# Commercial Cleaning Cost per Square Foot: 2026 Rates and How to Calculate Yours

> Published commercial cleaning rates run about $0.05 to $0.29 per square foot. Here are the ranges by facility and floor service, plus the formula to benchmark an in-house crew.

- **URL:** https://janitori.com/blogs/equipment-guides/commercial-cleaning-cost-per-square-foot

**In this guide**
- [What is the average commercial cleaning cost per square foot?](#average)
- [How does the rate change by facility type?](#byfacility)
- [What do floor services cost per square foot?](#floors)
- [How do you calculate your own cost per square foot?](#calc)
- [How do you lower the in-house rate?](#inhouse)
- [Which equipment affects the rate?](#equipment)
- [FAQ](#faq)

Commercial cleaning cost per square foot is the monthly cost of cleaning a building divided by its cleanable area. Published rates for outsourced janitorial service mostly fall between about $0.05 and $0.29 per square foot, and the same formula lets an in-house crew benchmark its own cost against them.

The ranges below come from [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/), [Buildingstars](https://buildingstars.com/how-much-do-commercial-cleaning-services-cost/) and [Ziva Cleaning](https://zivacleaning.com/blog/office-cleaning-cost-guide-per-square-foot). Treat them as guidelines: scope, frequency, soil and local labor decide the real number.

 **Key takeaways**
- [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) lists general office cleaning at $0.09 to $0.17 per square foot, retail at $0.07 to $0.15, schools at $0.07 to $0.14, industrial at $0.08 to $0.20 and healthcare at $0.14 to $0.29.
- Floor work is priced on top of routine service: [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) puts strip and refinish at $0.30 to $0.60 per square foot, scrub and recoat at $0.20 to $0.40 and carpet cleaning at $0.08 to $0.25.
- The formula is total monthly cost divided by total cleanable square footage, so a $12,000 monthly cost on 100,000 square feet equals $0.12 per square foot, per [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/).
- [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) notes that more frequent cleaning often lowers the per-square-foot rate, and that autoscrubbers and similar equipment can raise efficiency over time.

## What Is the Average Commercial Cleaning Cost per Square Foot?

Most published guides land between roughly $0.05 and $0.29 per square foot, depending on who is quoting and where. [Buildingstars](https://buildingstars.com/how-much-do-commercial-cleaning-services-cost/) cites $0.05 to $0.20 per square foot (or $25 to $50 per hour), and [Ziva Cleaning](https://zivacleaning.com/blog/office-cleaning-cost-guide-per-square-foot) gives $0.10 to $0.25 for a standard office.

 | Source | Stated range per sq ft | Scope

 | [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) | $0.09 to $0.17 | General office

 | [Buildingstars](https://buildingstars.com/how-much-do-commercial-cleaning-services-cost/) | $0.05 to $0.20 (or $25 to $50 per hour) | Commercial cleaning, typical

 | [Ziva Cleaning](https://zivacleaning.com/blog/office-cleaning-cost-guide-per-square-foot) | $0.10 to $0.25 | Standard office

The spread is wide because the number is an output, not a constant. [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) lists building type, frequency, soil level, services included, labor costs and equipment as the drivers.

## How Does the Rate Change by Facility Type?

Healthcare costs the most and schools the least in the [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) ranges. Higher-touch and higher-complexity buildings need more detailed cleaning, which raises the rate.

 | Facility type | ISSA range per sq ft

 | General office | $0.09 to $0.17

 | Medical and healthcare | $0.14 to $0.29

 | Industrial or manufacturing | $0.08 to $0.20

 | Retail | $0.07 to $0.15

 | Schools and educational | $0.07 to $0.14

## What Do Floor Services Cost per Square Foot?

Floor restoration is quoted separately from daily janitorial service, and it is the largest per-square-foot line. [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) gives these specialty ranges:

 | Service | ISSA range per sq ft

 | Strip and refinish | $0.30 to $0.60

 | Scrub and recoat | $0.20 to $0.40

 | Carpet cleaning | $0.08 to $0.25

If you do this work in-house, these are the figures your labor, machine time and supplies compete against. For the method, see [how to strip and wax a floor](/blogs/equipment-guides/how-to-strip-and-wax-a-floor) and [carpet extractor vs carpet cleaner](/blogs/equipment-guides/carpet-extractor-vs-carpet-cleaner).

