The most common way to bid an office cleaning contract is to turn square footage into hours, then hours into cost, then add your margin. Here is the method with an example.
Updated 25 October 2026. Written by Tahir Abbas, Softotech. All figures are worked examples, not quotes.
Key takeaways
- Your production rate (sq ft cleaned per hour) drives the whole bid, so time your own crews instead of copying a published number.
- A slower crew can cut a 30% margin to about 15% without any change in the price you quoted.
- Price per square foot is a cross-check only. It falls as visit frequency drops and rises with frequency and special tasks.
- A 30% margin is not a 30% markup. Marking cost up 30% gives only about a 23% margin.
- Medical and food spaces need separate lines for training, products and records.
Step 1: Estimate hours per visit
Production rates depend on the type of space and the tasks, so use your own timed numbers. In this example a 5,000 sq ft office is cleaned at 2,500 sq ft an hour, which is 2 hours per visit.
Step 2: Monthly hours
At 3 visits a week that is 6 hours a week, or about 26 hours a month (6 x 4.33).
Step 3: Monthly cost
- Wage of $18 an hour plus 20% for payroll taxes and insurance is $21.60 an hour. See how to calculate labor burden.
- Labor: 26 x $21.60 = $561.60.
- Supplies: $60.
- Equipment and other overhead: $50.
Total cost is $671.60 a month.
Step 4: Bid price
At a 30% margin, $671.60 / 0.70 = about $960 a month, or roughly $0.19 per square foot per month.
Before you submit
- Walk the site: floors, restrooms and special tasks change the hours.
- Check what the client expects: frequency, supplies, trash and window cleaning.
- Compare the bid with your overhead so the contract is not under-priced.
Check your production rate
The bid above depends on one number, the production rate. Here is what happens if the crew is slower than planned. At 2,000 sq ft an hour instead of 2,500, a 5,000 sq ft office takes 2.5 hours a visit, 7.5 hours a week and about 32.5 hours a month.
Labor becomes 32.5 x $21.60 = $702. With $60 of supplies and $50 of other costs, the total is $812. If you already quoted $960 a month, your margin is ($960 – $812) / $960 = about 15%, not 30%. Time your crews on a real site before you quote.
A second example: a clinic
A 12,000 sq ft clinic cleaned 5 times a week at 2,000 sq ft an hour takes 6 hours a visit, 30 hours a week and about 130 hours a month (30 x 4.33). Labor is 130 x $21.60 = $2,808. Add $150 supplies and $120 equipment and overhead for $3,078 in total. At a 30% margin:
$3,078 / 0.70 = about $4,397 a month, roughly $0.37 per square foot.
Medical and food spaces often need extra training, products and records, so price those tasks separately. Rates here are examples, and restrooms are better timed by fixture count than by square feet.
Add-ons and contract terms
- Price periodic work separately, such as floor stripping and waxing, carpet cleaning or window cleaning.
- Write the scope, the days and times, who supplies consumables, and the insurance you carry.
- Add a notice period for ending the contract and a yearly price review for wage increases.
- Ask for a walk-through before you bid, and note stairs, floor types and the number of restrooms.
To check wage levels in your area, see the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics page on janitors and building cleaners. Then work out your own cost with our guide to labor burden and set your hourly rate.
Sources and a note
Production rates, wages and prices are examples. Replace them with your own timed numbers.
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Why is price per square foot a poor way to bid?
Price per square foot is useful as a quick check, but it hides the two things that drive cost: how often you visit and how fast the space cleans. The table uses the same method as above (wage $21.60 with burden, 30% margin, 4.33 weeks a month). Supplies and overhead are assumptions for each row.
| Space | Visits per week | Rate (sq ft/hr) | Monthly hours | Monthly cost | Bid at 30% margin | Per sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,000 sq ft office (main example) | 3 | 2,500 | 26 | $671.60 | about $960 | $0.19 |
| Same office, daily weekdays | 5 | 2,500 | 43.3 | $1,045 | about $1,493 | $0.30 |
| 8,000 sq ft office, light use ($50 supplies, $40 overhead) | 2 | 2,500 | 27.7 | $689 | about $984 | $0.12 |
| 12,000 sq ft clinic | 5 | 2,000 | 130 | $3,078 | about $4,397 | $0.37 |
The range runs from $0.12 to $0.37 per square foot, and none of the four is wrong. A flat per-foot price copied from another bidder would underprice some of these and overprice others. Use the cost method first, then compare the result to your per-foot number.
What is the difference between margin and markup in a bid?
Margin is the share of the price that is profit. Markup is the percentage you add on top of cost. They give different prices from the same target number.
- Margin method: $671.60 / (1 – 0.30) = about $959 a month. Profit is 30% of the price.
- Markup method: $671.60 x 1.30 = about $873 a month. Profit is $201.48, which is only 23.1% of the price ($201.48 / $873.08).
The gap is about $86 a month, or roughly $1,000 over a year on one account. If your plan says you need 30% of revenue as profit, use the margin formula. Our guide to markup and margin in Excel shows how to set up both.
What should a commercial cleaning bid include?
A bid that only states a monthly price invites disputes. Clients and facility managers usually want to see the points below in writing, so build them into your proposal template.
- Scope by area: offices, restrooms, break rooms, floors, trash, glass.
- Days and hours of service, and who holds keys or alarm codes.
- Who supplies consumables such as paper, soap and liners, and whether they are billed at cost or included.
- Proof of insurance and whether your crew are employees or subcontractors.
- Price for periodic tasks, quoted separately from the monthly rate.
- Notice period, holiday rules and the date of the yearly price review.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists the typical tasks for this work as emptying trash, cleaning restrooms, vacuuming, mopping and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces. It also notes that offices are often cleaned after hours, so ask about access and security before you price evening work. In its May 2025 data, the median pay for janitors and building cleaners was $17.71 an hour, which is close to the $18 wage used in the main example. Local pay can be higher or lower, so check your own area.
What extra care do medical offices need?
The clinic example prices extra training, products and records as separate lines. The reason is that healthcare spaces can expose cleaners to blood and other body fluids. OSHA’s Bloodborne Pathogens Standard requires employers whose workers may be exposed to have an exposure control plan, training and protective equipment, and it covers some housekeeping staff. Read OSHA’s bloodborne pathogens page and ask the client which protocols apply before you set a price. Do not assume the office rate covers it, and check the current rules for your state.
Frequently asked questions
How do you price a commercial cleaning contract?
Estimate hours from square footage and your production rate, multiply by your burdened labor cost, add supplies and overhead, then divide by one minus your target margin.
What is a typical production rate for commercial cleaning?
It varies by space type and tasks, so time your own crews on real jobs instead of relying on a general figure.
Should I bid per square foot or per month?
Per month is common for recurring contracts. Per square foot is a useful check against your bid.
How do I convert a monthly bid into a price per visit?
Divide the monthly price by the number of visits in a month, which is visits per week x 4.33. In the main example, $960 / (3 x 4.33) is about $74 per visit. This is a useful check when a client asks for a per-visit rate.
How do I find my cleaning production rate?
Time your own crew on a real site. Divide the square feet cleaned by the hours worked, for a typical visit. Do this on several sites and use the average. Published rates are only a starting point, and the effect of a slower crew is shown in the main guide.
What margin should a commercial cleaning bid target?
There is no single right number. Cover wages, burden, supplies, equipment and overhead first, then add the profit you need. The examples here use 30% as an assumption. Test a lower margin against your break-even before you accept it.