How to Price Window Cleaning Jobs (What I Have Learned in 25 Years)

Pricing is where new window cleaners lose the most money, and it is not because they charge too much. It is because they charge too little, out of fear, and then work themselves into the ground for money that does not add up. I did it too, for far too long. Let me save you those years, with real numbers.

A note before the figures: prices vary by market, and yours will not match mine exactly. So treat these as honest, typical ranges to anchor against, not gospel. The method matters more than any single number.

The mistake every beginner makes

You are nervous, so you quote low to win the job. It works, you get it, and now you have trained that customer to expect a price that barely pays you. Do it across a whole route and you have built a business that keeps you busy and broke. Price for the result you deliver. Streak free glass, done reliably, is worth real money to people who will not do it themselves.

Per pane, per window, or flat rate

Three ways to price, and each has its place.

Per pane: commonly $2 to $7 a pane, depending on size, access, and how dirty the glass is. This works well for detailed residential glass with lots of small sections.

Per window: commonly $4 to $10 a standard window, inside and out. Faster to quote and easy for a customer to understand.

Flat job rate: one number for the whole job. Customers often prefer it because they know exactly what they will pay. Once you can size a job quickly, this is often the smoothest way to sell.

How to price a residential job

Walk the property before you quote. Three things decide the price: how many panes or windows there are, how dirty the glass is, and the access.

As a rough anchor, a small single story home with ten to fifteen windows, inside and out, commonly lands somewhere around $100 to $200. A larger two story house, or one with difficult access, often runs $250 to $450 or more. Add for anything that slows you down: heavy build up, tight frames, awkward reach, high glass over a conservatory.

Access is the part beginners forget. A ground floor window and a window you can only reach up a difficult ladder take very different time and effort, and your price has to reflect it. Then give one clear number with confidence. Hesitation in your voice invites haggling.

How to price commercial work

Commercial is a different game. Shops and offices usually want a recurring schedule, weekly, fortnightly, or monthly, and they value reliability over the lowest price.

A small storefront commonly runs $20 to $75 a visit depending on the glass and frequency, and the real prize is the contract, not the single clean. A steady commercial account gives you income you can count on before you clean a single house. Price commercial slightly keener per visit than residential, because the frequency and reliability more than make up for it, and one good contract can anchor your whole week.

How to quote on the spot

You will lose jobs if you say "I will email you a quote." People want a number now. Learn the thirty second assessment: as you walk up, count the glass, clock the access, judge the dirt, add your slow down factors, and land on a figure. With practice you will price a house accurately in under a minute, standing on the doorstep, which makes you look like the professional you are.

When to raise your prices

Your first prices should not be your prices forever. As your work sharpens, your reviews build, and your calendar fills, raise them, commonly ten to fifteen percent at a time. Tell existing customers plainly and in advance, tie it to the reliable quality you deliver, and do not apologise for it. The good customers stay. The ones who leave over a fair increase were never profitable anyway.

The one number that matters most

Whatever you charge, protect your hourly. A $150 house that takes you an hour is a great job. The same $150 house that takes you three hours because your technique is slow is a poor one. This is why speed is money: as your squeegee work sharpens, the same prices pay you two or three times as much per hour. You do not always need to charge more. Sometimes you need to get faster.

If you want a complete pricing system built for your kind of work, with job type breakdowns you can apply straight away, that is part of what The View gives you, alongside the technique and the customer getting. See it at The View.

And the faster your technique, the more every price pays you. That skill starts with the free Manifesto inside The Skill.

Related guides

• How to Start a Window Cleaning Business
• How Much Do Window Cleaners Make
• How to Get Your First Customers

Frequently asked questions

How much should I charge for window cleaning?

It varies by market, but common anchors are $2 to $7 per pane, $4 to $10 per standard window, or a flat rate. A small single story house often lands around $100 to $200, a larger two story house $250 to $450 or more. Price on the amount of glass, how dirty it is, and how hard it is to reach, and quote with confidence.

Should I charge per window or a flat rate?

Per window or per pane is fair and easy to justify while you learn to size jobs. A flat job rate is smoother once you can assess a property quickly, because customers like knowing the exact price up front. Many experienced cleaners quote a confident flat number on the doorstep.

How much do commercial window cleaning jobs pay?

A small storefront commonly runs $20 to $75 a visit depending on the glass and how often you clean it. Commercial usually pays a little less per visit than residential, but it comes on a reliable recurring schedule, and one steady contract can anchor your whole week.