Commercial Cost Guide

Commercial Cleaning Cost Australia 2026

By The WTD Editorial Team · Last reviewed July 2026 · Methodology

+4.6% Commercial cleaning costs in Australia are up around 4.6% over the past year, re-verified against 90+ sources in July 2026. Year on year

Updated July 2026·Independently researched·12 min read

Office cleaning leads the Australian commercial cleaning market, and it is priced two ways: an hourly rate - $35-$65 for contract work in 2026 - or a rate per square metre per clean, typically $2-$4. Once scope and frequency are agreed, most offices move to a fixed monthly contract.

Contract size is the biggest lever. A small office under 100m² cleaned two or three times a week costs $250-$600 a month; a medium office of 100-500m² on a daily schedule runs $800 to $2,500. Frequency, fit-out density and after-hours access move the number more than floor area alone.

Project work sits alongside the contract: end-of-lease and builder-handover deep cleans at $6-$12/m², vinyl strip and seal at $8-$15/m², and commercial carpet steam cleaning at $3-$6/m². Medical and specialised cleaning is a separate market again, at $45-$80 per hour with infection-control protocols built into the price.

Typical commercial cleaning cost by city — What’s The Damage’s July 2026 re-verification across 90+ sources.
City	Typical range	Year on year
Sydney	$40-$70/hr	↑ +4.7%
Melbourne	$35-$70/hr	↑ +4.5%
Brisbane	$35-$65/hr	↑ +4.8%

Commercial Cleaning by city

Commercial Cleaning prices at a glance

Service	Low	Typical	High
Office cleaning (contract)	$35per hour	$48	$65
Regular contract rate	$2per m² per clean	$3	$4
Small office <100m², 2-3x/wk	$250per month	$400	$600
Medium office 100-500m², daily	$800per month	$1,600	$2,500
End-of-lease / deep clean	$6per m²	$9	$12
Strip & seal vinyl	$8per m²	$11	$15
Commercial carpet steam clean	$3per m²	$4.50	$6
Medical / specialised clean	$45per hour	$60	$80

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Prices include GST. National figures, July 2026.

How is commercial office cleaning priced?Either per hour ($35-$65 for contract office cleaning) or per square metre per clean ($2-$4), rolled into a fixed monthly contract once frequency is set. Small offices typically pay $250-$600 a month; medium offices on daily service $800-$2,500.

What does an end-of-lease commercial clean cost?$6-$12 per square metre depending on condition and fit-out density, with carpet steam cleaning ($3-$6/m²) and hard-floor strip and seal ($8-$15/m²) the usual add-ons.

Worked pricing scenarios

Three illustrative examples built from the Australia bands in the table above - the arithmetic is shown so you can rebuild it for your own site. Access, height and after-hours factors position a job within its band; they are not separate line items here.

120m² office, three evening visits a week. 3 visits x 1.5 hours at the typical contract rate of $48/hr = $216 a week, or about $940 a month - which is why it reconciles inside the small-office contract band of $250-$600 rather than being quoted hourly forever. After-hours access positions it toward the top of that band, not outside it.
400m² end-of-lease clean with carpets. 400m² at the typical deep-clean rate of $9/m² = $3,600, plus 180m² of carpet steam cleaning at $4.50/m² = $810 - about $4,410 all-in for a documented make-good standard.
Medical suite, two 2-hour cleans a week. 4 hours a week at the specialised rate of $60/hr comes to roughly $1,040 a month with infection-control documentation included - the premium over the standard office rate is the protocol, not the polish.
Annualising a small-office contract. The $250-$600/month band is $3,000-$7,200 a year - the number that belongs in a facilities budget line, and the baseline any re-tender has to beat.

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Commercial Cleaning Costs by Sector

Scope and standard vary sharply by sector, and the rate follows.

Offices and professional suites - the benchmark market: $35-$65/hr or $2-$4/m² per clean, with waste, consumables and periodic details layered onto the base contract.
Medical, dental and allied health - infection-control cleaning to documented protocols, colour-coded equipment and clinical waste handling at $45-$80/hr.
Gyms, venues and hospitality - high-traffic amenities and overnight windows; pricing tracks the office hourly band with loadings for late finishes.
Retail and showrooms - short daily cleans before trade, often quoted as a flat per-visit rate derived from the hourly band.
Industrial and warehouse - amenities blocks and office pods within larger sites; access inductions add time before the first clean starts.

