How to Level Construction Cleaning Bids

Why the numbers are so far apart

When cleaning bids for the same job are far apart, it's almost never because one crew works faster. It's because the bidders read the Division 01 final-cleaning section differently and priced different jobs. The low number usually covers less work, not the same work done cheaper.

These are the items we see left out or assumed most often:

• Exterior glass. One bid includes both sides, another covers interior only, and a third leaves glass out completely.
• Number of cleans. One mobilization versus rough, final and touch-up visits.
• Lift access. High glass and high dusting priced with a lift, priced from ladders, or not priced at all.
• Debris and haul-off. Whether the cleaner hauls construction debris or only consolidates cleaning trash at your dumpster.
• Floor finish. Strip, seal and wax on VCT, or just a sweep and mop.
• Punch-list returns. How many trips back are included after the owner's walk.
• Labor rules. Prevailing wage, certified payroll and travel on out-of-town jobs.

The 12-line leveling checklist

Ask every bidder to price or exclude each line separately. If a bid can't be split this way, ask for a breakdown before you compare it.

1. Rough or interim cleans (how many, and when)
2. Final clean, with the square footage they used
3. Touch-up or pre-occupancy clean before the owner's walk
4. Interior glass
5. Exterior glass, with the access method (ladder, water-fed pole or lift)
6. High dusting of structure, ductwork and fixtures above a stated height
7. Lift rental, delivery and pickup
8. Hard-floor finish (strip, seal, wax or burnish), with the floor types listed
9. Carpet vacuuming or extraction
10. Debris consolidation versus haul-off
11. Punch-list return trips included, and the rate for extra trips
12. Prevailing wage, certified payroll and travel

Questions to send every bidder

• What square footage did you price, and from which sheets?
• Is exterior glass included? How are you reaching it?
• How many mobilizations are in your number?
• What is your rate for a return trip or extra cleaning after the final?
• What's excluded?

Red flags

• A single lump sum that only says "final clean per spec"
• Allowances in place of quantities
• No exclusions listed. Every cleaning bid has some.
• No rate for extra work, which turns every return trip into a negotiation

How NEAT bids it: every service is its own line with a quantity, and work outside the base has a posted time-and-materials or unit rate. You can carry only the lines you need and compare us line by line.