What should I pay a house cleaner per hour?

By the Honourable Cleaning team, Abbotsford BC · Updated September 27, 2026 · 3 min read

Why it matters

Hourly quotes are hard to compare because they hide different things. The biggest trap is the per-cleaner versus per-team difference. A company that quotes "$70 an hour" for a team of two is charging $35 per cleaner-hour. A solo cleaner at $40 an hour is actually charging more per hour of work, even though the number looks lower.

The second trap is what's missing. Some quotes don't include supplies, a travel charge, or GST. Others bill a minimum number of hours, so a small job costs more than it looks.

Here is a real comparison, using our own numbers. A standard clean of a 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom home takes our crew of two about 2 hours 40 minutes, or 5.3 cleaner-hours. We charge $190 for it in Abbotsford, before GST. If someone quoted you "$35 an hour" per cleaner for the same job, the total would land in the same place. But if they took longer than expected, you'd pay more, and with an hourly quote you only find out at the end.

That's why the hourly number on its own tells you very little. What matters is the total for your home and who carries the risk if the job takes longer.

What actually drives the price

Whether a cleaner quotes hourly or flat, five things decide what you pay: the size of the home (bedrooms, bathrooms and square footage), the type of clean (standard, deep or move-out), the condition it's in, how often you book, and where you live.

Here's a simple way to compare three quotes for the same 2-bed, 2-bath standard clean. A solo cleaner at $40 an hour who takes five hours costs $200. A team quoting $70 an hour who take 2.5 hours costs $175. A flat-rate company quoting $175 costs $175, whether the crew takes 2 hours or 3. Two of those land in the same place, but only the flat quote tells you the total before anyone starts.

Frequency also changes the math. Regular visits are faster because the home never gets far behind, which is why most companies, us included, discount recurring cleans. With ours, weekly saves 20%, bi-weekly 15% and monthly 10%.

How Honourable Cleaning helps

We don't bill by the hour. We work out how long your home takes from its size and the type of clean, price it at about $36 per cleaner-hour, and show you one flat number before you book. Supplies, equipment and travel are built in, and GST is shown separately.

If a home needs more time than a normally kept home, for example heavy clutter or grease, our cleaners tell you on the day and ask first. Extra time is $35 per labour hour plus GST, and you're only charged if you approve it from your phone.

Data point: a 3-bed, 2-bath standard clean is 5.3 cleaner-hours of work and $190 before GST at our Abbotsford rate. That's the same as roughly $36 per cleaner-hour, with no meter running.

Key takeaways

Always ask "per cleaner or per team?" A team rate divided by the number of cleaners is the real hourly price.
Ask what's included: supplies, travel, GST, and any minimum number of hours.
Ask whether the company is insured and whether its cleaners are covered by WorkSafeBC. Cheap and uninsured can get expensive if something breaks.
For one-off jobs, prefer a flat price. It puts the risk of the job running long on the cleaner, not on you.

See your exact price

Pick your home size and service. Your flat rate shows up in about a minute, no phone call needed.