If you’re researching cleaning business ideas, there’s good news – you’re stepping into an in-demand business and a market with excellent earning potential.
Starting a cleaning business can be a lucrative way to get into the service business industry and exercise your entrepreneurial (and cleaning) skills.
Whether you’re new to the field or seeking fresh inspiration for your existing business, we put together a list of top cleaning business ideas for you to choose from.
16 Types of Cleaning Businesses
- Residential Cleaning
- Car Cleaning
- Commercial Cleaning
- Pet Cleaning
- Short-Term Rental Cleaning
- Carpet Cleaning
- Dry Cleaning / Laundry Service
- Disaster Relief Cleaning
- Window Cleaning
- Pool Cleaning
- Restaurant Cleaning
- Event Cleaning
- Pressure Washing
- Trash Bin and Dumpster Cleaning
- Move-Out Cleaning
- Junk Removal
#1: Residential Cleaning
Residential cleaning, or house cleaning, is a common cleaning business that requires little startup costs or experience. If you are detailed, organized, and love to clean, you can start a residential cleaning business.
Residential cleaning usually entails everything from mopping to vacuuming to wiping down surfaces in kitchens, bathrooms, living rooms, and bedrooms.
As a single cleaner, you can make anywhere from $30,000 to $50,000 — and that number can grow if you bring on a team to help you expand your services and bandwidth.
Check out our Ultimate Guide to Starting a Cleaning Business — we cover everything from how much you could earn to startup costs and tips for finding your first client.
#2: Commercial Cleaning
Commercial cleaning can be the most lucrative of all the cleaning businesses.
This type of cleaning business is geared toward any sort of commercial building, like an office, retail space, warehouse, or even a public building, like an event venue or an airport.
To get clients for this type of business, you need to make sure you market yourself professionally. Set up a website that displays your credibility, experience, and services — and don’t forget to showcase the other commercial businesses you’ve worked with.
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#3: Pet Cleaning
If you’ve ever tried to remove dog or cat hair from a sofa, then you know how necessary a pet cleaning business is.
Pet cleaning businesses focus on providing services that address the mess pets can leave behind.
Everything from carpet cleaning and pet waste removal to eliminating pet odors will entice pet owners who want to keep their homes or cars clean.
#4: Short-Term Rental Cleaning
According to AirDNA, there are over 2.4 million short-term rental listings in the US. This makes short-term rental cleaning another niche yet lucrative market to tap into.
Short-term rentals need to be cleaned between guests, and depending on how booked the rental is, this may need to happen on a quick timeline. The cleaning usually involves washing bed sheets, cleaning bathrooms, taking out trash, vacuuming, and wiping down surfaces.
As far as pricing goes, you could charge a flat rate for each house every time you clean it. If you have the bandwidth to cater to short-term rental customers, you could build a profitable and niche cleaning business in this industry.
#5: Carpet Cleaning
Carpet cleaning is a niche cleaning business with a range of potential customers.
Carpeted rooms tend to be high-traffic areas, meaning they must be cleaned regularly. Your services could include ongoing maintenance for customers who want to get their carpets cleaned several times a month. You could also offer one-off emergency services for big spills or pet messes.
#6: Car Cleaning
Car cleaning or detailing is another business with a large potential customer base. Over 283 million vehicles are registered in the US, including cars, trucks, and motorcycles. Car owners love to keep their vehicles clean, making car cleaning a great business opportunity.
Tip: Do you live in a coastal city or have a major river or lake nearby? You could niche down and offer boat cleaning to local customers.
#7: Dry Cleaning
Whether you want to get into traditional dry cleaning or start a modern laundry-on-the-go business, clothing cleaning services will always be in demand.
If you live in an urban town, you’ll likely have a strong customer base. The trick is to make sure you have a search-friendly website and detailed Google My Business and Yelp profiles so customers looking for dry cleaners online can easily find you.
#8: Disaster Relief Cleaning
If you want to make an impact with your cleaning business, consider disaster relief cleaning.
