What should a cleaning proposal include?

Client details, a summary, the areas to be cleaned, tasks and frequency for each area, schedule, supplies, pricing, insurance and staff vetting, and terms.

How do I price a commercial cleaning bid?

Estimate the hours needed per visit from the walkthrough, multiply by your loaded labour rate, add supplies, overhead and profit, then convert to a monthly price.

Should I do a walkthrough before sending a cleaning proposal?

Yes. Pricing from square footage alone misses details like floor types, restrooms and traffic levels that change the hours needed.

How long should a cleaning proposal be?

Two to five pages for most offices and clinics. Larger multi-site contracts may need more detail on staffing and quality control.

Cleaning Services Proposal: How to Write and Price It

A cleaning services proposal should show the client exactly what will be cleaned, how often, by whom and for how much. Build it from a site walkthrough, list tasks by area and frequency, explain how you ensure quality and security, and present a clear monthly price with options such as add-on deep cleans.

Commercial cleaning is often bought on trust and reliability, not just price. The proposal is your chance to show both.

Before you write: the walkthrough

Never price a contract from square footage alone. Walk the site and note:

Total area and the number of rooms, restrooms and kitchens.
Floor types: carpet, vinyl, tile, hardwood, and anything needing special care.
Traffic levels and opening hours.
Access: keys, alarm codes, sign-in rules.
High-touch and high-risk areas, such as clinical rooms or food prep.
What the client dislikes about their current cleaner. This becomes your headline.

The structure of a cleaning proposal

Cover page with the client's business name and site address.
Summary: their goal, the problem, your service and the monthly price.
Scope by area and frequency (the most important section).
Schedule: days and times of service.
Staffing and quality control: who cleans, how they are vetted, how work is checked.
Supplies and equipment: what you provide, any green products.
Pricing with options.
Insurance, references and terms.

Scope by area and frequency

This table is what clients compare between bids, so make it detailed.

Area	Tasks	Frequency
Offices	Empty bins, dust surfaces, vacuum carpets	Nightly
Restrooms	Clean and sanitize fixtures, restock supplies, mop floors	Nightly
Kitchen	Wipe counters and appliance fronts, clean sink, mop	Nightly
Reception	Glass doors, entrance mats, high-touch points	Nightly
All hard floors	Machine scrub	Monthly
Windows	Interior glass	Monthly
Carpets	Deep extraction	Quarterly (optional)

How to price a cleaning bid

Most cleaning businesses price commercial work from estimated hours:

Estimate the hours per visit from your walkthrough. Experience and your own production rates matter more than any rule of thumb.
Multiply by your loaded labour rate (wage plus payroll costs).
Add supplies, equipment wear and travel.
Add overhead and profit.
Multiply by visits per month and present a monthly figure.

For residential and one-off jobs, flat rates by home size or per-room pricing are common. Whatever method you use, present it as a monthly or per-visit total with options, not an hourly breakdown. See how to price your services in a proposal for a worked example.

Option	Includes	Monthly
Standard	Nightly service, 5 nights	$[price]
Standard plus	Adds monthly floor scrub and windows	$[price]
Premium	Adds quarterly carpet extraction and supervisor audits	$[price]

Win on trust, not just price

Clients switching cleaners are usually escaping a bad experience: missed visits, inconsistent quality, or staff they did not trust. Address these head on:

Reliability: explain how you cover sickness and holidays.
Quality control: checklists, supervisor inspections, a way to report issues with a response time.
Security: background checks, key control, alarm procedures.
Insurance: state your liability cover and offer certificates on request.
Communication: one named contact and a simple issue log.

Example summary

Example

Greenway Physio wants a clinic that is spotless and inspection-ready every morning without the owner chasing cleaners. Twice this month, rooms were not cleaned after a staff no-show.

We propose nightly cleaning five nights a week, with a backup cleaner on call, a supervisor check every Friday and a signed checklist for every visit. Your rooms will be ready by 7:30 a.m., with one contact for any issue and a two-hour response time. The monthly investment is $[price], with an optional quarterly deep clean.

Follow up

Facility managers often collect three quotes. Follow up two business days after sending, offer to walk the site again with the decision maker, and use the sequence in our proposal follow-up emails guide.

For the full method behind every section, see how to write a business proposal.

How to Write a Cleaning Services Proposal (and Price Your Bid)