How to Create an Airbnb Cleaning Contract [+ Free Template]

Did you know that an Airbnb rental with a 4.9 cleanliness rating makes on average 42% more money than a comparable Airbnb with a 4.5 star cleanliness rating?* That’s a heck of a lot for a 0.4 difference.

So if you’re looking to hire professional cleaners, you’re on the right track. But wait—hiring without a proper Airbnb cleaning contract would be a mistake. Why? Because even with professionals, their definition of “clean” may differ from yours.

Setting out a clear contract means that everyone is aligned about what the job requires, when, and how—down to specific, precise details. This prevents disagreement, unexpected excess cleaning fees, inconsistent standards, and scheduling conflicts.

But that may sound like a lot, especially when you’re hiring help to take work off your plate, not add to it.

We’re here to help. Here’s why a contract is so important, and exactly what to include. Plus, we’ve even included a handy template so you can write yours today in minutes. Here’s how.

You need an Airbnb cleaning contract: Here’s why

We know that writing out a whole cleaning contract may seem like a complicated and time-consuming task, especially if you only have a few rentals and your vacation rental cleaners are seasoned professionals. But trust us, it’s worth the time. Here’s why.

Prevent delayed turnovers

Some cleaning companies may do an excellent job, but may not quite understand the urgency that often comes with short-term rental (STR) turnovers. So when you’re ready to outsource your short-term rental cleaning, defining your time constraints and the importance of work being done at the exact right moment, is a crucial part of your cleaning contract.

This is especially true in the case of last-minute bookings, late check-outs, or extended stays. Making it clear that your cleaners must be adaptable at short notice, and 100% on time, will ensure everyone knows what’s expected, and that no guest check-in is ever delayed because of a late clean.

Reduce the risk of inconsistent cleans

Outlining your expectations about how you want the property to look after a clean, and the exact tasks you want the cleaners to complete in the cleaning process will help ensure your properties are always readied to the same high standards.

You don’t have to include the precise vacation rental cleaning checklist or task list in your cleaning services contract, but you can refer to it and state that you will need the cleaners to follow a precise checklist and process each time they carry out a turnover or mid-stay clean, so the results are predictable and repeatable.

Breezeway’s digital checklists allow you to create property-specific tasks for each clean with representative photos. Then you can use uploaded photos to remotely inspect work.

Avoid scope issues

The scope of work is what you need from your cleaning service provider. If you don’t agree on this area, a cleaner could simply turn around and say they don’t want to do certain jobs (like mid-stay cleans, checking electrical appliances, or sweeping the patio). 

So, clarifying the scope of work in your Airbnb cleaning services agreement ensures both parties understand the expected tasks and prevents misunderstandings and disagreements down the line. 

This should include descriptions of each task, from basic house cleaning duties to more specific jobs like restocking supplies, handling laundry, or deep cleaning after pets or smoking. You can also specify if the cleaning service is responsible for reporting damages or maintenance issues.

It's crucial to regularly review and update this section to reflect any changes in your service needs or property features.

Minimize disputes and misunderstandings

When all parties understand and have agreed on the scope, timeframes, standards, and processes, you and your housekeeping teams are less likely to experience misunderstandings or disputes.

This creates a better working environment for your cleaners and less stress for you, and, since happy cleaners with a clearly defined set of expectations are more likely to stick around, you won’t need to spend as much time finding new cleaners for your Airbnb. 

You can build better long-term relationships with your Airbnb cleaning business partners and get better results from them, too.

Improve homeowner relationships

If you manage a portfolio of owner properties in your Airbnb rental business, using a cleaning contract will be a boost to your brand in property owners’ eyes. As a result, as well as helping to protect your business, a cleaning contract can support your marketing efforts.

You’ll be able to present your cleaning contracts to prospective vacation rental owner clients as evidence of your professionalism in vacation rental management. They’ll then have the opportunity to review your expectations on standards, processes, and use of technology—all of which will demonstrate your trustworthiness and commitment to high-quality service.

Provide a 5-star guest experience

Ensuring that cleans are consistently completed to your high standards—even in the event of a last-minute booking or change—will prevent missed cleans, miscommunications, and, ultimately, delays to guest check-ins. 

Guests will always walk into a sparkling rental, and your operations will be under less stress—including less need to communicate urgently with housekeepers or the guests themselves.

Having a predictable and scalable cleaning operation also allows you to be more flexible and responsive to last-minute guest requests, such as early check-ins, late check-outs, or special additions like flowers or balloons—which also creates the potential for added revenue.

This gives guests a better stay and increases your chance of receiving a glowing, five-star review.

Must-have sections for an Airbnb cleaning contract

An effective Airbnb cleaning contract should always include the following sections for maximum results.

Scope of work

The scope of work is where you define what you’re hiring the cleaning company to do, which includes different kinds of cleans and maintenance tasks. For example, regular deep cleans, standard turnovers, mid-stay cleans, and call-outs (because the guest has reported an issue).

Don’t assume anything; imagine that your cleaning company has never done an Airbnb turnover before, and they need to know everything necessary before the next guest arrives. 

