Free Template

Free cleaning service contract template

A cleaning agreement needs twelve things, and four of them decide whether you get paid: the scope attachment, the lock-out fee, the non-solicitation clause, and the rate-increase notice. Fill in the fields below and print a ready-to-sign agreement. No signup required.

House Cleaning Service Agreement

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Section 1: Parties

Contractor name

Contractor address

Contractor phone

License, insurance and bond

Client name

Client property address

Client phone and email

Section 2: Scope of work

Clean type

Property size, beds and baths

Rooms and areas included

Rooms and areas excluded

The full room-by-room task list attached to this agreement defines the standard for each visit. Anything not on that list is out of scope and is quoted separately as an add-on.

Section 3: Frequency and schedule

Service frequency

Service day and arrival window

Start date

Arrival is a window, not an appointment time. Traffic, a lock-out at an earlier stop, or a crew member calling out can move the window. Contractor gives notice by text when the window will be missed. Holidays are rescheduled to the nearest available day.

Section 4: Add-on services

Inside the oven Inside the fridge Interior windows Laundry Inside cabinets Finished basement Garage Change bed linens

Add-ons are priced per visit and are performed only when requested in advance. Inside the oven, inside the fridge and interior windows are the three most commonly assumed to be included. They are not included in a standard clean.

Section 5: Pricing and payment

First-time deep clean $

Recurring visit price $

Add-ons this visit, total $

Payment method

Payment is due on the day of service unless stated otherwise above. Contractor keeps a card on file for recurring service. A returned payment or a declined card is subject to the fee stated in Section 9, and service pauses until the balance is current.

Section 6: Access, keys and alarm codes

How the crew gets in

Alarm system and code handling

Parking and entry notes

Keys and codes are held securely and are used only for scheduled visits. Contractor keeps a written record of who holds each key. Client notifies Contractor before changing a code or a lock. Contractor is not responsible for a false alarm charge caused by a code the Client changed without notice.

Section 7: Supplies, equipment and products

Who provides supplies and equipment

Surfaces requiring a specific product

Client identifies any surface requiring a specific product or method before the first visit. Contractor is not responsible for damage to an unmarked surface that required special handling, including natural stone, unsealed wood, and specialty finishes.

Section 8: Pets, children and the property

Pets on the property

Client secures pets that are aggressive, anxious around equipment, or likely to escape. Contractor may leave the property and bill the visit in full if a crew member is threatened by an animal. Crew members do not handle pet waste, litter boxes, or animal accidents unless purchased as an add-on.

The crew works around what is on the surface. Clutter, dishes, laundry and personal items are not organized or moved. A surface covered in items is a surface that does not get cleaned. Irreplaceable and sentimental items should be put away before the first visit.

Section 9: Cancellation, lock-out and rescheduling

Cancellation notice required

Lock-out or late-cancellation fee $

A visit cancelled with less than the notice above, or a crew that arrives and cannot get in, is billed at the fee stated. The crew drove to the property and the slot cannot be resold. Two consecutive skipped visits return the property to first-visit condition and the next clean is quoted at the deep-clean rate.

Section 10: Breakage, damage and the re-clean guarantee

Accidents happen. Contractor carries general liability insurance and reports any breakage the same day, in writing, with a photo. Contractor repairs or replaces the item at fair market value, or the amount is credited against the next invoice. Items that are irreplaceable, antique, or of sentimental value should be put away before the first visit, because no insurance payment replaces them.

Re-clean guarantee: report a missed area within 24 hours of the visit and the crew returns to correct it at no charge. Refunds are not issued in place of the re-clean, because the correction is the remedy.

Section 11: Rate increases and term

Initial term

Notice before a rate change

Contractor may adjust the rate once per twelve-month period with the written notice stated above. Client may decline the increase and terminate without penalty before it takes effect. A change in scope, such as a new room, a new pet, or a renovation, may require a re-quote sooner than the annual review.

