How to price Airbnb and vacation rental cleaning

Why turnovers are different from regular house cleaning

• Tight windows. Guests check out at, say, 11am and the next guests arrive at 3 or 4pm, so the job has to fit the gap.
• Hotel-style reset. Beds made with fresh linens, towels folded the same way every time, supplies restocked, and the place staged for photos.
• Reporting. Hosts want to know about damage, missing items and low supplies, usually with photos, before the next guest arrives.
• Repeat work from one client. One host with a few listings can send you many turnovers a month, so consistency matters more than any single clean.

Step 1: know your hourly number

Every turnover price should come back to one number: what an hour of cleaning has to bring in to cover pay, payroll taxes, insurance, supplies, driving and your profit. If you haven’t worked this out yet, start with how to price house cleaning or the price calculator.

Step 2: time a few real turnovers

Time the first few turnovers at each property from arrival to locking up. Include stripping and making beds, laundry handling, restocking, photos and the report, not just the cleaning. Turnovers often take less time than a full clean of the same home because guests usually stay only a few nights, but beds and staging add time back. Use your own timings, not a guess.

Step 3: set a flat price per turnover

Hosts budget per stay, so a flat price per turnover works better than hourly. Multiply the time a turnover takes by your hourly number, round up, and set a price for each property size, for example by bedrooms and bathrooms. Keep a minimum so a small studio still covers your drive and setup.

Step 4: decide how to handle laundry

Laundry is where turnover pricing most often goes wrong. Pick one of these and write it down:

• On-site laundry: you wash and dry linens at the property during the clean. Price the extra time, and remember you may have to wait for the dryer.
• Swap sets: the host keeps two or three sets of linens per bed. You put on a clean set and take the dirty one to wash. Charge per load or per bed for the washing, plus your time.
• Host or linen service: someone else handles laundry and you only make the beds. Your price is lower, but agree on what happens if clean linens aren’t there.

Step 5: price the extras clearly

• Restocking: toilet paper, soap, coffee and similar. Either the host supplies them and you restock, or you buy them and bill the cost plus a small handling fee.
• Same-day and short windows: charge more when the gap between guests is short or the host books on short notice, because it limits your schedule.
• Deep cleans: turnovers keep a place guest-ready, but the oven, fridge, windows and baseboards still need a proper deep clean every so often. Offer it as a separate scheduled job.
• Extra-dirty stays: agree up front on an extra charge, by the hour, when guests leave a place in rough shape, and send photos when it happens.

An example with numbers

These numbers are only an illustration; use your own costs and timings.

Say your hourly number is $50 per cleaner hour. A two-bedroom, one-bath unit takes one cleaner 2 hours including beds and restocking, so the turnover is $100. On-site laundry adds about 30 minutes, so you charge $25 more. A same-day booking with a short window adds $20. A turnover with all three is $145, and the host knows exactly why.

Put it in writing

Before the first turnover, agree with the host on: the price per turnover for each property, what’s included, how laundry and supplies work, how you get in (lockbox or smart lock code), the checkout and check-in times, what happens with late checkouts, how you’ll report damage, and how and when you get paid. A short agreement saves arguments later.

Keep turnovers on schedule

Turnovers follow the host’s booking calendar, so they move around more than regular weekly cleans. A scheduling app helps: put each property in once with its price, checklist and entry notes, assign the cleaner, and keep a photo checklist for each visit so the host sees the place was reset. Sweepivo has a page about software for Airbnb and vacation rental cleaning if you want to see how that works.

Written by the Sweepivo team, October 2026. General guidance only: check your state and local rules, and talk to an accountant or lawyer about tax and legal questions.

Questions

Should I charge Airbnb hosts hourly or per turnover?

Per turnover is usually easier for hosts because they budget per stay. Build the flat price from your hourly number and how long a turnover takes, and keep hourly pricing for extra-dirty stays.

Who pays for linens and supplies on a turnover?

Either works if it’s agreed in writing. Many hosts supply linens and consumables and pay you to restock; others ask you to buy supplies and bill them the cost plus a handling fee.

How do I price laundry for vacation rentals?

Decide whether you wash on site, take linens away to wash, or a linen service handles it. Then price the extra time or charge per load or per bed, and put it on the price list so the host sees it.

Should turnovers cost more on the same day?

Yes, many cleaners charge extra for same-day bookings or short gaps between guests, because those jobs limit the rest of the schedule. Tell hosts about the surcharge before they book.

Try it yourself

Every plan comes with a 30-day free trial, no card needed, in English and Spanish. Set up your services and prices, share your booking link, and see if it fits.

Rather see it first? Book a demo call and we’ll walk you through it.