How to hire a reliable Airbnb cleaner

A reliable Airbnb cleaner shows up for every job they accept, finishes before the next guest arrives, and leaves your home the same way every time. Before you look, write down what "clean" means for your home. Our free Airbnb cleaning checklist is a good place to begin, because a candidate can only meet a standard they have seen.

Where to find Airbnb cleaners

Turnover cleaning is not regular house cleaning. The window is fixed, the laundry is heavy, and the home has to be fully reset for the next guest.

• Other hosts near you. Ask in local host groups who they use, and who they call when their own cleaner is busy.
• Airbnb's Co-Host Network. In the United States, Canada and several other countries, Airbnb lets you request help with individual services, and cleaning and maintenance is one of them. You can browse co-hosts near you to see which services they offer.
• Local cleaning businesses and independent house cleaners. Ask whether they do turnovers specifically, including laundry and restocking, and whether they work weekends.
• Local job boards and community sites. Post a clear job description, such as the template on this page.

Short-term rental turnover cleaner wanted in [town or neighborhood]

We host [number] vacation rental [home/homes] in [area] and are looking for a dependable cleaner for turnovers between guests.

The job
• Clean and reset the home between one guest checking out at [checkout time] and the next guest checking in at [check-in time], following our checklist.
• Wash and remake beds and towels [on site/off site].
• Restock guest supplies and tell us when anything is running low.
• Report any damage or missing items with a photo.
• Take a few photos at the end so we can confirm the home is ready for the next guest.

What we offer
• [Rate] per clean for a [number]-bedroom, [number]-bathroom home, paid [how and when].
• About [number] cleans a month, with more in [busy season].
• Each job sent by text well ahead of time, with the date, the times and the pay.
• A paid trial clean before either of us commits.

What we are looking for
• Experience cleaning homes or rentals, ideally including turnovers.
• Availability on [days], including some weekends and holidays.
• Able to finish a same-day turnover within the window between guests.
• Reliable transportation to the property.
• General liability insurance, or willing to get it.
• Comfortable using a phone for texts and photos.

To apply, reply with your experience, the days you can usually work, your rate per clean or per hour, and one or two references we can contact.

Questions to ask before you hire

Meet at the property if you can, and ask:

1. How many short-term rental turnovers have you done? Ask for one or two hosts you can call as references.
2. Which days can you work, and how much notice do you need? Ask about weekends and holidays directly.
3. Can you finish a same-day turnover, with checkout and the next check-in on the same day?
4. Who does the laundry, and where? If linens leave the property, agree how they come back.
5. Who supplies cleaning products and equipment?
6. Do you charge per clean or per hour, and what costs extra? Ask about deep cleans, extra laundry, restocking and trash runs.
7. Do you work alone or with a team, and who comes if you cannot?
8. Do you carry general liability insurance, and can you send a certificate?
9. How do you want to receive jobs, and how quickly do you usually reply?
10. What do you do when you find damage, a missing item or low supplies? The answer you want is a photo and a message to you the same day.

If you want a background check, use a screening company. The Federal Trade Commission's guidance for employers says to give the person written notice in a stand-alone document and get their written permission first.

Run a paid trial clean

An interview tells you how someone talks about cleaning. A trial clean shows you how they clean. Pay for it at the full rate you agreed, and schedule it on a day when no guest is arriving, so a slow first visit costs you nothing but time.

1. Agree on the rate, the time window and what is included before the day.
2. Send your checklist, the door code, where supplies and spare linens are kept, and any quirks of the house.
3. Ask them to note how long the clean takes and to photograph the items that matter most to you.
4. Walk through afterward with the checklist, and ask what slowed them down or was missing.
5. Pay promptly, the way you agreed.

The trial also tells you how long your home really takes to clean, which is the fairest basis for a rate. Divide a quote per clean by those hours and compare it with local wages. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics put the national median wage for maids and housekeeping cleaners at $17.07 an hour in May 2025, and its state and metro figures are a better guide for your market. A contractor's rate also covers their own taxes and costs. Our guide on how much to pay an Airbnb cleaner walks through the full calculation.

Insurance, taxes and a written agreement

Insurance

Ask every cleaner for a certificate of general liability insurance, which the US Small Business Administration describes as protection against financial loss from bodily injury, property damage and medical expenses. If your cleaner is an employee, the SBA notes that businesses with employees must carry workers' compensation insurance, and that insurance laws vary by state.

Contractor or employee

The US Department of Labor says that signing an independent contractor agreement does not make someone an independent contractor. The IRS describes the general rule this way: a worker is an independent contractor when the person paying has the right to control or direct only the result of the work, not how it is done. If you set the hours, supply all the equipment and direct how the work is done, ask a tax professional before you decide.

A written agreement

Put the arrangement in writing. Cover:

• What a turnover includes, with your checklist attached
• The rate per clean, what costs extra and when you pay
• How jobs are offered and confirmed, and how much notice either side gives to cancel
• How quickly damage and low supplies are reported
• Door codes, keys and keeping guest information private
• How either side can end the arrangement

Our Airbnb cleaner agreement template covers each of these points.

How to give jobs and confirm them

A job that was never clearly confirmed is easy to forget.

• Send each job on its own, in writing, as soon as the booking comes in. Include the date, the address, the checkout time, the next check-in time, the pay and whether it is a same-day turnover.
• Ask for a clear yes or no. "Sounds good" in a long thread is not a confirmation. If there is no answer, follow up once, then go to your backup.
• Send a reminder the day before.
• Ask for a message on arrival and another when the home is ready, with photos of the checklist items you care about.
• Tell your cleaner straight away when a guest cancels or changes dates.
• Work from your booking calendar, not from memory. Our page on finding your calendar link shows where Airbnb, Vrbo and Booking.com keep it.

A few light checkout tasks for guests, such as putting used towels in one place, help your cleaner too. See our checkout instructions template.

If you would rather not send these messages yourself, TurnMyRental reads your booking calendar, texts your cleaner about each turnover so they can reply YES or NO, and asks your backup if they decline or do not answer. You still pay your cleaner directly, as you do now, and our plans are a flat monthly price by number of properties.

Why a backup cleaner matters

Even the best cleaner gets sick, has car trouble or is booked somewhere else on your busiest day. Without a backup, that becomes your problem a few hours before check-in.

Under Airbnb's rebooking and refund policy for homes, a home that is not reasonably clean and sanitary at check-in counts as a reservation issue. Airbnb may give the guest a full or partial refund or help them find a similar place, and the host then gets no payout or a payout reduced by the amount refunded. Cleanliness is also one of the categories guests rate after a stay, and Superhost status requires an overall rating of 4.8 or higher.

Set up your backup before you need one:

• Hire them the same way, including a paid trial clean.
• Give them some regular work, so they know the house when it counts.
• Keep the checklist, door codes and supply locations in one place both cleaners can see.

If a cleaner does fail to show, our guide on what to do when your cleaner does not show up has a plan you can follow on the day.