How these estimates are calculated
Place, currency and tax. Prices are for the UK, in GBP (£). They exclude VAT. Most small trade businesses are below the £90,000 VAT registration threshold and do not charge it. The range is a national average. When you pick your region, the calculator scales the labour share of the range by a local index from 1.00 to 1.25. The calculator does not quote below its minimum price, £50 at the national average.
Where the range comes from. We found no UK source that prices this job, so its range is the US range, scaled to UK prices, and we record it as an assumption. We check the hourly rates against ONS earnings data and the National Living Wage. A trade's rate should sit well above what its workers earn, because it also pays for overhead, travel and insurance.
When we checked. We last checked these rates against their sources on 30 September 2026.
Market price and your price. "What pros charge" is the market range for the job you describe. Your own cost figures do not change it. The table under it, "Your costs at this price", uses your figures: time on the job, labour cost, materials, equipment, travel, fees and overhead. Profit is the market price minus those costs.
Commercial work is priced on floor area but won or lost on scope. The calculator above sizes the visit from the
area and the facility, gives a price band in pounds, and then shows what the contract leaves you once the
cleaner hours are counted.
How the calculator works
- The facility. Cleanable area and facility type — office, retail, medical, industrial or restaurant — set
the band. Medical and food-service space takes longer per square foot than an office does.
- What is in the visit. Restroom count and full floor care add hours that floor area alone does not
predict, and both push the quote up inside the band.
- Your region. Rates are adjusted by a regional labour index across six regions — National average, London,
England outside London, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. London runs above the rest of the country.
- Check what you keep. Open “Your costs and margin” for the cleaner hours, supplies, travel and the profit
at that price. The calculator prefills the costs; replace them with your own.
What UK commercial cleaning bills, 2026
| Basis | Published UK figure |
|---|
| Regular office cleaning | £16–£30 per cleaner hour |
| Medical premises | £30–£100 per cleaner hour |
| Fixed visit, small office | £50–£90 |
| National Living Wage, 21 and over | £12.71 per hour |
| ONS median pay, cleaners | £12.64 per hour |
All figures are before VAT. The hourly range is the one part of British commercial cleaning that two independent
trade guides agree on, so it is the number to sanity-check every quote against: divide your visit price by the
cleaner hours it needs and see where you land inside £16–30.
Worked example
A 10,000 sq ft office with four restrooms, cleaned to a full nightly scope. Area and facility type set the band;
four restrooms in that much floor space is a normal ratio, so nothing shifts on that count; tick full floor care
and both the hours and the quote rise. Open “Your costs and margin” and the panel shows the cleaner hours the
visit needs — that is the figure to divide the price by. Large sites are more profitable than small ones on the
same rate, because restroom and set-up time does not shrink with the floor area.
Quoting contracts in the UK
- Walk the site before you quote. Restroom count, floor type and bin volume move the hours more than square
footage does, and none of them show up on a floor plan.
- Put the scope in writing. Windows, floor stripping and carpet extraction are the three jobs a client
assumes are inside a monthly rate. Consumables are the fourth — say plainly who supplies the toilet roll.
- Build in the annual increase. The National Living Wage rose from £12.21 in April 2025 to £12.71, and it
moves every April. A contract with no increase clause loses money by its second year.
- Charge for the unsocial hours. Most office cleaning is done in the evening and standard rates assume it.
Overnight and weekend schedules cost you more in wages, so put the premium in the contract instead of
absorbing it.
The calculator gives you the number. For typical rates and how to build a quote, read our US commercial cleaning pricing guide. Its rates are in US dollars.
Frequently asked questions
What do commercial cleaners charge per hour in the UK?
Published UK guides put regular office cleaning at £16–30 per cleaner hour, with £18 the median one of them prints and £20 the top of where the two ranges overlap. Medical premises are the exception: the same guides put those at £30–100 an hour. All figures are before VAT.
Why does the calculator ask for floor area rather than hours?
Because area is the thing you can measure before you have walked the site. The cleanable area, the facility type and the restroom count set the cleaner hours the visit needs, and the price band moves with the area. Once you have the number, check it back against the hours — a visit that prices out below your own hours is a contract to walk away from.
Do I add VAT to a cleaning contract?
Only if you are VAT registered, which is required once your taxable turnover passes £90,000 in any rolling twelve months. Below that you do not add VAT and cannot reclaim it on supplies. Above it you must add 20%. Most commercial clients recover it as input tax, so quoting plus VAT costs them little. Clients whose own services are exempt from VAT — many medical practices, schools and charities — cannot recover it, so for them your registration adds 20% to the real price.
Why do medical premises cost more per square foot?
Because they take longer, and the UK market prices that directly: trade guides put medical premises at £30–100 per cleaner hour against £15–30 for ordinary ones. Disinfection protocols, clinical waste and restricted access all add time to the same floor area.
What is my wage floor on a UK contract?
The National Living Wage is £12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over, and the ONS median for cleaners is £12.64 — the trade sits almost on the legal floor. Against £16–30 billed, the gap has to cover holiday pay, employer National Insurance, cover for sickness and supervision. Work that out before you discount to win a contract.
