TL;DR
A cleaning contract earns its keep on five clauses generic templates miss: a task-list scope that kills "while you're here" creep, a supplies clause that says who buys what, keys-and-alarms liability language, a 24-to-48-hour cancellation window with a fee, and a rate-review clause so raising prices doesn't require a new contract. The template below covers all of it for recurring residential work, with the commercial add-ons (COI requirements, net-30, night access) noted separately. Working template, not legal advice; have your attorney localize it.
Cleaning is a relationship business, and unwritten relationships drift. The client who adds the oven "just this once," the cancellation an hour before arrival, the key that gets blamed for a package that went missing: none of these are disputes about cleaning. They are disputes about what was agreed, and they all get smaller when the agreement is on paper.
The template
RECURRING CLEANING SERVICE AGREEMENT
1. Parties. [COMPANY NAME], insured by [CARRIER, POLICY #] ("Company") and [CLIENT NAME] ("Client"), for cleaning at [ADDRESS]. Start date: [DATE].
2. Scope of service. Company will perform the tasks on the attached checklist ([Standard Clean / Deep Clean]) each visit. Tasks not listed, including [inside oven, inside fridge, windows, laundry], are available as add-ons quoted and approved before the visit they occur in.
3. Schedule. [Weekly / Biweekly / Monthly] on [DAY], arrival window [TIME]–[TIME]. Schedule changes require [24/48] hours notice from either party.
4. Rates and payment. $[AMOUNT] per visit, due [on completion / monthly by invoice, net 15]. Late balances accrue 1.5%/month. Rates are reviewed [annually / each January]; changes take effect with [30] days written notice.
5. Cancellations and lockouts. Visits cancelled with less than [24/48] hours notice, or where the crew cannot access the property, incur a fee of $[AMOUNT / 50% of visit rate].
6. Supplies and equipment. [Company provides all supplies and equipment / Client provides: LIST]. Client requests for specific products ([brand, fragrance-free, etc.]) are honored where listed here.
7. Access, keys, and alarms. Client provides access by [key / code / lockbox]. Keys are logged, coded without the address, and stored in a lockbox. Alarm code: Client will [disarm / provide code]. Company is not responsible for alarm charges from codes changed without notice.
8. Insurance and damage. Company carries general liability of $[AMOUNT] and janitorial bond of $[AMOUNT]. Damage or loss must be reported within [48 hours] of the visit; Company will repair, replace, or credit at its option. Pre-existing damage noted at walkthrough is excluded.
9. Satisfaction and re-cleans. Issues reported within [24 hours] of a visit are re-cleaned free within [3] business days. Refunds are not given for issues first reported after the window.
10. Termination. Either party may end this agreement with [2 weeks / 30 days] written notice. Company may terminate immediately for nonpayment or unsafe conditions.
Signatures: ______________ (Client, date) ______________ (Company, date)
The clauses that do the work
The checklist scope. Attaching a task checklist and pricing everything else as an add-on is the single highest-value structure in the document. "While you're here, could you just..." is how a 3-hour clean becomes a 4.5-hour clean at the 3-hour price, visit after visit. The clause is not about refusing; it is about the extra work being chosen and paid for.
The cancellation fee. A cleaning company sells time slots, and a same-morning cancellation is unsellable inventory plus a crew already routed. A 24-to-48-hour window with a 50% fee changes client behavior almost immediately, and the fee exists mostly to never be charged.
The key and alarm clause. The trust core of residential cleaning. Coded keys stored without addresses, a named access method, and the alarm-code provision protect both sides, and walking a new client through this section closes more deals than any discount; it tells them you have thought about the thing they are actually nervous about.
The rate-review clause. Most cleaning companies underprice their oldest clients for years because raising rates feels like reopening the whole relationship. A standing "rates reviewed each January with 30 days notice" line turns the raise into routine administration. Your best clients expect it; the clause just gives you permission to act like it.
The damage window. A 48-hour reporting window is fair to honest clients and fatal to the claim that surfaces three weeks later about a vase nobody photographed.
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The commercial add-ons
Janitorial and office accounts use the same skeleton with four additions: a certificate of insurance naming the client (their property manager will require it before the first visit), net-30 invoicing with a monthly statement, after-hours access and lock-up procedure spelled out per site, and a service-level list per area (lobby daily, offices twice weekly, floors monthly) instead of the residential checklist. Commercial clients will sometimes hand you their own contract; read the indemnification and termination-for-convenience sections before signing what their lawyer wrote for their side.
Pair it with the rest of the stack
The agreement sets the relationship; the schedule and invoices run it. If those still live in a notebook, our best CRM for cleaning businesses roundup covers the tools that handle rotating recurring schedules properly, and the invoice template completes the paper stack. On the growth side: how to get cleaning clients and cleaning websites that convert.
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