Summary
This page has a cleaning business plan template as a Word file (.docx) with a PDF copy; the download asks for your first name and email. Besides the usual plan sections, it works out your rate per crew-hour with travel and admin counted, when one crew's hours run out, how many recurring clients you keep, and which insurance and licenses to check. Every example figure in it is labelled and made up.
Key Takeaways
- •The template is a Word (.docx) file with a PDF copy: a 17-page PDF render with a one-page summary, 10 numbered sections and worksheets 5.1 to 5.8.
- •Rate per crew-hour is the price of a visit divided by its on-site, travel and admin crew-hours. It is revenue, not profit and not a wage, and the file gives no market rate.
- •The first-hire trigger is the first month your booked crew-hours pass what one crew can do. You enter your own hiring lead time, and the file tells you to start that many months earlier.
- •The employee-or-contractor box states no rule. It sets out the IRS's three categories, the SBA's warning and Form SS-8, and sends you to an attorney and your state agency.
- •Every example figure in the file is labelled and made up, and the client examples do not describe one company.
Is there a free cleaning business plan template?
- Cleaning business plan template (Word .docx, about 54 KB)
- Cleaning business plan template (PDF, 17 pages, about 489 KB)
The form says: “Your download starts right away. We'll also add you to our free business-plan newsletter. Unsubscribe anytime.”
Yes: the two files above, a fill-in plan for a residential or commercial cleaning company. The form also says: “Free sample: check all information before you use it. Provided as is, without support.”
What the file has
The PDF is 17 pages, a LibreOffice render of the Word file. Page 1 is a free-sample note. Then come a one-page summary and 10 numbered sections, with the cleaning worksheets in 5.1 to 5.8.
How to read the examples
Every dollar figure and count in the file's worked examples is labelled “Example — replace with your numbers”, with made-up inputs that are not a market rate. The file gives no wage or pay rate. The capacity example reuses the recurring home visit from the rate example. The recurring-clients table (18 clients) and the clients-in-and-out table (57 clients at month 12) are separate sets of made-up numbers and do not describe one company, so do not add them together. For instance, the capacity example's 240 booked crew-hours in month 12 do not tie to either.
What the file does not do
- No built-in calculations. Word has none, so the arithmetic is laid out for you.
- No market prices, wages, margins or utilization figures, and no legal rules for contractor classification, licensing, bonding, insurance, or chemical and workplace safety. Check with your state or an attorney.
- Not separately built: janitorial contracts, pressure washing, carpet cleaning and regulated work.
- Checked in LibreOffice only. It has not been opened in Microsoft Word, and Word may paginate differently from the 17-page PDF.
- Not legal, tax, accounting, insurance or lending advice.
What should a cleaning business plan include?
A cleaning plan includes the eight sections of the SBA's traditional business plan, with the cleaning-specific work in the service-line section: price per crew-hour, crew capacity, recurring clients, the employee-or-contractor choice, insurance and licenses, and the startup list. The eight are executive summary, company description, market analysis, organization and management, service or product line, marketing and sales, funding request and financial projections. The SBA says you “don’t have to stick to the exact business plan outline” and should use the sections that make sense for your business (SBA: Plan your business).
The template follows that order in sections 1 to 8, with the service line as section 5, and adds risks (section 9) and an appendix checklist (section 10).
Residential or commercial first is your call, and the file states no rule. Its service menu and recurring-client table have a client-type column, so you can fill in a row for each; the file does not compare the two for you.
Section 3 asks for your own market research with source and date, and supplies no market-size figure or price; to check yours, see how to test your market research. For the whole document, see the guide to writing a business plan; to make a template sound like your business, see how to customize a business plan template.
Running a different kind of service business (consulting, coaching, bookkeeping)? Use the service business plan template.
How do I price a cleaning job by the crew-hour?
Divide the price of a visit by every crew-hour it takes: on-site, travel and admin. A crew-hour is one hour of one crew's time. To convert from labor-hours, divide by the crew size: a crew of 2 that spends 6.0 labor-hours on site has spent 3.0 crew-hours (Example — replace with your numbers).
This is revenue per crew-hour, not profit and not a wage. It is the price before labor and supplies, so the file leaves its labor-cost and supplies columns blank for you to fill in and gives no pay rate. The file gives no market rates.
Example — replace with your numbers. Made-up inputs, not a market rate. Crew of two; hours are crew-hours of one crew. The file's example has four rows; three are shown.
| Visit type (example) | Price | On-site | Travel | Admin | Total crew-hours | Rate per crew-hour |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recurring home visit, every two weeks | $190 | 3.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 4.0 | $47.50 |
| Deep clean, one time | $360 | 6.0 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 7.5 | $48.00 |
| Office, evenings, one month of one client (13 visits) | $1,260 | 19.5 | 6.5 | 2.0 | 28.0 | $45.00 |
The office row is built from 13 visits × 1.5 on-site = 19.5, 13 visits × 0.5 travel = 6.5, and 2.0 admin for billing and supplies each month. That is 19.5 + 6.5 + 2.0 = 28.0 crew-hours, and $1,260 ÷ 28.0 = $45.00 (Example — replace with your numbers).