For example, this could include not only “cleaning the bathroom,” but also: 

• Changing and folding towels
• Restocking toilet paper
• Refilling soap and shampoo bottles
• Wiping down all the surfaces, including taps and mirrors
• Checking and putting away appliances
• Reporting any issues (like leaks or faulty appliances) using the Breezeway app
  

Your contract is not the place to specify every tiny job or process that the cleaners must do, broken down by property. Nor does it make sense to state specific times and dates for every job here (as this will change depending on your booking calendar.) However, you can still outline your expectations, and refer the cleaners to more specific documents if needed.

For example, you might not include the actual vacation rental cleaning checklist for Property Four, but you can stipulate: “Cleaners will thoroughly complete (and check off) each task on the relevant cleaning checklist for the property.”

You might then state where the cleaning checklists might be found, and also state your responsibilities to them (for example, you will always keep the checklists updated and make them available to the company in advance using your preferred operations management platform).

Cleaning standards

You should include a Reference Standard Property Appearance (RSA) document. This document explains what you want your property to look like after a clean is completed, which makes the scope and standards of work much clearer.

Include photographs of every room and useful, practical details on processes that are repeated across all your units. For example: 

• The correct way to fold the towels and bed linen
• Where to place the spare toilet paper
• How to arrange the flowers
• The way you’d like the kitchen laid out
  

Again, this isn’t the same as an exhaustive, step-by-step, property-specific checklist. But pointing out the most important or overlooked details, while also providing examples of your general standards on quality, will make it much easier for cleaners to achieve your expectations.

This also helps eliminate misunderstandings that could easily occur in written explanations, or because of a language barrier.

The scheduling process 

You need to explain how you schedule cleans and how your schedules are communicated.

This is also where you should stipulate what happens in the event of a last-minute booking, and agree with your cleaners how much notice they need. This is key, as it could affect whether you can accept last-minute bookings and changes (and what counts as “last-minute” for your business).

Ideally, Airbnb cleaners will be available at short notice, and able to check your booking calendar independently. You can also explain how individual cleaners should accept or reject work. 

Using a platform like Breezeway makes this much easier. It enables you to:

• Share your Airbnb booking calendar with your cleaners
• Automatically assign work and manage last-minute tasks
• Provide access to your properties via smart locks
• Track your cleaners’ status and location when they’re on the cleaning job
• Track work and create reports you can use to calculate pay
• See which properties are ready for new guests in real-time
• Communicate directly with cleaners for inspections and to manage urgent work orders 

Using a comprehensive, app-based system with your cleaning team means they can respond to the fast-moving needs of an Airbnb business.

Breezeway connects with your booking calendar to auto-schedule and assign cleaning jobs.

Cleaning supplies and equipment

You should also specify who’s responsible for cleaning supplies, equipment, and other items needed for the jobs specified in your scope-of-work section.

For example:

• Perhaps each property has a cleaning cupboard that only you and your cleaners can access, which you’ll keep topped up regularly?
• Maybe cleaners are responsible for bringing their own equipment and supplies, like vacuum cleaners, and you’ll factor that into extra fees or a higher pay rate?
• Maybe they can use whatever supplies each cleaner prefers, as long as they get the job done, or would you prefer to specify the exact products because you want certain eco-friendly solutions?
  

Set out your terms and logistics, who will pay for what, where supplies will come from, and when. 

This should also include in-property supplies such as (for example): 

• Which coffee beans to use to fill the machine
• Where new towels will come from
• Where to take the dirty linen
• What happens if a guest breaks something or an item is missing
  

This supports a smooth operation and can help you track billables.

Payment terms

Of course, you also need to specify payment rates, method of payment, and related terms and conditions.

Here are some of the areas you may need to address:

• Will you pay by piece rate or hourly?
• How will you track work done?
• What is the schedule for payments (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly)?
• Are payments subject to deductions or withholdings? If so, under what conditions and how?
• How will you handle payments for supplies or expenses incurred by cleaners?
• What documentation will be required for payment processing?
  
  

Customizable Airbnb cleaning contract template

Now you know why you need a cleaning contract, and what to include, let us do the heavy lifting for you. Here’s our fill-in-the-blanks template to make writing your contract quicker and easier.

Disclaimer: The provided Airbnb cleaning contract template is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. We recommend consulting with a legal professional before finalizing any contract for your Airbnb property management business.

How to create an Airbnb cleaning contract? With clarity, communication, and shared calendars

Hiring a professional cleaning team for your Airbnb properties is paramount when it comes to ensuring excellent cleanliness, impressing guests, and getting their all-important five-star review.

But you can’t hire without a solid Airbnb cleaning contract. It may sound cumbersome, but outlining your terms and expectations prevents delays, inconsistent or incomplete cleans, unexpected extra charges, and disputes.

A good contract should outline: 

• The scope of the work
• The standards you expect
• How you’ll schedule and track cleans
• How much notice your cleaners need
• How and when you’ll provide supplies
• Payment terms and conditions
  
  

And using an app like Breezeway—which is designed to share your calendar, coordinate cleaners, facilitate communication and reports, create tasks, and monitor progress—is an ideal way to keep your cleaning team 100% organized and on-track. 

*Intellihost Airbnb study, December 2022