent visitors while the other has lightly used desks. Use these questions before a site walkthrough to identify gaps before calculating a price.
Build a task and frequency schedule
List tasks by area and assign an agreed frequency. Distinguish work needed at every visit from weekly or periodic tasks. Do not assume that every surface needs the same treatment simply because the cleaner attends on a particular day.
- For each visit, estimate task time plus setup, pack-down and access time.
- Schedule less frequent work separately so it is not forgotten or counted at every visit.
- Identify consumable replenishment and agree who purchases the stock.
- Separate any initial restoration clean from the ongoing maintenance service.
Frequency changes both the number of visits and the condition found on arrival. Fewer visits may mean more work per visit, so halving attendance does not necessarily halve labour. Base adjustments on observed conditions and a defined standard, not an assumed productivity rate.
Turn labour hours into a service price
Multiply estimated labour hours by your fully costed labour amount, then add supplies, equipment, travel, supervision and an appropriate allocation of overheads. Account for paid setup and access delays, not just time spent vacuuming or wiping.
Apply your chosen margin to the total cost. Margin and markup are different: a target margin uses price = cost ÷ (1 − margin expressed as a decimal). The broader commercial cleaning quoting process explains how to turn the estimate into a defined offer. State whether the price includes GST.
Check the schedule before presenting a monthly figure
Use the actual agreed visits and periodic tasks over the quoted service period. Do not silently treat every month as four weeks. Clarify public-holiday arrangements, building closures and separately priced extras.
After starting, compare actual hours with your estimate. Investigate differences in scope, access or workload before making assumptions about staff speed. If the client changes frequency or room use, review the task schedule and price together.
