Short-stay cleaning is priced differently from every other kind, and both sides frequently get it wrong.
The rates
| Property | Rate per changeover |
|---|---|
| Studio | $50 – $80 |
| 1 bedroom | $55 – $95 |
| 2 bedroom | $70 – $120 |
| 3 bedroom | $110 – $180 |
| 4+ bedroom | $150 – $280 |
Expressed as an hourly equivalent, that’s roughly $35–$50 per hour, the same range as commercial cleaning, which is the right benchmark.
Why per-property beats per-hour
For the cleaner: you’re not punished for getting faster. A cleaner who knows a property well and does it in two hours instead of three should keep that gain, it’s what makes the route profitable.
For the host: you know the cost of every booking in advance, which means you can set the cleaning fee properly.
Hourly pricing on short-stay work creates suspicion on both sides. Avoid it.
Where cleaners under-price
Travel. In holiday areas this is significant and completely invisible in a per-property rate unless you build it in. Two properties 40 minutes apart is an unpaid hour and a half.
Bed-making. 8–12 minutes per bed, done to hotel standard. New cleaners consistently underestimate this.
Linen handling. Stripping, bagging, transporting, collecting fresh.
Late checkouts. Happens constantly, and it destroys a tightly-scheduled day. Have a policy and a charge.
Damage reporting. Photographing and writing up an issue is 10 minutes.
Restocking. Carrying and replacing consumables.
Photos. 90 seconds a property. Worth every second, but it’s still time.
Where hosts under-pay
Same-day turnovers at standard rate. A guaranteed 10am–3pm window is a genuinely harder product. Expect to pay 20–30% more, and understand you’re buying scheduling priority, not just cleaning.
Coastal properties at city rates. Sand and salt are real work.
Peak season at off-peak rates. December to February, cleaners are scarce. Either lock in a rate for the season in advance, or expect to pay more.
Expecting linen at no charge. Commercial laundering is $25–$40 a changeover. It cannot be free.
Setting seasonal rates properly
If you charge more in peak season, and you should, do it transparently:
- Set the rate at the start of the relationship, not in December
- Put it in writing, with the dates it applies
- Give hosts the option to lock peak slots in advance
- Don’t change it mid-season
A surprise January increase costs you the account, even if the rate itself was fair.
What justifies a premium rate
In a market where anyone with a vacuum can quote, these are what let a cleaner charge above the midpoint:
- Photo record of every finished property. Removes the host’s main anxiety, especially for remote owners.
- Reliability through peak season. Being available in January is worth more than being cheap in June.
- Damage reporting with evidence. Directly saves hosts money on claims.
- Working from the booking calendar rather than needing to be booked each time.
- Cover arrangements. A missed changeover is a cancelled booking; a cleaner who can guarantee cover is worth substantially more.
Cleaners who offer these hold accounts for years. Cleaners who compete on price alone get replaced the moment someone cheaper appears.
The rate to walk away from
Below about $45 for a two-bedroom changeover, once you account for travel, linen handling and consumables, you’re working for less than minimum wage.
It’s better to have four properties at a sustainable rate than seven at a rate that has you resenting every one of them, because that resentment shows up in the work, and then in the reviews, and then in losing the account anyway.