Should Guest be Expected to Clean when Host Charges a Cleaning Fee?

[Rob183]

Hi there, 

Curious on this one as a guest and a host.   My wife/friendsand I have been on opposite sides of the argument both as hosts and guests.

If a host charges a guest a cleaning fee (not small at $200 here in SF), what is the cleaning expectation of guests?

Some in our circles have argued guests should do the dishes and leave the place tidy.  Others have argued their paying a sizeable cleaning fee so why should they have to clean.

Curious what the community thinks and if there is a clear answer or it depends.

Thanks in Advance!

[Sarah977]

@WeiJia1    You are right- hosts should probably tell guests what they expect in terms of cleaning. Most hosts would not expect you to wash the floor, unless it had sticky stuff all over, but might expect you to sweep the place if there is a broom provided. Taking out the garbage for sure, washing all your dirty dishes and pots and pans and cleaning the stovetop if there is stuff spilled on it and not leaving rotting food in the fridge. Some hosts ask that guests strip the bed and put the used towels and linens in or on the washing machine, some prefer that the bed is left as is, as it is easier to see if the guests have damaged or stained the bedding. You shouldn't leave wet towels on the floor or wadded up somewhere, and countertops should be wiped down. Don't leave the sinks dirty or a bunch of your hair in the shower drain.

If a host doesn't mention what they expect in terms of cleaning, if you go with the basic things I mentioned above, you should be fine as far as getting good marks for cleanliness. In other words, clean up your own mess, but most hosts don't expect any heavy duty cleaning like floors, scrubbing shower walls, etc.

[Carla457]

Well I just had my first airbnb expierence and the cleaning fee was pretty high but I didn't mind cause I was expecting a really clean house which I didn't get which is why I was not to happy about having paid so much to stay in a place that seems not to take the cleaning to seriously. Our group left the house in better shape that we found it. I think if a host is gonna charge a cleaning fee daily the house needs to be really clean when you arrive. 

[Letti0]

@Carla457 I would bitch about this. I charge $170 for a cleaning fee (less than I actually pay), but I also have 6 beds, a sofa sleeper and 2 cribs to remake and all the towels to wash, finger prints on walls/windows, BBQ grills they don't clean etc. BUT my next guests get a clean place! No excuse for a dirty place cleaning fee or no cleaning fee.

[Michael956]

A $200 cleaning fee??? I charge a $20 cleaning fee here in San Francisco.  The city is expensive but not that expensive!  I'd expect to be treated like royalty with a cleaning fee like that.  

[Robin4]

@Michael956 @Mark116

Yeah Michael, I am with you. I don't agree with these enormous cleaning fees. Charge a guest what it costs up front....don't build guests expectations up to whack the cr*p out of them on the checkout page!

I now have a woman come in and clean the cottage for me twice a week and she is brilliant! She takes everything out of drawers and cleans them thoroughly, re-washes all the utensils, does a wonderful job on the bed...makes it then re-irons the folded down section of the sheets, She steam mops the polished concrete floors and tiled surfaces and she charges me $30 per turn-around. It saves me time and effort so I am prepared to subsidise it twice a week and do any additional turn arounds myself! I have now set a $10 cleaning fee. Absolutely nobody begrudges a $10 cleaning fee, in fact they respect you more because you plainly are not screwing them.

The girl who comes in lives a few hundred metres away, is really appreciative of the extra $60 per week and I have a listing that never looked cleaner. It's a win/win all round!

Sure I could charge a $50.....$100 cleaning fee, but I wouldn't feel good about it Michael.

Now, I can understand some domestic help can run at around $25 per hour but it takes no more than 3 hours for one person to turn a listing around, and to be charging a $150-$200 cleaning fee which amounts to $50-$75 per hour for domestic help tells me the host is either back door 'gouging' the guest or they seriously need to find another cleaner!

Cheers.....Rob

[Mark116]

We charge a small fee, $25, that barely covers the cost of sending out the comforters to be cleaned.   We ask guests to wash their dishes, take out their trash if their stay is longer than 3 days, e.g. put your own trash out on garbage pick up days, leave towels hanging in the bathroom, and clean up spills. 