How many jobs can a crew do, and when do I hire?
Work out one crew's crew-hours a month, then compare it with the crew-hours you have booked. The file's first-hire trigger is the first month in which booked crew-hours are more than one crew's. You enter your own crew-hours; the file gives no default and no utilization figure.
Example — replace with your numbers. Made-up inputs, using the recurring home visit above. A month averages 52 ÷ 12 weeks.
| Line | Step | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a | Crew-hours available a week (one crew) | 48.0 |
| e, f | Crew-hours per visit (3.0 on-site + 0.5 travel + 0.5 admin = 4.0); visits a week = a ÷ 4.0 | 12 |
| h | Revenue a week = 12 visits × $190 price per visit | $2,280 |
| i | Revenue a month = h × 52 ÷ 12 | $9,880 |
| k | One crew's crew-hours a month = a × 52 ÷ 12 | 208 |
Enter your booked crew-hours for each month of Year 1. The example's are 120, 136, 152, 168, 180, 192, 200, 208, 216, 224, 232 and 240. Month 9, at 216 booked against 208, is the first month over. Month 8 equals 208, which is not over.
That is arithmetic on made-up hours, not a rule for when to hire. Hiring takes lead time (finding and training a person), so the file says to start hiring that many months before the first month over. You enter your own lead time. For more, see planning when to hire.
How do I show recurring clients and cancellations?
Use two tables. The first lists every regular client and what each is worth a month, giving monthly recurring revenue and your largest client's share. The second runs clients at the start of a month, plus new, minus lost, equals clients at the end.
Example — replace with your numbers. Made-up counts for one month.
| Client type | Clients | Visits a month | Price | Monthly value, each | Monthly value, total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home, weekly | 6 | 4 | $170 a visit | $680 | $4,080 |
| Home, every two weeks | 10 | 2 | $190 a visit | $380 | $3,800 |
| Office, evenings | 2 | 13 | $1,260 a month | $1,260 | $2,520 |
| Monthly recurring revenue | $10,400 |
The largest client is $1,260 (an office client), so its share is $1,260 ÷ $10,400 = 12.1% (Example — replace with your numbers).
Example — replace with your numbers. Made-up counts, months 1, 6 and 12 of 12.
| Month | 1 | 6 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|
| + New | 8 | 6 | 5 |
| − Lost | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| = At end | 8 | 37 | 57 |
Across all 12 months the example has 76 new clients and 19 lost, and 76 − 19 = 57. These counts only show how the sum works. They are not a rate, and no count is a target or a warning.
The free Excel workbook has no churn line. Work cancellations in this table, then lower the visits you enter in the workbook and say so in your assumptions. Slow months get a blank table in 5.8 for your own pattern; the file shows none.
Should my cleaners be employees or independent contractors?
The file does not answer that for you. Section 5.5 is a decision box that states no rule and does not say which choice fits. It ends with: check with an attorney and your state agency before you decide.
The IRS says classification turns on “the extent of the right to direct and control the worker”. It sorts the facts into three categories: behavioral, financial (“how worker is paid, whether expenses are reimbursed, who provides tools/supplies”) and type of relationship. It adds that “no one factor stands alone” (IRS: Independent contractor or employee?).
The SBA warns: “Independent contractors can sometimes qualify as employees in a legal sense.” If a contractor is found to meet the legal definition of an employee, the SBA says you may need to pay back taxes and penalties and provide benefits (SBA: Manage your business). If it is still unclear, the IRS says the business or the worker may file Form SS-8, and the IRS will review the facts and circumstances and officially determine the worker's status (IRS).
The box then asks for your own facts: who sets the schedule, who supplies equipment, how pay is set, what is in writing, and when you checked with an attorney or your state agency. If you hire employees, the SBA says you will be responsible for state employment taxes, which “vary by state” (SBA: Manage your business).
Which insurance, bonding and licenses should I check?
