If you’ve tried to find out what commercial cleaning actually costs in Sydney, you’ve probably hit a wall of “contact us for a quote” responses. That’s frustrating when you’re trying to budget or compare providers.
This guide sets out what commercial cleaning typically costs in Sydney in 2026, what drives the price up or down, and what you should expect to pay for different services and premises types.
These are the rates Showpiece charges — published because we think transparency makes for better client relationships.
Why Commercial Cleaning Rates Vary
Commercial cleaning is priced by the hour, and the hourly rate varies based on one primary factor: when the work is done.
Like most service industries, cleaning rates reflect the cost of labour under the relevant Award (the Cleaning Services Award 2020 in Australia). Day shifts are the cheapest. Evenings attract a penalty loading. Weekends and public holidays attract significantly higher loadings.
Beyond timing, the total cost of a cleaning contract depends on:
- Frequency — how many days per week the premises are serviced
- Size — square meterage and number of areas (offices, bathrooms, kitchens, common areas)
- Type of premises — an open-plan office cleans faster than a multi-floor building with breakout rooms and wet areas
- Scope — what’s included in each visit versus what’s additional
Sydney Commercial Cleaning Hourly Rates (2025)
These are Showpiece’s current rate ranges. Rates reflect the Award-compliant cost of labour plus supervision, equipment, consumables and insurance.
| Time Period | Hourly Rate Range |
|---|---|
| Day rate (Mon–Fri, 6am–6pm) | $50 – $60 per hour |
| Evening rate (Mon–Fri, 6pm–6am) | $55 – $65 per hour |
| Saturday | $68 – $80 per hour |
| Sunday | $85 – $100 per hour |
| Public Holiday | $100 – $115 per hour |
Why the range? The rate within each band depends on contract size and frequency. A client receiving five-day-per-week cleaning at a large site will sit toward the lower end; a smaller or less frequent contract toward the higher end. Rates are negotiated at the start of the contract.
What Does This Mean for My Office?
To give you a practical sense of cost, here are typical scenarios:
Small office (under 200 sqm, 3 days per week, evening)
Approximately 1.5–2 hours per visit at the evening rate. Typical weekly cost: $165 – $260.
Medium office (200–500 sqm, 5 days per week, evening)
Approximately 2–3 hours per visit. Typical weekly cost: $550 – $975.
Large office (500–1,000 sqm, 5 days per week, evening)
Approximately 3–5 hours per visit. Typical weekly cost: $825 – $1,625.
These are indicative figures. A site visit is needed to provide a firm quote because layout, number of wet areas, and the scope of each clean significantly affect time.
Day Cleaning vs Evening Cleaning
Most office cleaning in Sydney is done in the evening — after staff leave, typically from 6pm onwards. This is convenient for the occupants but attracts the evening rate.
Day cleaning is worth considering if your premises allow it. It’s cheaper, and some clients — particularly strata buildings, warehouses, and facilities with a small number of permanent staff — find it works well. Common areas, bathrooms, and kitchens in strata buildings are almost always cleaned during the day.
If you’re running a 3–5 day office cleaning schedule and budget is a factor, it’s worth discussing whether partial day cleaning is practical for your site.
Weekend and Public Holiday Cleaning
Weekend and public holiday rates are significantly higher due to Award penalty rates, and these costs are passed through to clients at cost-plus. Most commercial offices don’t require weekend cleaning unless there’s a specific operational need (a retail tenancy, a facility with seven-day occupancy, or an ad-hoc deep clean).
If you need a one-off weekend clean — for example, post-renovation or post-event — expect to pay the Saturday or Sunday rate for all hours worked, with a minimum call-out period typically applying.
What’s Typically Included in Commercial Office Cleaning
A standard office cleaning visit covers:
- Vacuuming all carpeted areas
- Mopping hard floors
- Emptying and relining bins
- Wiping down desks and surfaces (clearing clutter is the occupant’s responsibility)
- Cleaning bathrooms — toilets, basins, mirrors, restocking consumables
- Kitchen and breakroom — benches, sink, appliance exteriors, floor
- Spot-cleaning glass internal doors and partitions
Not typically included in a standard visit:
Window cleaning (external or full internal), carpet shampooing, high dusting, pressure washing, post-construction cleaning, or periodic deep cleans. These are priced separately (see below).
Window Cleaning Prices Sydney
Commercial window cleaning is a specialist service requiring trained staff and dedicated equipment — it’s priced separately from regular cleaning and typically scheduled on a periodic basis (monthly, quarterly, or as needed).
Showpiece charges $750 – $900 per staff member per day for commercial window cleaning in Sydney. Most jobs require one to two staff depending on the size and complexity of the building.
We use a pure water-fed (FED) system with carbon fibre poles, which allows us to clean buildings up to four storeys from street level without scaffolding or elevated work platforms. This keeps costs down significantly compared to access equipment hire and is suitable for the majority of low-to-mid-rise commercial buildings in Sydney.
Factors that affect the total cost include:
- Number of storeys and total glass area
- Whether pole access from street level is possible or obstructions require different positioning
- Frequency — regular scheduled cleaning is typically priced at the lower end of the range
- Framing type and condition (aluminium-framed commercial windows clean faster than complex framing)
Carpet Cleaning Prices Sydney
Commercial carpet cleaning is priced per square metre and is typically scheduled periodically — commonly two to four times per year for busy office environments, or as needed after heavy use or spills.
