In short
A self-employed cleaner’s earnings are their price per hour multiplied by the hours they actually fill, minus supplies, travel, platform and card fees, and then tax. Two cleaners charging the same rate can take home very different amounts, so work out your own figure with an earnings calculator rather than relying on an average.
The formula behind every cleaner’s earnings
Whatever you charge, your take-home comes down to the same few numbers:
- 1Your rate — per hour, or per job divided by the hours it takes
- 2Billable hours — the hours customers actually pay for, not the hours you are out of the house
- 3Costs — supplies, travel, insurance, your phone, and any platform or card fees
- 4Tax — Income Tax and National Insurance on your profit
- 5Weeks worked — as a self-employed cleaner, holidays and sick days are unpaid
Worked example: one regular clean
Say you charge £18 an hour (an example, not a recommended rate) and do a 3-hour regular clean booked through Holler. The customer pays £54.00.
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Price the customer pays | £54.00 |
| Holler commission (8%) | − £4.32 |
| Stripe card fee (typically 1.5% + 20p) | − £1.01 |
| Paid to your bank | £48.67 |
There is no subscription, listing or lead fee on top. If you take customers directly, you would not pay the commission — but you would do your own invoicing and chasing.
Worked example: a full week
Now say you do 8 of those cleans a week — 24 paid hours. Getting between homes takes, for example, another 6 hours that nobody pays for.
| Per week | |
|---|---|
| Takings (8 × £54.00) | £432.00 |
| Holler commission and card fees | − £42.64 |
| Supplies (example) | − £15.00 |
| Fuel or fares (example) | − £25.00 |
| Profit before tax | £349.36 |
| Per hour actually worked (30 hours) | £11.65 |
So £18 an hour on paper became about £11.65 for every hour you were working, before tax and insurance. That gap is easy to miss when you set your rate — and it is exactly why travel and job size matter so much.
Then there is tax
You pay Income Tax and Class 4 National Insurance on your yearly profit — takings minus allowable expenses — through Self Assessment. How much depends on your total income for the year, including any job you have alongside cleaning, so the calculator does not deduct it.
Check the current rates on gov.uk: Income Tax rates and National Insurance if you are self-employed. Our guide to self-employed tax covers the basics.
What pushes a cleaner’s earnings up
- Tighter routes — customers close together turn unpaid travel time into paid cleaning time
- Longer jobs — one 4-hour clean usually beats two 2-hour cleans across town
- Higher-value work — deep cleans and end-of-tenancy cleans are usually priced higher than regular cleans
- Regular customers — a full diary of weekly and fortnightly homes means less time looking for work
- A minimum charge — so short jobs still cover the trip
- Reviewing prices — a yearly price rise keeps up with your costs
More on setting rates in how to price cleaning jobs.
What holds earnings down
- Gaps in the day you cannot fill
- Last-minute cancellations — set a clear cancellation policy
- Paying for leads that do not turn into bookings
- Underpricing big or very dirty jobs because you guessed the hours
- Unpaid weeks off — plan for holidays and illness in your rate
Questions people ask
How much do self-employed cleaners earn per hour?
It depends on where you work and what you charge. Rather than trust an average, check local rates, then use the earnings calculator to see your take-home after fees. Remember unpaid travel time lowers your real hourly rate.
How much does a cleaner take home from a job on Holler?
The price you set, minus Holler’s flat 8% commission and Stripe’s card fee (typically 1.5% + 20p for UK cards). There are no subscription or lead fees.
Can you make a full-time living from cleaning?
Many people do. The cleaners who earn most usually have a full diary of regular customers close together, add higher-value deep and end-of-tenancy work, and review their prices every year.
Do self-employed cleaners get paid holiday?
No. When you are self-employed, weeks you do not work are unpaid, so build holidays and sick days into the rate you charge.
Keep reading
Earnings calculator for self-employed pros
Free earnings calculator for self-employed cleaners and tradespeople: enter your price and jobs per week to see your take-home per job, week and year.
How to price cleaning jobs
How to price cleaning jobs in the UK: hourly vs per-job, deep and end-of-tenancy premiums, minimum charges, travel, supplies and how to raise your prices.
How to become a self-employed cleaner in the UK
Become a self-employed cleaner in the UK: check your status, register with HMRC, keep records, get insured and DBS checked, set prices and find customers.
Self-employed tax in the UK, explained plainly
Self-employed tax in the UK explained: Income Tax, Class 4 National Insurance, the £1,000 trading allowance, expenses, payments on account and key deadlines.