We stopped asking guests to strip beds as it often resulted in everything-including expensive comforters--thrown on the floor in the corner and some people even unzipping the decorative throw pillows, and then throwing those on the floor also...so it was making things dirtier.

[Debbie305]

I am just curious because I have not been able to find any post regarding this topic.  My friend and I are staying in a lovely AIRBNB in Colorado the host left us a sheet of instructions which were very helpful but they also included chores that she wanted us to do such as sweeping her patio daily and watering the plants. Any thoughts on this?  We thought it was kind of strange since we are paying her.

[Letti0]

@Debbie0 was this mentioned in her rules or contract? If not I would not be sweeping her patio daily on vacation. 

[John1080]

@Letti0 @Debbie, I laughed out loud reading that the host left a list of chores, including watering her plants?!  Way out of line imo.

[Craig-And-Christina0]

@Rob183   We joined AirBnB as hosts in May and have had very inconsistent results.  The home has sentimental attachments and we did not want to sell...but were tired of longer term renters who left it a wreck.  Maybe we are not charging enough, but we weren't in it to make tons of money...just share it with people who would appreciate it and keep me active in retirement.   I expect to spend 2.5 hours between every guest cleaning (I dust every door jam/window sill/blind, clean every floor, etc.) because I want each guest to feel like they are entering into a welcoming home and not a flophouse.  Unfortunately, we have had a number of guests who seem to treat it like a cheap hotel room.  Dishes and pans in the sink, dirty/greasy countertops and stove, crumbs on the living floor.  I had globs of something that looked like it may be dried on brown gravy in the dining room wall.  One woman and her daughter seemed to be shedding with the amount of long black hair all over the bathroom and bedroom (gag).   One guest actually took the small bag I leave toiletries in on the beds for their convenience (that surprised me).  Our moderate cleaning fee ($35) is intended to cover just the cost of supplies.  I don't expect guests to clean the floors, do laundry, or anything like that.  Just be considerate.  We are already considering our decision and wondering if we should just sell, which would break my heart.  😞

I would appreciate any guidance I can get from other hosts.  Should we significantly increase the daily rental (AirBnB keeps sending "suggestions" that we reduce what I already consider for inexpensive...I dare anyone to find a 1000 sq ft hotel room with 2 bedrooms, full kitchen and garage for $72/night)?   Is there any way to have a "per day" cleaning fee (it seems like it is only a single flat fee for the stay)?  Is there any way to charge more for more guests (we did list it as acceptable for 4 guests, but I just dropped it today to 2...it seems like the more guests the more likely it is to be messy; maybe everyone else expects the other guy to straighten up)? 

I would like this experience to work for us...  

[Christine615]

Establish expectations up front:

I changed my listing to say that guests should return the apartment the way they found it. We state we will strip the beds and would appreciate the towels being put in the laundry basket. I make it explicit that the cleaning fee ($50) covers the cost of having someone wash the linens, etc.  It doesn't really cover anything else since it takes us 4 hours to clean the house between guests and sanitize.

Also make it clear that the bags for the toiletries are not to be taken. Some people may just assume that the toiletry bag is for them.

Almost all of my guests have cleaned up, bagged their trash, and washed the dishes. The few who weren't the best still tried to tidy up.


One tip - buy a bunch of lint rollers and one of those yellow spike things you can shove down a bath or sink drain to catch all the hair. Hair is often what slows us down. Some people shed enough hair to build a Star Wars wookie. It's insane 🙂

[Sarah977]

@Craig-And-Christina0   First off, your place looks really nice and your listing info is well written- you've put a personal touch into the text, as opposed to some listing descriptions which read like a generic rental ad. Putting the personal touch in helps to get guests who are respectful, so you've got that base covered. Also you have wonderful reviews- people obviously love your place and appreciate what you provide.

A few suggestions- it looks like you use Instant Book? While this definitely puts you up in the search rankings, it limits your ability to vet guests before they are allowed to book. Hosts need to weigh the advantages vs. the disadvantages of using IB. If guests need to send an Inquiry or Booking Request before a booking is confirmed, this gives you the opportunity to get a feel for whether a guest is a good fit for you.

