Why Commercial Cleaning Quotes Vary So Much (And What Actually Affects Your Price) | DayMaker Cleaning Co.
You called three commercial cleaning companies for your Saint John office.
Company A quoted $250/month. Company B said $480. Company C won't give a number without seeing your space.
Why such a huge difference? Are some just ripping you off?
Not necessarily. Commercial cleaning pricing is complex because every office is completely different. Here's what actually affects your quote.
Size Isn't Everything (But It Matters)
Square footage is the starting point, but it's not the whole story.
A 2,000 sq ft open warehouse is completely different from a 2,000 sq ft medical office with 12 exam rooms.
Why layout matters as much as size:
Open spaces with minimal furniture clean faster. Offices packed with cubicles, private offices, and conference rooms take significantly longer.
The configuration of your space, how it's divided, and what's in it matters as much as the total square footage.
Desk and Workstation Density
This is huge and most business owners don't think about it.
10 desks vs. 40 cubicles in the same space = massive time difference.
Every single workstation means:
Surfaces to wipe down
Items to move and clean around
Computer monitors, keyboards, phones to dust
A garbage can to empty
A chair to clean
Example: An open office with 30 cubicles takes twice as long as the same square footage with just conference rooms and a few private offices.
More desks = more time = higher cost.
Bathroom Count and Condition
Bathrooms are the most time-intensive rooms to clean.
One bathroom vs. four bathrooms? That's a massive difference in time and cost.
Also matters:
High-traffic bathrooms (public-facing) need more attention than staff-only bathrooms.
A busy retail shop bathroom gets used 50+ times per day. An office bathroom with five employees gets used maybe 10 times.
More use = more cleaning needed = more time.
Surface Types and Colors
Here's something most people never consider: what color are your desks and counters?
Light-colored surfaces show everything.
White or cream desks and countertops show every fingerprint, smudge, and mark. They need constant wiping to look clean.
Dark surfaces hide minor marks and don't need as much attention.
Surface materials matter too:
Some desk materials attract dust like crazy. Others repel it. Glass surfaces and partitions are beautiful but time-consuming to keep fingerprint-free.
All of this affects how long cleaning takes.
What's ON the Surfaces
Does your office have a clean desk policy? Or are desks covered in papers, personal items, and equipment?
Clean desks = fast cleaning. We wipe the surface and move on.
Cluttered desks = slow, careful cleaning. We can't just wipe. We have to move things, clean around them, put them back exactly how they were.
Multiply that by 30 desks and it adds significant time.
We're not complaining. We'll work with whatever your office looks like. But it affects the quote because it affects the time.
Furniture Details (Yes, Really)
This seems minor but it adds up.
Desk and chair feet:
Some furniture styles have feet that collect massive amounts of dust and debris. Others don't.
Office chairs on wheels pick up everything from the floor. That all needs to be cleaned.
Chair types:
Fabric chairs need more attention than mesh. Leather is different from both. Rolling chairs on carpet trap more debris than hard floors.
We pay attention to these details because they affect how thoroughly we can clean and how long it takes.
Flooring Types
Your flooring makes a big difference in cleaning time.
All hard surface = faster. Sweep and mop, we're done.
Heavy carpet = more time. Vacuuming takes longer, especially with office furniture everywhere.
Mix of both = even more time. We're changing equipment, moving between different cleaning methods.
Light-colored carpet shows every spot and needs more frequent attention than dark carpet or hard floors.
Winter in Saint John = Salt and Mud
If you've never thought about this, you haven't dealt with Saint John winters.
High foot traffic in winter means constant salt and mud tracking.
Entryways get destroyed daily. Floors throughout the office get tracked on. Everything needs more frequent attention.
This is why some companies adjust pricing seasonally or include winter surcharges. It genuinely takes longer to keep things clean from November through March.
Glass and Windows
How much glass is in your office?
Interior glass partitions. Conference room glass walls. Glass doors throughout the space.
Every piece of glass shows fingerprints and smudges constantly.
Glass looks amazing when it's clean. It's also time-consuming to keep that way.
Offices with lots of glass take longer to clean than offices with standard walls.
Stairs and Multiple Levels
Stairs add significant time.
Vacuuming stairs. Wiping down railings. Moving equipment up and down between floors.
Some older Saint John buildings have challenging layouts with multiple half-levels or awkward staircases. This all factors into how long cleaning takes.
Single-level offices are faster than multi-level spaces, even with the same square footage.
Garbage Density
Five large trash cans vs. 40 individual desk bins.
Every garbage means:
Pull the bag out
Tie it
Replace with a new liner
Take it to the dumpster
When you have 40+ desks and every single one has a garbage can? That's significant time just on trash.
Add recycling bins and you've doubled the task.
This is one of those things that seems small but adds up fast in larger offices.
Hard-to-Reach Areas
How accessible is everything in your office?
Behind monitors and under desks:
Some setups are wide open and easy to clean. Others have cable management systems, tight spaces, or equipment that makes it difficult to reach.
Corners with filing cabinets or storage:
If we can't physically reach areas without moving heavy furniture, that takes extra time.
Tight spaces between furniture:
Some offices are packed tight. Others have good flow. The tighter things are, the longer it takes to clean thoroughly.
