Do you tip house cleaners, and how much?
Yes, many clients tip house cleaners, but it is never required. A commonly cited range is 10% to 15% of the cleaning price, with 20% not unusual for excellent work, and a larger thank-you at the end of the year.
There is no official standard. Thumbtack’s tipping guide, citing the Association of Residential Cleaning Services International, puts the generally accepted amount at 10% to 15% and notes that 20% is not uncommon. For holidays, the Emily Post Institute suggests cash up to the amount of one week’s pay and/or a small gift for a housekeeper or cleaner.
Here is what those guidelines mean in dollars for common cleaning jobs:
| Job (example price) | 10% to 15% | 20% for exceptional work |
|---|---|---|
| Recurring standard clean ($150) | $15 to $22.50 | $30 |
| Deep clean ($350) | $35 to $52.50 | $70 |
| Move-out clean ($400) | $40 to $60 | $80 |
| Holiday tip, weekly client at $150 a visit | Up to $150 (one week’s pay), and/or a small gift | |
Clients on a weekly or every-other-week plan often tip a little each visit, or skip per-visit tips and give a bigger one in December. Both are normal. Tips also tend to be larger after hard jobs: a post-party clean, a move-out, or a home with pets in shedding season.
Owners get this question from clients all the time. The answer that builds the most goodwill is honest and simple: tips are appreciated, never expected, and go entirely to the cleaners.
Should cleaning businesses accept tips?
Most residential cleaning businesses should accept tips. Tips raise cleaners’ pay at no cost to the business, and cleaners notice which companies make tipping easy. The alternative, a strict no-tip policy, only works if your wages are high enough that nobody misses them.
| Policy | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Tips welcome, never expected | Extra pay for cleaners, a direct thank-you from clients, no price change | Tips vary a lot from client to client, so cleaners on the same team can earn different amounts |
| No tips, higher wages | Predictable pay, no awkwardness for clients | Higher prices; clients who want to tip feel turned away; cleaners may earn less in total |
| Mandatory service charge on every bill | Predictable revenue | Not a tip under IRS rules, so it is business revenue and becomes wages only if you pay it out; clients may feel misled |
The IRS draws a clear line here. A payment is a tip when the customer voluntarily decides to pay it and decides the amount. An automatic charge added to the bill is a service charge, and calling it a “tip” does not change that (IRS). If you want a set charge for hard jobs, call it what it is, for example a heavy-soil fee, and price it openly with our house cleaning price calculator.
Whatever you choose, do not build your wage around expected tips. Set pay so it stands on its own, and treat tips as a bonus that rewards great work.
How to write a cleaning business tipping policy
A good tipping policy is a few sentences for clients and a few rules for staff. It should say that tips are optional, that 100% go to the cleaners, how to tip, and how team tips are split.
For your website, booking page or welcome email
Tips are never expected, but always appreciated. If you would like to thank your cleaners, you can add a tip by card after your visit or leave cash in an envelope marked for them. 100% of every tip goes to the cleaners who cleaned your home, split evenly when a team visits.
For your staff handbook
- All tips belong to the cleaners who did the visit. The company never keeps any part of a tip.
- Card tips are paid on the next regular paycheck and shown as a separate line on the pay stub.
- Team tips are split evenly between the cleaners on the visit, unless the client says otherwise.
- Cash tips are yours on the spot. Keep a record and report them each month as the law requires (see the tax section below).
- Never ask a client for a tip or mention tips on the job. The company handles any tip messages.
- Gifts from clients are fine to accept. Tell the office about anything of large value.
Put the client version wherever clients look for answers: your FAQ, the booking confirmation and the first-visit email. When you hire cleaners, explain the staff rules on day one so nobody wonders where a tip went.
Who gets the tip, and how fast should it be paid?
The tip belongs to the employees who did the work, in full, on the next regular payday. Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, an employer cannot keep any portion of employees’ tips for any purpose, directly or through a tip pool, and managers and supervisors cannot keep employees’ tips either (US Department of Labor).
Splitting team tips
Pick one rule and use it every time. Here is a $30 tip on a visit with two cleaners, one who worked 3 hours and one who worked 2:
| Split rule | Cleaner A (3 hours) | Cleaner B (2 hours) |
|---|---|---|
| Even split | $15.00 | $15.00 |
| By hours worked | $18.00 | $12.00 |
An even split is simpler and causes fewer arguments. A split by hours is fairer when one cleaner left early. Either works if everyone knows the rule before the tip arrives.
Owners and team leads
Federal rules let a manager or supervisor keep tips they receive directly from a client for service they provided themselves. When you clean alongside your crew, the simplest and safest choice is to give the whole tip to the employees on the visit.
Card processing fees
Federal law allows an employer to deduct only the card company’s actual fee percentage from a card tip, for example paying out 97% of a tip when the fee is 3%, as long as it does not push pay below minimum wage (US Department of Labor). Some states, including California, require the full tip with no deduction. On a $30 tip, the fee is about 90 cents. Most owners simply absorb it, which costs little and avoids any doubt.
