FOR INDEPENDENT CLEANERS & AIRTASKER TASKERS
How to price cleaning jobs in Australia
A cleaning quote needs to cover the whole job: preparation, work on site, packing up and the return trip. A price that looks reasonable per square metre can leave very little once you allow for those costs.
Cleaners Workmate is developed by Christopher Howlett of Specialize Cleaning Solutions, drawing on five years working on Airtasker. This guide explains how to build a quote from your own costs and realistic job conditions.
1. Define the work before choosing a price
Record the surfaces, cleaning area, level of dirt, access and what the customer expects. Subtract garden beds and other exclusions from measured areas. Identify extra work separately, including moving furniture, stain treatment, stairs or water recovery.
Use photos to clarify the scope and arrange an inspection when photos cannot resolve an important uncertainty. State exclusions and agree on a process for approving extra work.
2. Count labour and return travel
Estimate preparation, on-site cleaning, pack-up and both directions of travel. Include a helper where needed. Your labour allowance pays for working time; profit is what remains after the costs you have allowed for.
For example, three hours cleaning plus one hour of return travel is four hours of your time before any additional preparation. A small distant job may need a minimum callout to be worthwhile.
3. Add materials, equipment and job expenses
Allow for chemicals, fuel, parking, tolls, equipment hire and disposal or recovery costs where applicable. Include a share of overheads such as equipment maintenance and insurance if you want your estimate to cover them. Avoid counting the same cost twice.
4. Include your actual platform fee and target margin
For Airtasker job pricing, enter the fee shown for your own account and task. Do not assume every cleaner pays the same percentage.
On a consistent pricing basis, when both the platform fee and target profit margin are percentages of the same quoted amount:
Quote = allowed job costs ÷ (1 − platform fee rate − target margin).
As an illustration, $200 in allowed costs, a 15% fee and a 20% target margin gives $200 ÷ 0.65 = $307.69. The fee is about $46.15 and the remaining $61.54 is the estimated profit after those allowed costs. These are example inputs, not a recommended market price. Margin is a percentage of your quote; markup is a percentage added to costs.
Keep GST-inclusive and GST-exclusive amounts consistent. This simplified example leaves GST out; GST treatment and income tax need separate allowances appropriate to your business. If a fee is calculated on a different basis, use the actual fee amount and recalculate.
5. Check the service and compare like for like
- Pressure cleaning: check net area, surface condition, hot or cold water, drainage and access.
- Carpet cleaning: check room sizes, furniture, vacuuming, stains and the minimum callout.
- Upholstery cleaning: check seating size, fabric, condition and the proposed treatment before pricing.
Compare published local references only where the scope and conditions are similar. A low advertised starting price may exclude parts of your job. You control the final quote.
Use the cleaning quote and profit calculator
Try the pressure cleaning calculator with your own area, labour, travel and job expenses. Approved workspace members can also keep saved jobs and review estimated profit. Registration and software access are free at this stage; workspace approval is required during testing.