Window cleaning is almost always quoted separately from a cleaning contract, and almost always quoted vaguely. Here’s what should be in scope.
Internal windows
Every clean
- Glass, both faces where accessible
- Frames wiped
- Sills and ledges
- Window furniture, handles, stays, locks
- Tracks vacuumed, then wiped
- Internal glazing and partitions
- Door glass, both sides
- Mirrors
Frequency
| Environment | Internal frequency |
|---|---|
| Standard office | Quarterly |
| Client-facing reception | Monthly |
| Retail | Monthly |
| Medical | Quarterly |
Internal glass at eye level should be spot-cleaned weekly as part of the regular contract, that’s different from a full internal window clean.
External windows
Every clean
- Glass cleaned to streak-free
- Frames wiped where reachable
- Sills cleaned
- Cobwebs cleared from reveals and heads
- Any bird debris removed
Frequency
| Situation | External frequency |
|---|---|
| Standard office | 6 monthly |
| Ground floor / street frontage | Quarterly |
| Coastal (salt spray) | Quarterly |
| Near construction | Monthly while works continue |
| High-rise | Per building schedule, often 2–4 × year |
What it costs
| Type | Cost |
|---|---|
| Internal | $4 – $8 per m² of glass |
| External, ground level | $6 – $10 per m² |
| External, reach pole (up to ~3 storeys) | $8 – $15 per m² |
| External, rope or EWP access | Priced per site |
Most providers apply a minimum charge, typically $200–$350.
The parts quotes leave out
Ask specifically about these, they’re the difference between a clean window and a clean building:
- Tracks. Full of grit. Need vacuuming before any wet work, or you make mud.
- Frames. Especially powder-coated aluminium, which shows every mark.
- Sills, external. Where dirt and debris accumulate and then wash down the glass at the next rain.
- Reveals and heads. Where the cobwebs are.
- Internal glazing and partitions. Often assumed to be in the regular contract when it isn’t.
- Both sides of door glass. Frequently only the outside gets done.
- Fixed panels above doors. Nobody looks up.
Access and safety
Anything above a two-step ladder needs a plan under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015:
- Reach poles (water-fed): safest, works to roughly three storeys, and leaves no need for anyone at height
- EWP / scissor lift: requires operator certification and a site plan
- Rope access: specialist, certified, needs building anchor points with current certification
- Ladders: limited use, and increasingly not accepted on commercial sites
Ask your provider what access method they’ll use before booking. If the answer is "a ladder" for anything above ground floor, ask again.
Timing
- Avoid direct sun. Glass dries too fast and streaks. Early morning or overcast is better.
- Avoid immediately before rain for external work, for obvious reasons.
- Coordinate with a builders clean if there’s construction nearby, otherwise you’ll pay twice.
- After pollen season in spring, external glass benefits from a specific clean.
Frequency vs. appearance
External glass looks acceptable for roughly six to eight weeks in a normal urban environment, and about three in a coastal or dusty one.
If your street-facing glass is the first thing clients see, quarterly external cleaning is a marketing spend, not a cleaning one, and it’s cheap compared to nearly anything else that changes a first impression.