Key points
- Before you compare figures, find out whether each quote is hourly, per visit or a mix of the two.
- The minimum is the shortest visit on offer, so ask what it costs and what each hour beyond it costs.
- Bedrooms, bathrooms, condition, pets and visit frequency all shape the job, so hand every cleaner the same facts about each.
- Ivory charges extra for the inside of the oven, fridge and cupboards on every service, so mention them if you want them done.
Picture two quotes for one London flat, far apart in price yet covering the same work. One is charged by the hour, the other by the visit, and neither says so. Domestic cleaning cost in London makes more sense once you can see how a quote is assembled.
Rather than guess a number, the guide below walks through reading one. A price table would be no use, since it cannot see your home. You get the factors that decide a figure instead, which lets you hold two quotes up against each other on equal terms.
What is inside a domestic cleaning quote?
Whether or not it shows them, every quote settles three things. Separate them and a high figure and a low one often turn out to be answers to different questions.
| Element | What it decides | Question to put |
|---|---|---|
| Time | How many hours the cleaner spends in your home | How was the number of hours worked out? |
| Charging | Whether you pay by the hour, by the visit, or by the hour above a minimum | Which of those three is this quote? |
| The list | Which jobs the price includes and which cost extra | What is on the list, and what counts as an extra? |
Several extras on top of a low rate can leave you paying more than you would on a higher rate that has none. Judge quotes on the total for one agreed job. The figure printed largest tells you little.
Should you pay a cleaner by the hour or by the visit?
Start by settling which model is in front of you. Hourly pricing bills the time worked, while a per-visit price covers an agreed list of jobs. Neither is the cheaper one by nature.
- Paid by the hour. The final total may stay unknown until the visit ends. Find out how the hours were estimated and what happens when the job overruns.
- Paid per visit. The total is settled in advance, but it only holds for the list of jobs behind it. A short list at a low price is no bargain next to a longer list at a higher one.
- Hourly above a minimum. The minimum fixes the shortest visit you can book, and any time past it is billed at the hourly rate.
Which model wins is the wrong question. Ask instead whether the quote tells you enough to set it beside another.
How does a minimum charge work in cleaning?
Think of the minimum as the shortest visit on offer, priced as its own figure. Anything longer adds the hourly rate for each extra hour. Get only one of the two numbers and you are holding half a quote.
For its weekly cleaning, Ivory puts both numbers in view: from £55 for the 2h minimum, then £25/hr. Minimum first, hourly rate second, so a longer visit is arithmetic you can do yourself.
Which details move a London cleaning price?
Hand every cleaner an identical set of details when you ask for a price. The quote then describes your actual home, not a vague idea of one.
- Bedroom count. Each extra bedroom means more to clean.
- Bathroom count. Bathrooms add to the work in the same way, so state how many you have as well as the bedrooms.
- State of the home. Price follows condition, not history: what matters is how the place looks today.
- Pets in the home. Say if you have any, because they are part of how the home gets used.
- Visit rhythm. Weekly or fortnightly, whichever you want: request the price for that one, and do not take it for granted that either is cheaper per visit.
In Census 2021, purpose-built flats make up 40% of London homes, against 17% across England. Living in one means another detail to pass on: how the cleaner reaches the building and then your front door, whether by door code, key safe or someone letting them in. Sorting that out ahead of time is easier than doing it on the day.
Which jobs are extras on a cleaning quote?
Anything charged over and above the standard visit counts as an extra. Request that list before booking, and nothing can show up afterwards as a surprise.
Ivory charges separately for the insides of the oven, the fridge and the cupboards, whichever service you book. The weekly plan's form lets you add the oven or the fridge, ironing, or a room to skip. The oven also has a service of its own, an oven clean that you can book on its own.
Where a home needs more than a routine visit can give it, the fix is a different service, not more add-ons. That service is a deep clean, priced from £150.
Which questions should you put to a cleaner before booking?
- Confirm what kind of figure you are looking at: hourly, per visit, or hourly above a minimum.
- Where there is a minimum, get the hourly rate that applies after it.
- Ask which jobs sit on the standard list and which are charged on top.
- Find out what happens when the job takes longer than the quote assumed.
- Ask what the company does if something on the list gets missed. At Ivory, you tell us and we come back.
- Check the insurance and the level of cover. Ivory carries £2m public liability.
- Ask for the quote in writing, so it can sit next to the others.
Straight answers to all seven count for more than a low number. For the same ground in more depth, see how to find a trustworthy cleaner in London.
How do you get an Ivory price for a London home?
Tell us your postcode, how many bedrooms and bathrooms there are, what state the home is in today, whether you have pets, and whether you want weekly or fortnightly visits. A price reaches you inside 30 minutes, and you can look at it before any day is chosen.
Ivory covers all 32 London boroughs and the City of London, from 8am to 10pm, 7 days a week, with same-day availability. Every cleaner is vetted, and each brings their own equipment and eco products. The weekly cleaning page is the place to begin: say which rhythm you want.
Questions people ask
Neither costs less in itself. Hourly pricing bills the time worked, while a price per visit pays for an agreed list of jobs. Request the total for your home under each model and compare those totals.
The minimum is the shortest visit you can book, quoted at its own price, and time past it is billed at the hourly rate. Ask any cleaner for both numbers. Ivory's weekly cleaning is £55 for the 2 hour minimum, then £25 an hour.
Pass on the bedroom and bathroom counts, the condition of the home and how often you want visits. Then explain how the cleaner gets into the building and through your door, for example with a door code, a key safe or someone to let them in.
Yes, the 32 London boroughs and the City of London are all covered. Add your postcode to the form, and we confirm that we reach you and send a price within 30 minutes.
No, it does not. The insides of the oven, fridge and cupboards are paid extras at Ivory whichever service you book, and they join your price once you ask for them on the form.
Written by M.A. Published .
Keep reading
Choosing a trustworthy cleaner in London: the questions to ask
Five questions to put to any cleaner before they come into your home: insurance, vetting, equipment, what the price covers and what happens if something is missed.
Regular clean vs deep clean in London: which does your home need?
They are two different task lists, not two speeds of one job. See what each covers, compare them in a table and run a quick test to tell which your home needs.
Deep clean cost in London: what pushes the price up or down
Equal bedroom counts do not mean equal workloads in London. See what drives a deep clean price, which jobs cost extra and what a good quote asks you.