It seems to be a fact, according to posts on this forum, that entire house listings can be problematic as far as guests respecting the space and leaving it clean, as opposed to places with an on-site host. You state in your listing that "the place is all yours" (that may not be an exact quote)- I don't know how close you live to the listing, but if it's not far (some hosts live hours away from their rental), you might want to amend that wording to something like "This is an entire home listing, however we live quite close and are readily available should you have any questions or need assistance with anything". This lets the guests know that you might drop by at any time (with prior communication of course) so they are more likely to keep the place in good order. Some hosts with whole house listings say they make it a point to let the guests know that they'll be coming by to introduce themselves and check that the guests have found all they need shortly after check-in.

You might also state somewhere in your listing info that this was your primary residence for many years and has sentimental value to you and that you expect guests to respect the place as if it were their own home.

In your communication via messaging when a guest books, if you don't already, you might make it clear what you expect guests to do re cleaning- i.e. leave the kitchen clean (dishes washed, stovetop clean- explain that the cleaning fee is intended to cover heavy-duty cleaning, laundry, putting out fresh supplies, etc, not cleaning up personal messes). Also put this loud and clear in a house manual on -site.

As far as guests taking the whole bag of supplies, some guest will do this, as they think it is all there for them. This is also something to make clear in a house manual. "Feel free to use the supplies provided during your stay, but we would appreciate you leaving the bag they are supplied in". Or don't leave out anything you don't want a guest to possibly make off with.

A comment re your photos, altho this has nothing to do with the type of guests you attract- the 2 opening photos of the front of the house are redundant- I find the second one a nicer shot and would use that as the cover photo and ditch the first one. You have no photo of the bathroom facilities- put in one of those, guest like to see the bathroom (no straight-on shots of the toilet and toilet lid closed- I can't believe how many hosts take open-lid toilet photos). I'd also eliminate the backyard photo which looks out on the house behind- the yard doesn't look that attractive in that shot and your other photo of the back of the house makes it clear that there is a yard there. 

Hope this helps somewhat and that you get the kind of guests who respect the place going forward- you're obviously great hosts according to your reviews.

[Kathie21]

I don't expect guests to clean - I do expect them to tidy up after themselves.

Cleaning: dust all surfaces and inside of drawers and cupboards, change the beds, clean all bathroom fittings, polish the shower screen, clean out the toaster, wipe out the microwave, fridge, sanitise the worktops, take out the rubbish and wash the bins, wipe down tables and mats, , brush upholstery, sweep and mop the floors, polish any smears off inside & outside of windows and mirrors, wash and iron the bedding, wash the towels, sweep outside the front door.  Then replace bin liners, check/top up/replace all the consumables, put everything back where it should be, put out new towels and bathroom mats. That's what I charge £20 for - it takes about 4 hours.

Tidying up after themselves: empty the fridge, put trash in the bin, wash dishes and put them away, clean the grill pan, wipe up any spills (including cooker top and in the oven).

[Te0]

Based on my observation the Cleaning Fee has been abused by many "smart" hosts as a tool to control their bookings. In a nutshell, they don't want short bookings (for whatever reason, reasonable or not). They set a high cleaning fee which makes a one-day reservation look expensive. Guests searching with a price filter will not even see these listings in the results. However, the longer a reservation is the lower the averaged nightly price will be. For those guests who book longer time, a relatively high cleaning fee actually makes sense.

I understand it's not all these hosts to blame. But I suggest any guest to consider this part of the purpose. I personally don't like it and will not do it. I will no book a place with such a setting either.

[Lisa723]

@Te0 my cleaning fee is set to the amount I pay my cleaners to clean, period. They clean between every booking. This is the fairest way to charge short- and longer-term guests according to actual costs, period. It's not some kind of trick; it's not that I don't want short bookings, it's that they are in fact more expensive per night. I wish Airbnb would make this more obvious in their presentation to guests, but I don't control that. I'm not going to shift the costs of short-term bookings to long-term guests, though.