A typical end of tenancy clean in the UK costs from a low amount for a studio flat to significantly more for a six-bedroom house, according to Checkatrade. London runs 10 to 25% above the national average. The single best move you can make is to get three like-for-like quotes, written down, with the exact scope confirmed before you book anyone.
TL;DR:
- London costs typically range about 20 to 25% above the UK average due to higher wages, parking, and stricter inspection standards.
- Prices depend mainly on property size, condition, and access issues, with extras like carpets or ovens often adding significant costs.
- Accurate quotes require detailed information on room sizes, condition, access, and specific cleaning items to avoid hidden charges.
- Average hourly rates are around £20 to £25, but most companies provide fixed prices to ensure cost certainty and transparency.
- A professional clean with proof such as photos and guarantees generally protects your deposit better than DIY efforts, especially in larger or stained properties.
Table of Contents
- How much is end of tenancy cleaning by property size?
- Why does location change the price so much?
- What actually affects your quote?
- What do the common extras cost?
- How long does the job take and what do cleaners charge per hour?
- Is DIY cleaning worth the risk compared with hiring a professional?
- How do you get an accurate, comparable quote?
- Cleanny's approach to end of tenancy cleaning
- Choose evidence over the lowest headline price
- Book your end of tenancy clean with Cleanny
- Sources
- FAQ
How much is end of tenancy cleaning by property size?
Prices scale with bedrooms rather than square footage, because most cleaning companies quote by property type instead of the hour. A one-bed flat and a three-bed house with the same floor area will still land at different price points, simply because the second one has more bathrooms, more skirting boards, and usually a second reception room to cover.
Checkatrade's national data gives typical UK costs by property size and duration, but exact prices vary and are not fixed. A "3 bedroom clean" quoted at £280 assumes a reasonably tidy property with standard wear. Add heavy limescale, a greasy oven, or three years of accumulated grime behind the fridge, and the same job can easily run £80 to £120 higher once the cleaner actually sees it.
Two things trip tenants up here. First, some quotes are genuinely fixed price for the stated scope, while others are hourly estimates dressed up as a flat fee, meaning the final invoice depends on how long the team is actually on site. Always ask which one you're being given. Second, watch VAT: a sole trader charging £220 might not be VAT registered, while a larger company's £220 could have VAT added on top at checkout.
Letting agents often have their own idea of what "professionally cleaned" means, sometimes expecting an invoice from a named company rather than a receipt for cleaning products. Confirm what your agent will actually accept before you book, because a cheap job that doesn't satisfy the check-out inspector isn't a saving at all, it's a second bill.
Why does location change the price so much?
London and the South East consistently sit above the rest of the UK, and it isn't just because cleaners charge more per hour there. Royal Cleaning's data points to a mix of factors: higher staff wages, parking costs and congestion charges eating into a company's margin, and letting agents in the capital running noticeably stricter check-out inspections that demand more time per property.
BestBuilders' regional weighting shows how far the same job can swing depending on where you live:
- London: roughly 20 to 25% above the UK average, driven by labour costs and parking
- South East: 10 to 15% above average, following London's pull on wages
- Midlands: close to the UK average, sometimes slightly below
- North of England: often 5 to 10% below average
- Scotland: broadly in line with the North, with city centres (Edinburgh, Glasgow) pricing higher than rural areas
- Wales: typically among the lowest regional averages
- Northern Ireland: frequently the cheapest region, sometimes 10 to 15% below the UK average
If you're renting in a rural area or a smaller town, expect quotes closer to the bottom of the national range. If you're in zone 1 or 2 London, or anywhere with restricted parking and permit-only streets, expect the company to ask for a site visit, or at least detailed photos, before confirming a final number. Cleanny covers Greater London, Reading, Oxford and Cambridge, and pricing across those areas still reflects the same access and labour realities that drive the London uplift.
What actually affects your quote?
Two flats with identical floor plans can get wildly different quotes, and it usually comes down to a handful of specific factors that cleaners price against, not guesswork.
- Bedroom count versus room count. Most quotes are built around bedrooms, but a two-bed flat with an open-plan kitchen-diner takes less time than a two-bed with four separate small rooms, each needing its own vacuum, mop and wipe-down.
