What is a house cleaner and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
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If you enjoy the feeling of a fresh clean house, take pride in a job well done, and simply love to clean, then you may shine in a career as a house cleaner. A house cleaner works in residential settings where he/she is responsible keep houses clean and well-organized. This is the career that provides you instant gratification where you get to see the rewards of your hard work in real-time, when you've the pleasure of creating a healthy and clean environment for your customers. Not only that, but it is the easiest home-based profession that offers you a chance to generate extra cash each month without earning any formal qualification.

Working as a cleaner, your duties may involve tidying, scrubbing, wiping, washing, dusting, vacuuming, sweeping, mopping, and polishing furniture, floors, work areas, appliances, and machinery. Your duties may vary, depending on what your customer needs or wants. In general, you'll do routine cleaning tasks each time you visit. To become an ideal candidate for the house cleaner role, you need to be in good physical condition, detail-oriented and know basic cleaning techniques. In terms of academic qualifications, you don't require any college major or certification. However, if you've earned a high school diploma, employment, and character references, with three-four years of proven work experience in the residential cleaning field that can be a crucial advantage to you!

Being a home service professional, you may get employed in a variety of areas such as within private households, domestic, industrial, health, education, public setting, and other establishments that need multiple tasks of cleaning. Usually, you'll work Monday to Friday starting at about 8 a.m. You may work irregular hours, split shifts, or may undertake work on a full-time, part-time or casual basis depending on when your day's assignments are done. As a house cleaner, you may earn hourly wages, or sometimes you get paid by the job. Your wages depend on your location, experience, and working hours. Generally, as a house cleaner, you can make an average of $24,554 a year and may receive additional benefits, such as meals, paid vacations, health insurance, transportation facility, or paid extra when you use your vehicle. The advancement possibilities as a house cleaner are incredibly high. With many people leading busier lives than ever before, finding time for never-ending house chores can be a challenge that can lead to more job openings for you as a house cleaner.

ScoreHouse CleanerUS Average
Salary
2.2

Avg. Salary $27,996

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level
4.9

Growth Rate 4%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity
5.5
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.47%

Asian 5.43%

Black or African American 9.60%

Hispanic or Latino 18.94%

Unknown 4.51%

White 60.06%

Gender

female 87.76%

male 12.24%

Age - 50
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 50
Stress Level
4.9

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity Level
6.7

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance
8.2

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

House Cleaner career paths

Key steps to become a house cleaner

  1. Explore house cleaner education requirements

    Most common house cleaner degrees

    High School Diploma

    48.9 %

    Associate

    17.0 %

    Diploma

    13.4 %
  2. Start to develop specific house cleaner skills

    Skills
    ascdesc
    Percentages
    ascdesc
    Taking Care34.44%
    Customer Service10.85%
    Customers Homes10.11%
    Dependability6.92%
    Window Sills6.59%
  3. Complete relevant house cleaner training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New house cleaners learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a house cleaner based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real house cleaner resumes.
  4. Research house cleaner duties and responsibilities

    • Supervise and train maids in their cleaning duties to ensure company standards of cleanliness are achieved.
    • Clean customers home to the merry maids standards (clean bathrooms, kitchens, bedrooms, living rooms, etc . )
    • Use industrial size washers and dryers.
    • Adhere to GMP documentation of work perform.
  5. Prepare your house cleaner resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your house cleaner resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a house cleaner resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose From 10+ Customizable House Cleaner Resume templates

    Build a professional House Cleaner resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your House Cleaner resume.
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  6. Apply for house cleaner jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a house cleaner job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How Did You Land Your First House Cleaner Job

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Average house cleaner salary

The average House Cleaner salary in the United States is $27,996 per year or $13 per hour. House cleaner salaries range between $21,000 and $36,000 per year.

Average House Cleaner Salary
$27,996 Yearly
$13.46 hourly

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How do house cleaners rate their job?

5/5

Based On 1 Ratings

5 Stars

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1 Star

House Cleaner reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Mar 2023
Pros

The finishing product

Cons

Was not much that I didn’t like .Working on my own didn’t bother me,was always interested in cleaning


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5.0
A zippia user wrote a review on Feb 2022
Pros

I like everything nothing I don't like. The constant busy cleaning.I like doing the staging and detail.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2020
Cons

Missing my family be away


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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