Section 12: Non-solicitation and termination

Either party may terminate this agreement with 14 days written notice. Contractor may terminate immediately for non-payment, an unsafe condition, or harassment of a crew member. On termination, Contractor returns all keys and remote access, and Client pays for services already performed.

Client agrees not to hire a Contractor employee or subcontractor directly, for cleaning services, during this agreement and for twelve months after it ends. Contractor invests in recruiting, background checks, training and insurance for every crew member. If Client hires a crew member directly, a placement fee equal to the amount stated in the attached schedule becomes due.

Signatures

Contractor signature and date

Client signature and date

This template is provided as a starting point and is not legal advice. Contract and consumer-protection law varies by state and by municipality. Have a licensed attorney in your state review the agreement before you put it into service.

Start for $1

What should a cleaning service contract cover?

Twelve sections cover a residential cleaning agreement. Four of them are the ones that decide whether you get paid.

Scope room by room. Attach the task list. "Clean the house" is not a scope, it is an invitation to an argument
Frequency and arrival window. A window, never a time, and what happens when the window gets missed
Add-ons priced separately. Oven, fridge, interior windows, laundry, inside cabinets, each with a price
Access and keys. Lockbox, code, or key, who holds it, and what happens when the customer changes it without telling you
Supplies and surfaces. Who brings products, and which surfaces need a specific one
Pets. Secured or not, and the crew does not do litter boxes or accidents
Cancellation and lock-out fee. The notice window and the number, stated in dollars
Breakage and the re-clean guarantee. Report same day with a photo, and a 24-hour window to call a miss
Rate increases. Once a year with 30 days notice, written in from day one
Non-solicitation. Term plus twelve months, with a placement fee
Termination. Notice on both sides, immediate for non-payment or an unsafe condition, keys returned
Signatures. Both parties, before the first visit, not after the first problem

Which cleaning contract clauses do you use most?

Most of the agreement sits in a drawer. Four clauses come out and earn their keep.

The lock-out fee. A crew shows up Tuesday at 9:15, the code was changed on Sunday, nobody answers the phone. That block of payroll is spent. Set the fee at 50 to 100 percent of the visit and say so in the agreement. The number is not there to collect, it is there so the customer sets a reminder.

The non-solicitation clause. You spent money recruiting, screening, training and insuring a cleaner. A customer offers them $25 an hour cash to come Saturdays. Without a clause, you lose the employee and the customer in the same week. With one, the conversation ends before it starts.

The scope attachment. Every disagreement about quality is a disagreement about scope. Attach the room-by-room list, hand the customer the completed sheet after each visit, and the conversation moves from "you missed things" to "let us add that as an add-on." The house cleaning checklist is the attachment, and the cleaning estimate template is where the numbers came from.

The rate-increase notice. Wages, insurance and fuel all moved. If the agreement never contemplated an increase, raising the price feels like a betrayal to the customer instead of a scheduled annual review. Write it in on day one and the first increase is a non-event.

Do I need a different contract for commercial cleaning?

Yes. Residential and light commercial agreements share a structure and differ on term, insurance and who is reading them.

A commercial cleaning contract typically runs a 12-month term with 30-day termination for convenience, and the buyer is a facilities manager or a property manager comparing bids line by line. They will ask for a certificate of insurance naming them as additional insured, they will want a specific scope of work with frequencies per task rather than per visit, and they may require background checks on file for anyone with a key. ISSA and BOMA publish the frameworks that commercial buyers work from, and matching that vocabulary in your proposal signals you have done this before.

The other real difference is invoicing. Residential runs on a card on file. Commercial runs on net 30 and a purchase order number that has to appear on the invoice or accounts payable will not pay it. Build that into the agreement, get the PO number in writing up front, and you avoid the sixty-day collection cycle that kills cash flow on a new commercial account. Build those bids with the commercial cleaning bid calculator.

Once the agreement is approved, the terms only help if they are one tap away. Claver for cleaning businesses stores the agreement on the customer record beside the recurring schedule and the invoices. E-signature and checklists are on the Crew plan. Pricing starts at $1 for 14 days, then $19/mo. For the ranges behind your numbers, see the house cleaning prices guide.