Check each item below with your state and your insurance agent. Section 5.6 lists them and states no rule. The SBA says license and permit “requirements and fees vary based on your business activities, location, and government rules” (SBA: licenses and permits) and “Laws requiring insurance vary by state” (SBA: business insurance).
| Item | What the SBA or IRS says | Where the file sends you |
|---|---|---|
| General liability insurance | SBA table: “Any business” | Ask your insurance agent |
| Professional liability insurance | SBA table: “Businesses that provide services to customers” | Ask your insurance agent |
| Home-based business coverage, if run from home | SBA table: “Businesses that are run out of the owner’s personal home” | Ask your insurance agent |
| Commercial auto, if crews drive | Not on the SBA table | Ask your insurance agent |
| Workers' compensation and unemployment, if you hire | Not on the SBA's six-type insurance table; rules vary by state | Check with your state |
| Bonding, if a client asks | Not on the SBA table | If a client asks, ask what they mean and ask your insurance agent |
| Local business license | Requirements vary (quote above) | Check with your state, county and city |
| Zoning, if home-based | “zoning ordinances can still apply even to home-based businesses” (SBA: Launch your business) | Check with your department of city planning |
| Chemical safety and training | SBA lists “workplace health and safety laws” among requirements to check (SBA: Manage your business) | Check with your state workplace-safety agency and your insurer |
The SBA's table of six common insurance types does not list commercial auto, workers' compensation or bonding (SBA: business insurance). SBA's list of locally regulated activities does not say whether cleaning is a licensed trade: check with your state, county and city (SBA: licenses and permits).
What do I need to buy to start, and how do I turn the plan into projections?
Section 5.7 lists what to buy before the first paid visit, by category only. You enter your own quotes; the file has no price list. The total feeds section 8.1 (sources and uses) and your funding request.
The startup list
The ten categories are cleaning equipment, starter supplies, uniforms and protective gear, a vehicle, the first insurance premium, license fees, software, launch marketing, deposits and a working-capital reserve (cash to pay crews before clients pay). Each is matched to a line in the Excel workbook's Startup & Funding section, such as Equipment or Vehicles.
Where lenders come in
The SBA lists these among the uses of a microloan: working capital, inventory, supplies, furniture, fixtures, machinery and equipment. It says microloans are made through intermediary lenders and that the lenders “make all credit decisions and set all terms” (SBA: Microloans). For a 7(a) loan, the SBA says “You will be applying for your loan directly through a local lender”, and that most 7(a) term loans are repaid “from the cash flow of the business” (SBA: 7(a) loans).
Ask your lender what it requires. The file states no amount, rate or term and promises no loan.
From the plan to projections
The SBA asks for “a prospective financial outlook for the next five years”, with forecasted income statements, balance sheets, cash flow statements and capital expenditure budgets, and says to “match them to your funding requests” (SBA: Plan your business). The template holds summary tables only and does not cover everything the SBA lists. Build the model in the free Excel business plan template, then copy the summary figures into section 8.
The workbook is not cleaning-specific. Section 8 states its limits:
- Enter visits (or recurring clients) per month at full Year-1 volume, plus a price per unit. Supplies are a percentage of each line's sales.
- Ramp-up is one six-month table, so client movement in months 7 to 12 cannot be entered month by month.
- Payroll is salaried by role, with no hourly scheduling, overtime or bonuses. For crews paid by the hour, work out an annual figure per person by hand: [your hourly pay] × [paid hours a week] × 52.
- There is no churn line or crew-capacity model, and seasonality is one factor per calendar month.
Sources
- SBA — Plan your business (Write your business plan)
- SBA — Launch your business (Get business insurance)
- SBA — Launch your business (Apply for licenses and permits)
- SBA — Launch your business (Local zoning ordinances)
- SBA — Manage your business (Hire and manage employees)
- SBA — Microloans
- SBA — 7(a) loans
- IRS — Independent contractor (self-employed) or employee?
The SBA pages show no date; they were read on 2026-10-17. The IRS contractor page was last reviewed 19 May 2026. Example numbers come from the template file.
FAQs
Do I have to give my email to download it?
Yes. The form asks for your first name and email. It says: “Your download starts right away. We'll also add you to our free business-plan newsletter. Unsubscribe anytime.” It also says: “Free sample: check all information before you use it. Provided as is, without support.”
Is there a spreadsheet to go with it?
Not a cleaning-specific one. The file's tables are in Word, with the arithmetic laid out for you. For a 5-year model, use the free Excel business plan workbook on this site (linked in the section on startup costs and projections above). It has no churn line and no hourly payroll, and the file shows how to work around both; the crew-capacity worksheet is in the Word file (5.3), not the workbook.
Does it work for janitorial or commercial-only cleaning?
The structure fits work done in visits or contracts. The file says janitorial contracts, pressure washing and carpet cleaning have the same visit-based shape, so use section 5 and adapt it, but it does not build them separately. Regulated work such as biohazard, restoration or medical facilities has rules the template does not cover: check with your regulator.
Can I use it to apply for a loan?
It helps you organize the plan, but ask your lender what it requires. The file states no loan amount, rate or term, and it promises no loan or approval. The SBA microloan and 7(a) pages are linked in the section on startup costs above.
Does it open in Word?
It is built for Word, and a PDF copy is included. It was checked in LibreOffice only and has not been opened in Microsoft Word.
Conclusion
Start with the three worksheets in section 5 (5.2, 5.3 and 5.4): they give you the numbers the other sections ask for. Then check every rule with your state, your insurance agent and the SBA and IRS pages linked above.