High Dusting Needs
Standard 8-foot ceilings vs. 15-foot ceilings with exposed ductwork.
High ceilings with exposed systems mean:
Light fixtures that need dusting
Vents and ductwork that collect dust
Pipes and beams that need attention
Ladders and extra time required
Offices with high ceilings and industrial aesthetics look great. They also take longer to clean properly.
Sensitive Equipment
Does your business have specialized equipment that requires extra care?
Medical offices: Specialized equipment, instruments, sanitation standards
Tech companies: Server rooms, expensive equipment, data sensitivity
Dental/orthodontic offices: Instruments, treatment rooms, strict protocols
This requires trained staff and extra care, which factors into pricing.
Baseboard Condition and Type
Even baseboards affect pricing.
Some businesses have clean baseboards that just need light dusting. Others get scuffed constantly from high traffic, rolling chairs, or equipment.
Light-colored baseboards show every mark and scuff. They need more frequent attention than dark baseboards.
Baseboard style matters too. Some types collect way more dust than others based on their profile and texture.
Industry-Specific Needs
Different industries have different cleaning requirements.
Medical/dental offices: Higher sanitation standards, patient-facing areas, health regulations
Retail spaces: Customer-facing areas are top priority, appearance matters more
Tech offices: Equipment sensitivity, cable management, specialized spaces
Legal/insurance offices: Document confidentiality, professional appearance
Your industry affects what gets prioritized and how we approach cleaning your space.
Why We Need to See Your Space
This is why quality companies won't quote over the phone.
We need to see:
How your desks and workstations are configured
What your surfaces and flooring actually look like
How many bathrooms you have and their condition
Your traffic patterns and high-use areas
What makes your specific space unique
Companies that give instant quotes over the phone are either:
Quoting low to get in the door then hitting you with "adjustments" later
Planning to rush through regardless of what your space actually needs (you get poor quality)
We walk through your space because all of these factors matter.
We're not trying to be difficult. We're trying to quote you accurately for the time it actually takes to clean your office properly.
What You Can Expect (Ballpark)
Even with all these variables, here are rough ranges for Saint John offices:
Small office (under 1,500 sq ft, minimal complexity): $200-400/month for weekly service
Medium office (1,500-3,000 sq ft, moderate desk density): $400-600/month for weekly service
Large or complex office (3,000+ sq ft, high desk density, multiple bathrooms): $600-1000+/month for weekly service
But these ranges are so wide because of everything we just discussed.
A 2,000 sq ft office with 10 desks, one bathroom, and dark surfaces might be $200/month.
A 2,000 sq ft office with 35 cubicles, three bathrooms, light surfaces, and lots of glass might be $400/month.
Same square footage. Completely different cleaning requirements.
The Cheap Quote Trap
When you get quotes that vary by 50-100%, it's tempting to go with the lowest one.
But now you understand why quotes vary. The cheap quote is probably:
Not accounting for actual cleaning time needed
Planning to rush through in 30 minutes
Using contractors who will cut corners
Lowballing to get the contract then underdelivering
The middle-to-higher quotes? Those are from companies who actually looked at your space, considered all these factors, and quoted for doing the job right.
Learn why the cheapest commercial cleaning quote usually costs more.
How to Get an Accurate Quote
Be ready to answer these questions:
How many desks/workstations do you have?
How many bathrooms?
What type of flooring?
How often do you want service?
Any special requirements or sensitive areas?
Let the company walk through your space. Even a 10-minute walkthrough gives way more accurate information than a phone call.
Ask what's included. Make sure you're comparing apples to apples. Some companies include things others charge extra for.
Understand that complexity costs more. Not because companies are ripping you off, but because it genuinely takes more time to do it right.
What We Look For During a Walkthrough
When we visit your Greater Saint John office to quote, here's what we're actually assessing:
Time estimation: How long will this realistically take to clean thoroughly?
Complexity factors: All the things we just discussed in this post.
Special considerations: Anything unique about your space or business.
Access and logistics: When do you need us there? How do we get in?
Your priorities: What matters most to you? What are your concerns?
Then we quote based on actual time needed, not just square footage.
The Bottom Line
Commercial cleaning quotes vary because offices vary dramatically.
Square footage alone doesn't tell the story.
Desk density, bathroom count, surface types, flooring, furniture details, glass, stairs, garbage volume, hard-to-reach areas, and industry-specific needs all factor into how long it takes to clean your space properly.
Companies that quote instantly without seeing your space are guessing. And you'll pay for that guess one way or another.
Companies that need to see your space are being thorough. They're trying to quote you accurately for what your office actually needs.
The quote that seems high might be the only one that actually accounts for cleaning your office properly.
The quote that seems cheap probably isn't accounting for half of what we just discussed.
Get quotes from companies that take the time to understand your space. Then you're comparing real numbers based on real assessments, not guesses and lowballs.
Your Saint John business deserves cleaning that's priced fairly and delivered thoroughly. That starts with understanding what you're actually paying for.
We quote after seeing your space because every office is different. Desk density, surfaces, bathrooms, complexity - it all matters. Let us walk through and give you an accurate quote based on what your space actually needs.
