What's included
- Standard Residential Clean — Room by Room — 9 steps
- Deep Clean Add-On Procedure — 6 steps
- Quality Inspection Before Leaving — 8 steps
- Supply Inventory and Restocking — 5 steps
Standard Residential Clean — Room by Room
The core procedure every cleaner follows on a regular maintenance clean.
- Arrive on time. Put on shoe covers. Do a quick walkthrough to note any damage, stains, or areas the client flagged.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Start with kitchens and bathrooms — these take the most time and need full attention while you're fresh.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Kitchen: clear and wipe all countertops, clean stovetop and exterior of appliances, scrub sink, wipe cabinet fronts with fingerprints, take out trash, sweep and mop floor.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Bathrooms: scrub toilet inside and out, clean shower walls and tub, wipe mirror and vanity, clean sink and faucet, empty trash, sweep and mop floor.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Bedrooms: make beds (straighten if linens are on, full make if stripped), dust nightstands and dressers, vacuum floor including under bed edges.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Living areas: dust all surfaces including shelves and TV stands, wipe switch plates and door handles, vacuum carpet or sweep and mop hard floors.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Throughout: dust baseboards, wipe light switches, clean interior glass on windows and mirrors.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Final walkthrough: check every room. Look at it from the doorway — anything a client would notice? Fix it now.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Lock up per client instructions. Send completion text or photo to the client and your office.Notes: _______________________________________________
Deep Clean Add-On Procedure
Additional tasks for deep cleans, move-in/move-out cleans, or first-time clients.
- Complete the entire standard residential clean procedure first.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Kitchen deep tasks: clean inside microwave, wipe inside refrigerator shelves, degrease range hood and filter, clean inside oven, wipe top of cabinets.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Bathroom deep tasks: scrub tile grout, descale showerhead, clean exhaust fan cover, wipe inside medicine cabinet.Notes: _______________________________________________
- All rooms: dust ceiling fans and light fixtures, clean window sills and tracks, wipe all baseboards by hand, vacuum upholstered furniture.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Detail work: clean behind toilet, dust blinds slat by slat, wipe door frames and tops of doors.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Document anything that couldn't be fully cleaned (old stains, permanent marks, damaged grout) and note it for the client so they don't think it was missed.Notes: _______________________________________________
Quality Inspection Before Leaving
What the team lead checks before the crew leaves any job.
- Walk through every room starting from the front door, same path a client would take.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Check all countertops and surfaces — run your finger along them. No dust, no streaks, no crumbs.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Look at floors from a low angle. Missed spots and streaks are visible when you crouch down.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Check mirrors and glass — look from the side at an angle to catch streaks.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Inspect toilets: lid up, bowl clean, base clean, no drips on the floor behind it.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Verify trash bags replaced in all cans. No full bags left sitting.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Check that all cleaning supplies are packed up — nothing left behind at the client's home.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Confirm doors are locked and lights are off per client instructions.Notes: _______________________________________________
Supply Inventory and Restocking
Weekly supply check to prevent crews from running out mid-job.
- Every Friday, each crew lead checks their vehicle supply caddy against the standard supply list.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Count: microfiber cloths (minimum 20 clean), trash bags, glass cleaner, all-purpose cleaner, bathroom cleaner, floor cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Check equipment: vacuum filter clean and working, mop heads in good condition, scrub brushes not worn flat.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Submit a restock request for anything below minimum. Use the standard form — don't just text "need more stuff."Notes: _______________________________________________
- Office processes restocks Monday morning so all crews leave Tuesday with full supplies.Notes: _______________________________________________
Want your crew to run these on their phone?
Import these checklists into WithoutMe. Your crew checks off each step at the job site. You see who finished what.
Start with Cleaning procedures — free No signup required.Common questions
What checklists does a cleaning business need?
Every cleaning business needs at minimum: standard residential clean — room by room, deep clean add-on procedure, quality inspection before leaving, and supply inventory and restocking. Start with the one your crew asks about most often or the one that leads to the most complaints and callbacks.
How do I get my cleaning crew to actually use a checklist?
Print it and hand it to them. A checklist in a binder nobody opens is worthless. Keep it short, make the steps specific to how your company does the job, and check that it's being followed for the first two weeks. If you want them to use it digitally, share a link they can pull up on their phone at the job site.
How many steps should a cleaning checklist have?
Keep it under 15 steps. A checklist with 30 steps won't get used because it takes too long to follow on a live job. Focus on the steps that matter most: the ones your crew skips, forgets, or does inconsistently. You can always add detail later.