Related cleaning tools

Cleaning service pricing calculator Start from the property size. Add labor, supplies, and drive time, and the tool shows your break-even and a rate per clean. Commercial cleaning bid calculator An office, retail, or medical bid built from square footage and how often you clean. Scope adjusts the number. Free cleaning estimate template Room count, frequency, and add-ons like oven and fridge, with totals that calculate as you type. Download a PDF, no signup. Free from Claver. Free house cleaning checklist Room-by-room crew standard with standard, deep and move-out scope. Fill it in on the phone and print the proof sheet for the customer.

Keep the numbers when the job is booked

Inside Claver the same estimate becomes the quote you send, and the quote becomes the invoice you get paid on, so nobody retypes a price between the driveway and the bank.

Start for $1

$1 for 14 days, then $19/mo. Card required. Cancel any time.

Cleaning service contract FAQ

What should a cleaning service contract include?

A cleaning service contract should cover scope of work room by room, frequency and arrival window, pricing for the recurring visit and the first deep clean, access and key handling, who supplies products, pets, the cancellation and lock-out fee, breakage policy, rate-increase notice, and termination. The two clauses owners add after being burned are the lock-out fee and the non-solicitation clause.

What is a lock-out fee in a house cleaning contract?

A lock-out fee is what the Client pays when the crew arrives at the scheduled window and cannot get in. The crew drove there, the slot is gone, and the payroll for that block is already committed. Most cleaning companies set the lock-out fee at 50 to 100 percent of the visit price and state it plainly in the agreement. Put the number in writing and you will almost never have to charge it.

Should a cleaning contract include a non-solicitation clause?

Yes, and it is the clause most new cleaning owners skip. You recruit, background check, train and insure a cleaner, then a customer offers them cash to come on Saturdays. A non-solicitation clause covering the term plus twelve months, with a stated placement fee, makes that conversation stop. It protects the employee too, because side work carries no insurance for either party.

How much notice should a cleaning contract require for cancellation?

Twenty-four hours before the arrival window is the working standard for residential recurring service. That is enough time to move the crew to a waiting-list customer or send them home before payroll starts. Anything shorter and you are paying for a slot nobody fills. Commercial contracts typically run 30 days written notice for termination and a 12-month initial term.

Who pays if a cleaner breaks something?

The cleaning company does, and the agreement should say so before it happens. State that any breakage is reported the same day in writing with a photo, and that the item is repaired, replaced at fair market value, or credited on the next invoice. Also ask the Client in writing to put irreplaceable and sentimental items away before the first visit, because insurance replaces a lamp and it does not replace a grandmother's vase.

Should the cleaning contract say who buys the supplies?

Yes. Most cleaning companies bring their own products and equipment and build that cost into the price, but the contract should name the arrangement and, more importantly, ask the Client to identify any surface needing a specific product. Natural stone, unsealed wood and specialty finishes are the three that generate damage claims, and the claim usually turns on whether the surface was disclosed in writing.

How often can I raise prices on a cleaning contract?

Once per twelve-month period, with 30 days written notice, is normal and defensible. Write the review into the agreement so the increase is expected rather than a surprise. A scope change, such as a new pet, a new room, or a renovation, justifies a re-quote sooner. Owners who never write in a rate-increase clause end up cleaning a house in 2026 at a 2021 price.

Is a cleaning service contract legally binding?

A signed cleaning agreement is a contract like any other service contract, and it is enforceable to the extent your state allows. State consumer-protection rules can limit cancellation fees, automatic renewal, and non-solicitation terms, and some states require specific disclosure language on recurring charges. This template is a starting point, not legal advice. Have a licensed attorney in your state review it before you put it into service.

Can Claver send cleaning contracts and collect signatures?

Yes. Claver stores your service agreement as a template and sends it by email or text. E-signature collection is on the Crew plan. The agreement attaches to the customer record next to the recurring schedule and the invoices, so the terms are one tap away when a customer disputes a lock-out fee eight months later.