- Condition of the property. Limescale in the bathroom, grease build-up around the hob, pet hair embedded in carpets, mould in extractor fans, and nicotine staining on walls or ceilings all add labour time, and a decent cleaner will flag these before starting, not after.
- Access and logistics. No parking nearby, a fourth-floor flat with no lift, a narrow stairwell that won't fit a vacuum easily, or a booking that has to happen in a tight two-hour window between the old and new tenant, all justify a surcharge.
- What's included versus excluded. Oven interiors, carpets, windows (inside and out), fridge-freezers, and balconies are the classic grey areas. Some quotes bundle them in as standard; others list them as optional extras charged on top.
Read a quote line by line rather than trusting the headline number. A £220 quote that excludes the oven and carpets isn't necessarily cheaper than a £280 quote that includes both.
What do the common extras cost?
Add-ons are where budgets quietly blow out, mostly because tenants assume things like carpet cleaning are automatically part of an "end of tenancy clean" when they often aren't.
- Carpet steam cleaning: typically £25 to £90 per room depending on size and soiling, according to industry pricing data. A three-bed house with carpet in every bedroom plus the stairs can add £150 or more to your total.
- Oven deep clean: usually £45 to £90, with the top end covering full disassembly of racks, glass panels and extractor filters rather than a surface wipe.
- Window cleaning: interior windows are often included in a standard package; exterior cleaning, especially above ground floor, is usually a separate charge.
- Upholstery and sofa cleaning: priced per item or per room, and worth requesting if you've had pets or if the sofa came with the furnished let.
- Stain treatment: small individual charges for red wine, pet accidents or scuff marks that need more than a standard wipe.
Most standard packages include kitchen surfaces, bathroom sanitising, skirting boards, internal doors, and light fittings as a baseline. Carpets, ovens, and exterior windows are the three extras you should specifically ask about, because they're the ones most likely to be quietly excluded from a headline price.
How long does the job take and what do cleaners charge per hour?
A one or two-bed flat usually takes a single cleaner between three and six hours, while a larger house often needs a two or three-person team working four to eight hours to hit the same finish in a sensible timeframe, based on MyJobQuote's duration data.
UK average hourly rates are in a range around £20 to £25, and tend to be higher in London, according to Checkatrade. That said, most reputable companies quote a fixed job price for end of tenancy work rather than pure hourly billing, precisely because tenants want cost certainty ahead of a move, not an open-ended bill.
Where estimates shift is condition and access. A property that's been well maintained throughout the tenancy might finish ahead of schedule. One with months of neglected cleaning, or awkward access that slows the team down, can run over the original time estimate, and a fair company will tell you this is a possibility upfront rather than after the invoice lands.
Is DIY cleaning worth the risk compared with hiring a professional?
Buying your own supplies for a full deep clean, oven cleaner, limescale remover, a decent steam mop, microfibre cloths, typically costs £30 to £60. Compare that against a professional quote of £180 to £300 depending on size, and DIY looks like an obvious saving on paper.
The problem is what happens if the agent disagrees with your standard. A professional clean comes with an invoice, often before-and-after photos, and in many cases a re-clean guarantee if the agent isn't satisfied, according to Royal Cleaning. None of that exists when you've done it yourself, which leaves you arguing your word against theirs during a deposit dispute.
- DIY makes sense for small, well-kept flats where you've genuinely kept on top of cleaning throughout the tenancy
- DIY becomes false economy in larger properties, pet-owning households, or anywhere with visible limescale, grease or staining
- A disputed deduction from your deposit can easily exceed what a professional clean would have cost in the first place
Pro Tip: Photograph every room yourself before you leave, even if you're hiring a professional. Time-stamped photos are your own evidence, independent of whoever did the cleaning.
How do you get an accurate, comparable quote?
Vague quote requests get vague quotes back, and vague quotes are exactly where hidden extras creep in later.
- List every room and its size, including whether carpets are fitted and whether the oven and fridge need attention.
- State furnished or unfurnished, since furniture changes how long a clean takes and what surfaces need covering.
- Flag access issues upfront, stairs, no parking, lift availability, or a tight handover window between tenants.
- Ask about the re-clean guarantee and what triggers it if the agent flags an issue after checkout.
- Ask for photographic evidence as standard, not as an optional extra you have to request separately.
- Confirm VAT status so the number you're quoted is the number you actually pay.
- Check insurance and vetting, specifically public liability cover and whether staff are background-checked.
- Clarify the cancellation policy, particularly important if your moving date shifts, which it frequently does.
BestBuilders' data shows quotes for the same stated scope commonly vary by 25 to 40% between the cheapest and most expensive provider. Get three quotes against the identical checklist above, and that spread tells you far more about value than any single number does on its own.
Cleanny's approach to end of tenancy cleaning
Cleanny operates across Greater London, Reading, Oxford and Cambridge, with end of tenancy cleaning built specifically around the checklist above, upfront pricing shown before you book, no surprise VAT or access surcharges added after the fact.
Every clean comes with a re-clean guarantee, meaning if your agent flags something during checkout, Cleanny returns to fix it rather than leaving you to argue the point alone. Cleaners are DBS background-checked and covered by public liability insurance, and every job uses eco-friendly products as standard, not as a paid extra.
You can see the full range of cleaning services, from end of tenancy through to carpet and oven cleaning, and book online with an instant price rather than waiting on a call-back quote. For tenants juggling a moving date, that speed matters as much as the price itself.
Choose evidence over the lowest headline price
The cheapest quote on your list is rarely the one that protects your deposit best. What actually protects it is proof: photos, a proper invoice, and a guarantee that someone will come back if the agent disagrees.
Renting law requires you to return a property in the same condition as check-in, allowing for fair wear and tear, not showroom perfect. A cleaner who documents their work gives you something to point to if that standard gets disputed. A £20 saving on the cheapest quote means nothing if it costs you £100 of your deposit two weeks later because nobody can prove the oven was actually cleaned.
— CLEANNY
Book your end of tenancy clean with Cleanny
Cleanny is the alternative to chasing round three different local cleaners for quotes, book online in minutes with an upfront price already confirmed, vetted and insured professionals assigned automatically, and a re-clean guarantee if your agent isn't satisfied.
Every job includes eco-friendly products as standard, and you'll know the exact price before you commit rather than waiting for a call-back estimate that might change once someone actually sees the property. If you're weighing up your tenancy agreement's cleaning obligations before you book, it's also worth checking what your rental agreement actually specifies about end-of-tenancy standards.
Get an instant quote for end of tenancy cleaning and compare it line by line against whatever else you've been sent, then book online once you're happy the scope matches what your agent expects.
Sources
For the legal side of who can charge tenants for cleaning, the Gov sets out exactly what agents and landlords can and cannot require. The price ranges throughout this article draw on Checkatrade's cost breakdown, Royal Cleaning's London pricing data, and BestBuilders' regional cost guide, each offering a slightly different angle on the same underlying market.
- End of Tenancy Cleaning Prices: Cost Breakdown 2026 | Checkatrade
- End of Tenancy Clean Cost UK 2026: Prices by Property | BestBuilders
FAQ
Is £20 an hour a lot for a cleaner?
No, £20 an hour sits right at the lower end of the UK average range of £20 to £25 for end of tenancy work. In London, expect closer to £22 an hour given higher labour and access costs in the capital.
Is it illegal to charge for end of tenancy cleaning?
No, but there are limits. The Tenant Fees Act stops landlords and agents demanding a professional clean simply as a blanket condition of your tenancy agreement; your legal obligation is to return the property in the same condition as check-in, allowing for fair wear and tear, and you can choose how to meet that standard.
How much is a 1-hour clean?
A single hour of cleaning at UK average rates costs roughly £20 to £25, though most end of tenancy work is quoted as a fixed job price rather than a single hour, since a full property clean typically needs several hours minimum, even for a small flat.
Is it worth getting an end of tenancy clean?
For most tenants, yes, because a professional clean comes with an invoice and often photographic evidence you can use if your agent disputes the property's condition. Weighed against a potential deposit deduction, the £180 to £300 average cost is often the cheaper outcome, particularly with a provider offering a re-clean guarantee like Cleanny's.