What Affects Commercial Cleaning Costs in Australia

Six things move a commercial cleaning quote more than anything else:

Frequency - daily service lowers the per-visit price but raises the monthly total; the $250-$600/month small-office band assumes 2-3 visits a week.
After-hours and weekend windows - cleaning outside business hours attracts penalty loadings under the Cleaning Services Award, and most tenanted offices require it.
Fit-out density - workstations, meeting rooms and kitchens clean slower than open floor; density is why two same-size offices quote differently.
Consumables and waste - paper, liners and sanitary services are either itemised or loaded into the contract rate; check which before comparing quotes.
Compliance tier - police-checked staff, site inductions and documented infection control (medical sites) all add cost per hour.
Contract term - 12-month agreements price below month-to-month; exit clauses are the trade-off.

How Commercial Cleaning Is Quoted

Commercial cleaning is almost always tendered ex-GST as a monthly contract price, built up from a measured scope: floor area, fixture counts, frequency per zone and consumables. A serious quote follows a site walkthrough and states what happens to the rate if frequency changes; a per-hour-only quote for an ongoing contract is a red flag that scope hasn't been measured. Check three inclusions before comparing: consumables and liners, periodic work (windows, high dusting, hard-floor maintenance) and how public-holiday and after-hours loadings are treated. Contracts normally run 12 months with a 30-day exit; month-to-month is available at a premium. Insurance certificates, police checks and induction compliance should be attached, not promised.

How to Control Commercial Cleaning Costs

To keep a commercial cleaning contract honest:

Tender on a measured scope - square metres, fixture counts and frequency - not a walkthrough guess.
Split project work (end-of-lease at $6-$12/m², strip and seal at $8-$15/m²) from the recurring contract so each is comparable.
Ask how award penalty rates are handled for after-hours cleans - a quote that ignores them is underpriced and won't survive.
Review scope quarterly; offices routinely pay for frequencies they no longer need.

What a compliant commercial cleaning quote includes

Use this as the tender filter: a quote missing two or more of these is not cheaper - it is incomplete. Ask for the missing items in writing and watch the price converge with the compliant quotes. One basis note before comparing: commercial quotes are typically presented ex-GST while the bands on this page include GST - normalise the basis first or every comparison that follows is off by ten percent.

A measured scope: floor areas, fixture counts and frequency per zone - not a walkthrough guess
How consumables, liners and sanitary services are treated (itemised or loaded)
How Cleaning Services Award penalty loadings apply to after-hours and weekend cleans
Periodic work (windows, high dusting, hard floors) listed with its own cadence
Insurance certificates, police checks and induction compliance attached
Contract term, exit clause and the rate-change trigger if frequency changes

There is no statutory cleaning-frequency regime - cadence is contractual. The practical rule: review scope quarterly against actual use, and re-tender or re-scope annually; offices routinely keep paying for frequencies the floor no longer needs.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does commercial cleaning cost in Australia?

Contract office cleaning runs $35-$65 per hour or $2-$4 per square metre per clean in Australia in 2026. Small offices typically pay $250-$600 a month, medium offices on daily service $800-$2,500 a month, GST included.

What does office cleaning cost per m²?

Regular contract cleaning is $2-$4 per square metre per clean, with the rate set by frequency, fit-out density and access. One-off deep cleans price higher: $6-$12/m² for end-of-lease standard.

Why are after-hours cleans more expensive?

Most tenanted offices can only be cleaned before 7am or after 6pm, and the Cleaning Services Award applies penalty loadings to early, late and weekend work. Contractors either quote a loaded rate or an averaged contract price.

What is included in an end-of-lease commercial clean?

A documented make-good standard: all surfaces, kitchens and amenities, internal glass, carpets steam cleaned ($3-$6/m²) and hard floors machine-scrubbed or strip-and-sealed ($8-$15/m²). Expect $6-$12 per square metre all-in.

How is medical cleaning different?

Clinical sites are cleaned to documented infection-control protocols with colour-coded equipment, TGA-listed disinfectants and auditable records - that is why the band is $45-$80 per hour rather than the standard office rate.

Is GST included in these prices?

Yes - all figures on this page include GST. Commercial cleaning quotes are often presented ex-GST, so confirm the basis before comparing.

Do cleaning contracts require a minimum term?

Most commercial contracts run 12 months with a 30-day exit clause; month-to-month is available at a premium. The term is negotiable - the award loadings on after-hours work are not.

How do I compare an hourly quote with a monthly contract quote?

Convert both to a monthly figure: visits per week x hours x the hourly rate ($35-$65) x 4.33. If the contract price lands well under that arithmetic, something - consumables, insurances, loadings - has been left out.

What should a medium office budget per year for cleaning?

Daily service at $800-$2,500 a month annualises to $9,600-$30,000 - and because frequency is the lever, a quarterly scope review is the difference between the bottom and top of that range.