How are tips taxed for cleaners and cleaning businesses?
Tips are taxable income. For employees, card tips you pass on are wages subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare, and cash tips of $20 or more in a month must be reported to you. Contractors report tips as business income. A new federal deduction can lower the income tax on tips through 2028.
Please note: this section is general information, not tax advice. Tax rules change, so confirm details with your payroll provider or an accountant.
Employees
- Cash tips. An employee who receives $20 or more in cash tips in a month from your business must report them to you by the 10th of the following month, and keep a daily record (IRS). Give cleaners a simple way to do it, such as a monthly form or a field in your payroll app.
- Card tips. Tips charged on a card and paid out by you count as the employee’s tips. You withhold income tax, Social Security and Medicare on them, pay the employer’s share of Social Security and Medicare, and report them on the W-2 (IRS).
- Your books. Card tips are money you collect for your cleaners, not your income. Ask your accountant how to record them so they do not inflate your revenue.
Independent contractors
A true contractor keeps the tips their clients give them and reports them as part of their business income.
The 2025 to 2028 tips deduction
House cleaners are on the IRS list of occupations that customarily and regularly received tips, as “Home Cleaning Service Workers” (code 407), with house cleaner, pool cleaner, carpet cleaner and window washer as examples (IRS). That makes their qualified tips eligible for the federal deduction, which works like this according to the IRS:
- It applies to voluntary cash or card tips received in 2025 through 2028, including shared tips.
- The maximum deduction is $25,000 a year, and it phases out above $150,000 of modified adjusted gross income ($300,000 for joint filers).
- The worker needs a valid Social Security number, and married workers must file jointly. They can claim it whether or not they itemize.
- Self-employed cleaners can claim it too, up to their net income from the business.
It is an income tax deduction. Social Security and Medicare still apply to tips, and you still withhold and report them as before. Mandatory service charges are not qualified tips, which is one more reason to keep tips voluntary.
How can clients tip their house cleaners?
Make tipping easy and private: a tip option on the card charge after each visit, plus a clear way to leave cash. Most clients do not carry cash, and many do not see the cleaner at all, so a card tip after the visit is often the only practical way.
| Method | Good | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Card tip after the visit | Works when the client is out, recorded automatically, easy to split | Processing fee; must run through payroll |
| Cash in a marked envelope | Simple, instant for the cleaner | Hard to split fairly on team cleans; cleaners must report it |
| Payment apps sent straight to a cleaner | Fast for the client | Off your books, unfair to teammates, and a channel for clients to hire your cleaner away |
| Holiday card with a check | Personal, popular in December | Ask clients to make it out to the cleaner, or pass it through payroll |
A tip message that is not pushy
Send it with the receipt, not as a separate request:
Thanks for having us today, [Name]. Your receipt is below. If you would like to thank [Cleaner names], you can add a tip from your visit link this week. Every dollar goes to them.
In BroomBook, clients can add a tip from their own visit link for up to 7 days after a completed clean, with suggested amounts of 15%, 20% and 25% of the visit, charged to the card they saved. The tip is split evenly across the cleaners on that visit and shows on the payroll page next to their hours. You can turn client tips off if you prefer a no-tip policy.
How should you handle holiday tips and gifts?
Expect more tips in December, and plan for them. Make sure each holiday tip reaches the right cleaner, thank the client, and treat card holiday tips exactly like any other tip in payroll.
- Know who cleaned the home. A client may tip “our cleaner” when three people have cleaned the home that year. Check your visit history, ask the client if needed, and split by the rule in your policy.
- Pass on cash and checks quickly. If a client leaves an envelope with the office, hand it over that week and note it.
- Gifts are the cleaner’s. Cookies, gift cards and cards belong to the person they were meant for. Gifts and gift cards can still be taxable to the person who receives them, so ask your accountant about large ones.
- Say thank you. A short text from the cleaner or the office after a holiday tip keeps the relationship warm.
Holiday tips are also a reminder of what clients value: the same trusted cleaner, week after week. Steady crews earn bigger tips. Our guide on what house cleaners earn covers the pay and schedule choices that keep good cleaners.
What should you tell clients who ask about tipping?
Keep it short and honest: tips are optional, appreciated, and go 100% to the cleaners. Never suggest an amount unless the client asks, and never treat a client who does not tip any differently.
Answers you can copy
- “Am I supposed to tip?” “Tips are never expected. If you would like to, many clients add 10% to 15% after a visit, and every dollar goes to your cleaners.”
- “Do you tip the owner?” “I don’t expect it. If I clean with my team, the whole tip goes to them.”
- “What do people give at the holidays?” “Some clients give up to one visit’s price or a small gift. Anything is kind, and nothing is expected.”
- “Does my cleaner really get the tip?” “Yes, all of it, on their next paycheck. It is listed on their pay stub.”
Tipping is one small part of the client experience. If you want more clients who value the work, start with our guide to getting cleaning clients. If you have questions about how tips affect wages and overtime for your team, check with your state labor department, since state tip laws can be stricter than federal law. This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice.