Key points
- Check whether a quote is an hourly rate, a price for the visit or both before you compare the numbers.
- A minimum is the shortest visit you can book. Ask what it is and what the hourly rate is after it.
- Size, bathrooms, the condition of the home, pets and how often you book all shape the job, so tell the cleaner each one.
- Inside the oven, fridge and cupboards are paid extras at Ivory, on every service, so say if you want them.
Domestic cleaning cost Manchester quotes are hard to compare when one is an hourly rate and the other is a price for the visit. This post is about reading the quote, not guessing a number: how each model works, what a minimum means, what changes the figure and what to ask before you book.
You will not find a table of average prices here. An average is not your home. The useful thing is knowing what a quote is made of, so you can compare two of them on the same footing.
What goes into a domestic cleaning cost in Manchester?
Every cleaning quote is built from the same three parts. They are not always shown separately, which is why two quotes can look far apart and still describe the same job.
- Time. How long the cleaner is in your home.
- How the time is charged. An hourly rate, a price for the visit, or an hourly rate with a minimum.
- Extras. Anything priced on top of the standard visit.
A low hourly rate with several extras added can cost more than a higher rate with nothing added. Compare the total for the same job, not the headline figure.
Hourly rate or price per visit: what is the difference?
An hourly rate charges for the time the cleaner works. A price per visit is one figure for an agreed list of jobs. Neither is better in itself. What matters is that you know which one you are being quoted.
| Compare | Hourly rate | Price per visit |
|---|---|---|
| You pay for | The time worked | The agreed list of jobs |
| The figure on the quote | A rate per hour | One price for the visit |
| Ask first | Is there a minimum, and how is extra time charged? | What exactly is on the list? |
| Easy to miss | The number of hours the job needs | What counts as an extra |
Each model has its own blind spot. With an hourly rate, you may not know the total until the visit ends, so ask how the hours are estimated and what happens if the job runs over. With a price per visit, the risk is the list: a low price for a short list is not cheaper than a higher price for a longer one.
So the question to ask is not which model wins. It is whether the quote tells you enough to compare it with another one.
What does a minimum mean on a cleaning quote?
A minimum is the shortest visit you can book, and the price of that visit. Time beyond the minimum is charged at the hourly rate. A quote that gives only the rate, or only the minimum, is half a quote. Ask for both.
Here is how ours reads. Weekly cleaning is priced from £55 for the 2h minimum, then £25/hr. That is the minimum first, then the hourly rate after it, so you can do the sum for the number of hours you want.
What changes the number on a cleaning quote?
These are the things that shape the job. Tell the cleaner each one when you ask for a price, so the quote fits your home and not an average one.
- Size. More rooms means more to clean.
- Bathrooms. Each one is a separate job, so the count matters as well as the number of bedrooms.
- Condition. The price reflects condition, not history. What matters is how the home looks now, not how it got there.
- Pets. Tell us if you have them. It is information about the home, not a penalty.
- Frequency. Weekly and fortnightly leave different gaps between visits. Say which rhythm you want and ask for the price at that rhythm. Do not assume one is cheaper per visit.
What counts as an extra, and what is a different job?
An extra is anything priced on top of the standard visit. Ask for the list before you book, so nothing turns up later as a surprise.
With Ivory, inside the oven, inside the fridge and inside the cupboards are paid extras on every service. Say so in the form if you want them and they go into your price. An oven clean is also a service in its own right.
A different job is not an extra. If a home needs more than a routine visit can give it, that is a different service, not a longer list of add-ons. Regular clean vs deep clean sets out where the line sits.
What should you ask before you book a cleaner?
- Is this an hourly rate, a price for the visit, or both?
- Is there a minimum, and what is the hourly rate after it?
- What is on the standard list, and what is an extra?
- What happens if the job needs more time than expected?
- What happens if something on the list is missed? At Ivory: tell us and we come back.
- Is the company insured? Ours is covered for £2m public liability.
- Can I have the quote written down, so I can compare it with the others?
Clear answers to all of these are worth more than a low number. For the longer version, read how to find a trustworthy cleaner in Manchester.
How do you get a price from Ivory?
Send the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, how the home looks right now, any pets, and the rhythm you want: weekly or fortnightly. Your price comes back within 30 minutes, and you can see it before you pick a day.
Ivory is open 7 days, 8am to 10pm, with same-day availability. Our cleaners are vetted and bring their own equipment and eco products. Start with the weekly cleaning service and ask for the rhythm you want.
Questions people ask
Neither is cheaper in itself. An hourly rate charges for the time worked and a price per visit covers an agreed list of jobs. Ask for the total for your home under each model and compare those.
A minimum is the shortest visit you can book, and the price of that visit. Time beyond it is charged at the hourly rate. Ask any cleaner for both figures so you can work out your total.
Do not assume it is. Weekly and fortnightly leave different gaps between visits, so ask for the price at the rhythm you want and compare like for like.
Tell the cleaner about them when you ask for a price. Pets are part of how the home is used, so the quote can reflect it. Ivory prices the condition of the home as it is now.
No. Inside the oven, fridge and cupboards are paid extras at Ivory on every service. Say in the form if you want them and they are added to your price.
Written by M.A. Published .
Keep reading
Regular cleaning vs deep cleaning: what is the difference?
They are not two speeds of the same job. See what each one covers, compare them in a table and run a simple test to tell which your home needs now.
How to find a trustworthy cleaner in Manchester
The questions worth asking before you let a cleaner into your home: insurance, vetting, reviews, price and what happens if something is missed.
Deep clean cost in Manchester: what decides the price
Two homes of the same size can price very differently. Here is what decides the cost of a deep clean, what is a paid extra and what a fair quote should ask.
