How much to charge for window cleaning
Window cleaning is priced per pane, and the number that decides your hourly rate is how many of those panes you can reach from the ground.
Below: the published wage for this work, why your billing rate has to be well above it, how this job is actually priced, and what moves the number. Put your own rate into the generator and you get a real itemized estimate built on it.
Generate this estimate now
Describe the job in plain words. No email needed to see your first estimate — about fifteen seconds for a small job, a little longer for a big one.
What you get — see the format first
A complete estimate you can send to the customer, built from the rate you enter:
| Description | Qty | Unit | Unit price | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labor — itemized by task | hrs | hour | your rate | — |
| Materials — with your markup applied | qty | ea / sq ft | cost + markup | — |
| Permits, disposal, access | — | — | — | — |
Plus a plain-English scope summary, assumptions (what had to be guessed), exclusions (what you are not doing — the section that prevents most change-order arguments), and a validity period. Printable, or send the link.
Every figure comes from the rate and markup you supply. We never fill in a market price for you.
How window cleaning is priced
The standard unit is the pane, priced differently for interior-only, exterior-only or both, because setting up inside a furnished house costs time that exterior work does not. Screens and tracks are usually separate per-unit add-ons rather than assumed. Anything above the ground floor is priced at a higher per-pane rate — the glass is no harder, but the ladder work, repositioning and safety time are.
What moves the number
- Pane count and how panes are counted — divided-light and grilles change the number sharply
- Interior, exterior or both; interiors mean moving furniture and protecting floors
- Storey height and whether upper windows are reachable by ladder, pole or neither
- Screens: removing, washing, drying and reinstalling is real time on every one
- Track and sill detailing, which customers usually assume is included unless you say otherwise
- Hard water staining or paint overspray, which is restoration work, not cleaning
- Access obstacles — landscaping, decks, air conditioners and fences under the windows
How window cleaning gets underpriced
- Quoting per window when the customer counts a divided-light unit as one and you clean twelve panes
- Treating screens and tracks as free extras, then absorbing an hour on every job
- Charging ground-floor rates for second-storey glass
- No minimum charge, so a small job cannot cover the drive and setup
- Agreeing to remove hard water stains at cleaning rates when it needs a restoration process
Related guides
How much to charge
house cleaning · exterior house painting · deck staining · tree removal · fence installation
Estimate templates by trade
cleaning · pressure washing · junk removal · siding · masonry · excavation · asphalt paving · window installation
How to estimate
How to write a contractor estimate · Estimate vs quote vs bid — and which one you should send · What to include in a contractor estimate · How to price a job as a contractor · Should you charge for estimates? · How to follow up on an estimate · How to handle change orders · Estimate vs invoice: what's the difference? · How to raise your prices as a contractor