Showpiece charges $4 – $7 per square metre for commercial carpet cleaning in Sydney. Larger areas attract rates toward the lower end of the range; smaller jobs attract rates at the higher end and a minimum charge applies.
| Job Size | Indicative Rate |
|---|---|
| Small office (under 100 sqm) | $6 – $7 per sqm + minimum call-out |
| Medium office (100–300 sqm) | $5 – $6 per sqm |
| Large office or multi-area (300 sqm+) | $4 – $5 per sqm |
Pricing depends on carpet type and pile, soiling level, whether pre-treatment for stains or heavy-traffic areas is required, and access (furniture that needs to be moved adds time). A site inspection or floor plan is needed for an accurate quote on larger jobs.
Strata Cleaning
Strata common area cleaning covers the shared spaces of a residential or mixed-use building — foyers, lifts, corridors, stairwells, car parks, bin rooms and building entries. It also typically includes bin management: bringing bins out to the kerb for council collection days and returning them afterwards, which is a task most owners corporations prefer to outsource alongside the cleaning.
Because strata cleaning is daytime work, it’s priced at the lower day rate — making it one of the more cost-effective cleaning contracts relative to the scope of work covered.
How many visits per week does a strata building need?
This depends on the size of the building and the standard expected by the owners corporation or strata manager.
How much does strata cleaning cost per month?
Strata cleaning contracts are priced as a fixed monthly fee based on visit frequency, hours per visit, and scope. To give you a realistic sense of what different buildings cost, here are examples from our current client list.
Small building — 30 units, 2 visits per week — approx. $900/month
A 30-unit building in Chippendale we’ve serviced for several years. We visit Thursday and Friday each week. Thursday is a full clean of common areas plus putting bins out for council collection. Friday is a shorter visit to retrieve and store the bins, with spot cleaning and washing as required. Total monthly cost is around $900.
This is typical for smaller strata buildings: two visits per week covers cleaning and bin management without over-servicing the building.
Medium building — 70 units, 4 visits per week — approx. $2,700/month
A 70-unit building, also in Chippendale. We visit four times per week — two cleaning visits and two bin service visits. Each visit includes tidying the foyer and entry area. The scope also covers the garage and internal garden paths, which are included in the regular clean. Monthly invoice is around $2,700.
Large multi-storey — 5 to 7 days per week — $8,000 to $17,000/month
Larger buildings with higher resident counts, multiple lifts, and premium common areas typically require daily or near-daily service. At this level, buildings may also have gyms, pools, function rooms or concierge areas that need to be maintained to a higher standard throughout the day.
For context, we recently quoted a 33-storey building with a large pool, gym, library, residents’ lounge and BBQ facilities, requiring six days per week service from 7am to 9pm — including multiple staff on-site across different shifts. That quote came to just under $20,000 per month.
| Building Type | Typical Visits/Week | Typical Monthly Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Small (under ~35 units) | 2 | $800 – $1,000 |
| Medium (35–80 units) | 3–4 | $1,800 – $3,500 |
| Large multi-storey (80+ units) | 5–7 | $8,000 – $17,000 |
| Premium high-rise with full facilities | 6–7 + multiple shifts | $17,000+ |
These figures are from real contracts and quotes. Your building’s cost will depend on its size, the scope of each visit, and your service frequency — a site inspection is needed for an accurate quote. But the above gives you a reliable order-of-magnitude reference when comparing providers or budgeting for an owners corporation.
A site inspection is recommended before quoting any strata contract, as the number of lifts, lift interior finish, number of bin bays, car park size, and length of corridors all affect the hours per visit significantly.
How to Get an Accurate Quote
The most reliable way to get a realistic figure is a site inspection. A visit takes 20–30 minutes, and a properly scoped quote will not change materially once cleaning starts — unlike a ballpark figure that often creeps upward once the reality of the site is understood.
When requesting quotes, ask each provider to specify:
- The number of hours per visit they’re quoting
- The hourly rate they’re applying
- What’s included and excluded
- Whether consumables (toilet paper, hand soap, bin liners) are included or additional
- Their insurance and compliance credentials
A provider that can’t answer these questions clearly is worth approaching with caution.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are commercial cleaning rates negotiable in Sydney?
Yes. While Award rates set a floor, the final rate depends on contract size, frequency, and relationship. Larger or multi-site contracts typically attract better rates. The figures in this guide are ranges — the right rate for your specific situation is confirmed at quote stage.
Is GST included in these rates?
No. The rates above are exclusive of GST. A 10% GST component applies to all commercial cleaning services in Australia.
Do you charge a minimum call-out fee?
For regular contracted cleaning, no — you pay for the hours worked per the agreed schedule. For ad-hoc or one-off jobs, a minimum engagement period typically applies.
Why is evening cleaning more expensive than day cleaning?
Evening cleaning attracts a penalty loading under the Cleaning Services Award 2020. This is a legal requirement, not a discretionary premium — any legitimate cleaning company will charge more for evening work than day work.
What’s the difference between a cleaning company and a cleaning contractor?
A cleaning company employs its cleaners directly and is responsible for their pay, insurance, and compliance. A contractor or labour hire arrangement puts different obligations on the site owner. For commercial premises, working with a properly employing cleaning company (rather than a sole trader or informal arrangement) significantly reduces your compliance exposure.
How do I know if a cleaning company is properly insured?
Ask for a current certificate of currency for public liability insurance (minimum $10 million for most commercial sites) and workers’ compensation. A CM3-certified company has had this independently verified — you can check their status directly at cm3.com.au.
Showpiece Commercial Cleaning has been servicing Sydney businesses since 2001. We provide transparent, Award-compliant pricing for offices, strata buildings, schools and commercial facilities across Sydney’s CBD, Inner West, Eastern Suburbs, Southern Sydney and Western Sydney. Request a quote →
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