How to start a cleaning business

Get licensed and certified

House cleaning rarely requires a trade license — a local business license is usually all that's mandated. Because you're working unsupervised in clients' homes, bonding and general liability insurance matter far more than licensing for winning trust.

Register your business and get insured

Register as an LLC or sole proprietorship, get an EIN, and open a business bank account to keep finances clean. A surety bond plus general liability is close to mandatory in practice — clients want assurance against damage or theft before handing over a key.

Buy your core equipment

Plan on $500–$3,000 to start. Mostly cleaning supplies, equipment, and marketing — by far the cheapest trade to start. Bonding and insurance build the trust that wins clients.

Set your prices

Price recurring cleans as a per-visit rate (lower for weekly/biweekly) with a card on file; quote deep and move-out cleans higher per visit. Standard cleans run $118–$237 a visit and deep cleans $200–$400; the model scales by booking recurring clients and, eventually, hiring cleaners to run multiple routes.

Get your first customers

Nextdoor, local Facebook groups, and referrals win the first recurring clients; consistency and trust keep them. Recurring residential visits are the foundation before you add commercial accounts.

Set up the system to run it

Use one tool to schedule jobs, send estimates and invoices, take payment, and follow up automatically — so admin doesn't eat your evenings. JobStack is the AI-powered CRM built for house cleaners.