## How Do You Calculate Your Own Cost per Square Foot?

Divide your total monthly cleaning cost by your cleanable square footage. [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) gives the formula and an example: a $12,000 monthly contract on 100,000 cleanable square feet is $0.12 per square foot.
- **Measure cleanable area.** Count floor area that is actually cleaned, not gross building area.
- **Add up the monthly cost.** For an in-house crew, include wages and benefits, supplies, and machine costs; for a contract, use the invoice.
- **Divide.** Total monthly cost divided by cleanable square feet.
- **Compare by scope.** Match the result to the facility-type range above, and compare like tasks and frequencies only.
- **Recheck on change.** [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) advises revisiting pricing when square footage, usage or standards change.

[ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) also cautions that square-foot pricing is least accurate when needs vary a lot between spaces; in that case it points to workloading, which prices by task and frequency.

## How Do You Lower the In-House Rate?

Raise cleaning efficiency, since labor is the biggest input. [ISSA](https://www.issa.com/articles/commercial-cleaning-rates-per-square-foot/) lists labor as a pricing driver, says routine frequency tends to lower the rate, and says equipment such as autoscrubbers often increases efficiency over time.

Three practical levers follow from that: schedule routine floor work so soil never builds up, use a machine for large open floors instead of a mop, and give the crew a written checklist so no task is repeated or missed. See the [commercial cleaning checklist](/blogs/equipment-guides/commercial-cleaning-checklist) for a frequency-sorted task list.

 **Run it with JANITORI chemistry**

 [Floor Cleaner No.61](/products/floor-cleaner-janitori-no-61)

The routine damp-mop product for daily hard-floor care. It is pH-neutral, low-residue and low-foam at label dilution, needs no rinse under normal conditions, and is labeled for mop or cleaning-system use on concrete, stone, ceramic, wood, laminate, marble, granite and terracotta. Test a hidden spot first. On a scrubber, look for foam in the recovery tank on the first fill, because foam pulled into the vacuum motor damages it.

## Which Equipment Affects the Rate?

Machines change how many labor hours a floor takes. The models below are in our catalog and show their size and capacity in the listing.

 | Task | Example machine | What the listing states

 | Large open hard floors | [Dapper Supply walk-behind floor scrubber](/products/dapper-supply-walk-behind-floor-scrubber-machine-20-brush-31-5-squeegee-dp-wbfs1218) | 20 in. brush, 31.5 in. squeegee

 | Small areas and tight spaces | [Dapper Supply mini automatic floor scrubber](/products/dapper-supply-mini-automatic-floor-scrubber-machine-15-brush-17-squeegee-dp-wpfs1204) | 15 in. brush, 17 in. squeegee

 | Carpet extraction | [U.S. Products Pegasus Pro 500H](/products/u-s-products-pegasus-pro-500h-dual-cord-heated-carpet-extractor-12-5-gal-50-500-psi-machine-only-05-10037) | Dual-cord, heated, 12.5 gal, 50 to 500 PSI

Browse [floor scrubbers](/collections/floor-scrubbers), [carpet extractors](/collections/carpet-extractors) and [commercial vacuums](/collections/commercial-vacuums). Whatever you run, keep walking surfaces clean and, to the extent feasible, dry per OSHA ([29 CFR 1910.22(a)(2)](https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.22)), and schedule wet work after hours.

## Frequently Asked Questions

## How much does commercial cleaning cost per square foot?

Published ranges run from about $0.05 to $0.29 per square foot. ISSA lists general office cleaning at $0.09 to $0.17, Buildingstars cites $0.05 to $0.20 and Ziva Cleaning gives $0.10 to $0.25 for a standard office.

## How do you calculate cleaning cost per square foot?

Divide total monthly cost by total cleanable square footage. ISSA's example is $12,000 divided by 100,000 square feet, which equals $0.12 per square foot.

## Which facilities cost the most to clean?

Medical and healthcare facilities, at $0.14 to $0.29 per square foot in the ISSA ranges, versus $0.07 to $0.14 for schools.

## How much does it cost to strip and wax a floor?

ISSA lists strip and refinish at $0.30 to $0.60 per square foot and scrub and recoat at $0.20 to $0.40.

## When is square-foot pricing not accurate?

When cleaning needs differ greatly between spaces. ISSA recommends workloading, which prices by task and frequency, for those facilities.

## Related Guides
- [Commercial Cleaning Checklist](/blogs/equipment-guides/commercial-cleaning-checklist)
- [How to Strip and Wax a Floor](/blogs/equipment-guides/how-to-strip-and-wax-a-floor)
- [How to Use a Floor Scrubber](/blogs/equipment-guides/how-to-use-a-floor-scrubber)
- [Best Commercial Floor Scrubber](/blogs/equipment-guides/best-commercial-floor-scrubber) [Shop Floor Scrubbers](/collections/floor-scrubbers)