You do not need to stay home when cleaners come. However, deciding whether to stay or leave comes down to your personal comfort level and the cleaners' efficiency.
You do not have to leave your room for housekeeping. However, staff generally prefer that you do. Standing by while a housekeeper works can be awkward, and many hotels actually have safety policies that strictly prohibit staff from entering a room while a single guest is inside.
Work set-ups have drastically changed in the last five or so years, with many folks working remotely, but ideally, you should leave the house. Not only can it make cleaning professionals' jobs harder (tbh, you're kind of in the way), no one likes someone hovering over them while they do their job.
At Christmas, the standard holiday tip for a house cleaner is the cost of one regular cleaning session. If you normally pay $150 per visit, a $150 holiday bonus is customary. For occasional or monthly cleaners, half of one visit’s fee is an appropriate thank you.
The 80/20 rule (the Pareto Principle) in cleaning dictates that 20% of your cleaning efforts yield 80% of the visible results. By targeting high-impact tasks first—such as clearing flat surfaces, wiping high-traffic areas, and making beds—you create an instantly cleaner environment without obsessing over perfection.
A professional housekeeper generally cleans 8 to 16 rooms in an 8-hour shift. This breaks down to roughly 20 to 45 minutes per room, but the exact number fluctuates depending on the type of property, the workload per room, and the depth of cleaning required.
The concept is straightforward. Choose the room you want to declutter, then focus on a two-foot area that you use or come into contact with the most. From there, assess how it could be improved – does it need cleaning, editing or reorganising? The key is to keep the area small but high-use.
The appropriate tip for a cleaning lady is 15% to 20% of the total service cost or an extra $10 to $30 per visit. For a regular, recurring cleaner, it is also highly customary to provide an end-of-year holiday bonus equivalent to one week’s worth of pay.
Assuming that your cleaner is employed by you, or is self-employed and is still working when you are on holiday then they should still be paid. However, there are a few other things to consider – whether you pay your cleaner when on holiday also depends on the terms outlined in your employment agreement or contract.
So to summarize, acknowledging your house cleaner at the holidays is up to you, but we do recommend it. Giving an extra holiday tip or gift is a thoughtful gesture and passes along some holiday cheer to the people who work hard to make your busy life a little bit easier. Happy Holidays!
Here are 10 warning signs to watch for when checking out a house.
Examples of poor housekeeping
High-touch surfaces like phones, remotes, light switches, and carpets can harbor germs. Oft-overlooked items such as barware, ceiling fixtures, and bathtubs may be overlooked during standard housekeeping cleanings.
The 20-minute rule in cleaning (often combined with the 10-minute break as the 20/10 Rule) is a productivity method where you set a timer and clean as quickly and intensely as possible for 20 minutes. When the timer goes off, you immediately stop cleaning and take a mandatory 10-minute break.
From this perspective, $50/hour is generally considered above average but not unreasonable for professional services. It reflects a market service rate rather than a worker's wage, making it fair in many areas, especially when hiring insured companies or premium cleaning providers.
The 80/20 rule (the Pareto Principle) in cleaning dictates that 20% of your cleaning efforts yield 80% of the visible results. By targeting high-impact tasks first—such as clearing flat surfaces, wiping high-traffic areas, and making beds—you create an instantly cleaner environment without obsessing over perfection.
Full-time domestic help (caregiver, personal chef, or full-time personal staff): Aim for between a week and a month's pay, plus a gift. Housekeeper: If they come once a week, the equivalent of a day's pay.
While it's not strictly mandatory, you should tip house cleaners around 15% to 20% of the cost of the cleaning service in cash. Much like restaurant servers, hotel bellhops, valet parking drivers, and delivery drivers, it's a part of American culture to show appreciation to our service workers with a tip.
What Are the 7 Rules of Housekeeping?
It's also acceptable to tip at the end of your stay, but leave a cash tip for the number of nights stayed, even if the housekeeping team was not able to clean your room due to hotel policy. The housekeepers should not be penalized because they are unable to provide service each day.
Don't engage in rude or discriminatory behaviour or language towards guests – Every interaction hotel guests have with hotel workers adds to their guest experience, so it's very important that as housekeepers we do our bit to make it a positive one and treat them with kindness.
The "10-10 decluttering method" is a highly effective, low-stress strategy where you set a timer for 10 minutes and aim to remove at least 10 items from a single space. It is designed to overcome decision fatigue and prevent overwhelm by focusing on quick, manageable wins.
What is ABCD in housekeeping? ABCD is an acronym for prioritising cleaning tasks: Air (ventilation and smells), Bed (linens and comfort), Circulation (clear floor space), and Dust (visible surface cleanliness). It ensures that the most impactful tasks are done first.