This type of cleaning happens after a natural disaster such as flooding or fires. Cleanup crews come in to help remove debris and make the space feel safe and like home again.
#9: Window Cleaning
Window cleaning is often put to the bottom of every homeowner’s to-do list — it’s a task that takes time, precision, and skill to get rid of pesky glass smears! This makes window cleaning one of the most in-demand cleaning services, and customers will likely book regular services to keep their home’s windows sparkling year-round.
You can focus on residential or commercial buildings or both. Keep in mind that for this type of business, you’ll need ladders or scaffolding towers to reach upper-level windows.
#10: Pool Cleaning
While pool cleaning is a niche service, if you live in the right location — somewhere with a very warm climate helps — you could tap into a lucrative market.
There’s also the option to move into community, hotel, and gym pool maintenance as many businesses look to keep their pool cleaning staff on a regular service schedule to meet sanitation regulations and protocol.
Remember: You’ll need specific pool cleaning supplies and relevant experience to start this business.
#11: Restaurant Cleaning
Restaurant cleaning is a specialized commercial cleaning service that you can offer as a standalone service or as part of a commercial cleaning business.
Restaurant cleaning involves helping your clients meet food and health standards by sanitizing their cooking and eating areas. Specific tasks may include tile and grout cleaning, deep cleaning hard surfaces and appliances, cleaning bathrooms, and pressure washing exterior walls.
#12: Event Cleaning
If you’re looking to launch a team-based business, event cleaning services could be the perfect niche!
Events generate a lot of waste – and the bigger the event, the more people you’d need to support the cleanup.
Weddings, festivals, markets, and street parties are all in need of cleaners and waste management specialists after the party dies down. Try reaching out to your local community and event organizers to see if they require help.
#13: Pressure Washing
Pressure washing is a specialized cleaning business with high demand.
If you know how to work a pressure washer, you can easily market your business to residential and commercial clients.
Pressure washing typically involves exterior spaces such as walls, driveways, sidewalks, and patios.
#14: Trash Bin and Dumpster Cleaning
Yes, even trash bins need to be cleaned!
Trash bin and dumpster cleaning is a niche service that serves a practical yet often overlooked, business need.
Businesses with high volumes of waste require regular cleaning of their trash bins and dumpsters to maintain legal sanitation standards (and prevent unpleasant odors around their business entrances).
To find your first client, think about reaching out to local businesses in your area that you know generate substantial waste, like restaurants, grocery stores, and industrial facilities.
Remember: You’ll need specialized equipment, like high-pressure washers to effectively clean and sanitize bins and dumpsters. So, consider the startup costs before committing to this business idea.
#15: Move-Out Cleaning
Whether at an apartment, dorm room, or office, building managers want to make sure their spaces are clean between tenants. That’s why they hire move-out cleaning services.
This type of service usually covers deep cleaning of all surfaces, floors, walls, and kitchen appliances.
The customers for move-out cleaning can be building managers or tenants, so consider that when coming up with your marketing.
#16: Junk Removal
Do you feel like you’re great at organizing living spaces and a minimalist lifestyle? Maybe junk removal is for you!
You could help clients clear out unwanted items from homes, offices, and more. But to operate efficiently, you’ll need a reliable truck or van to transport the junk out of peoples’ homes.
In this industry, you’ll need to prove that you carry out proper disposal, such as sorting items for recycling and taking materials to appropriate reclaim centers or scrap metal facilities. This will showcase that you not only support eco-friendly practices, but it can also boost your business's reputation.
If you’re looking to attract new clients, think about how you can share your commitment to responsible disposal and talk to homeowners, property managers, and businesses that need regular junk removal to build a steady client base.
Tip: Whether you’re considering starting a cleaning business from scratch or have been offering these services for a while, you need a professional website to reach your customers.
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A professional website is the tool you need to get your cleaning business in front of your ideal customers, no matter what type of services you offer.
