It’s common for commercial businesses across all industries to rely on janitorial cleaning services to keep their spaces disinfected and tidy. Clean commercial spaces are essential for making lasting first impressions on visitors and customers, and regular cleanings also promote safe, germ-free environments.
The need for a trustworthy and reliable janitorial service is obvious, but many commercial businesses can get hung up on the cost. What can you expect to spend each month or year on a first-class janitorial service? How do commercial cleaners set their prices?
Although pricing can vary depending on your specific needs, here’s a guide to calculating commercial cleaning costs for your business:
Generally, commercial cleaning services rely on one of two methods for determining how much they’ll charge businesses:
This pricing format is relatively straightforward: It’s calculated based on the square footage of the space that requires cleaning. For example, if your facility is 50,000 square feet and the janitorial company charges $0.10 per square foot, your monthly cost would be $5,000.
This pricing model is commonly used for commercial leasing companies and some office buildings. A large commercial office building with multiple tenants would only be charged by the square footage of occupied spaces. If one of the tenants vacates the building and their space no longer requires cleaning, the cost can easily be adjusted.
The general production rate – meaning the time it takes to clean – for commercial spaces is 3,500 square feet per hour. So, a 50,000 square foot building would take approximately 14.5 hours to clean. A reputable janitorial company would spend this much time to ensure the space is cleaned properly.
However, it’s not uncommon for less experienced janitorial companies to try to undercut prices and offer a figure of $0.08 per square foot. The only way for a company like this to turn a profit is to underpay its workers. This could result in workers cutting corners or spending less time cleaning your commercial business. When shopping around for quotes from commercial janitorial cleaners, make sure their price is competitive. Choosing the cheapest price may not give you the results you need.
A fixed monthly fee is the most commonly used payment method for commercial cleaning. Commercial cleaners calculate these fixed monthly fees based on information given by customers, such as the size of the space and the services they are looking for. This helps determine how much time they will have to spend on-site and how many workers will be necessary.
As such, this fee typically includes each cost associated with their service, except for products such as toilet paper, hand towels, soap, and trash liners. Commercial cleaning companies and their customers often find this to be the most cost-effective and fair system to use. This is because cleaners benefit from their efficiency and customers receive a more competitive price as a result.
Your janitorial service will likely charge you monthly based on price per square foot or a fixed monthly fee. However, extra cleaning services are typically priced differently and may affect what you pay. This is because these additional services are often project-related or administered only a few times each year. Instead of lumping these services in with your daily cleaning services, it’s more cost-effective to treat them separately.
Here are the two most common methods for pricing project-based cleaning services:
Commercial cleaners often prefer to use this pricing method for services like carpet cleaning, stripping and waxing VCT floors, or deep scrubbing ceramic tile floors. Since these services go beyond typical cleaning services, they will cost more. For example, a janitorial service may charge $0.32 per square foot for stripping and waxing floors.
For services where square footage can’t be measured or doesn’t matter, other pricing methods are used. Window cleaning is priced per windowpane, for example, while upholstered furniture cleaning is priced per piece.
In some cases, it can be difficult to accurately estimate the amount of time needed to complete a project. If the project takes a lot longer than expected, customers will be reluctant to pay an expensive invoice. In these instances, janitorial services often rely on time and materials rates, allowing customers to place a ceiling price on the work to avoid any unexpected labor charges.
A good example of a project that necessitates time and materials pricing is dusting hard-to-reach vents and pipes for a manufacturer. Estimating the number of labor hours for this project may be difficult, so putting a cap on the cost ensures the customer doesn’t have to pay an exorbitant amount.
Using a commercial cleaning calculator can help you vet quotes from potential janitorial services, but it’s not the only thing to consider when making a decision. It’s also vital to consider the company’s professionalism, presentation, and communication. The adage, “You get what you pay for” may come back to haunt you if you’re simply looking for the cheapest janitorial service.
Here are a few other factors to account for during your search:
Bay Area Janitorial Force, Inc. understands the importance of trust, reliability, communication, and competitive pricing. When you choose BAJFI, you can have the peace of mind that your janitorial services will keep your business running smoothly and effortlessly.
A “Force” you can Depend on!