Buying a cleaning franchise in Australia: models, costs and checks (2026)

• There are three broad models: commercial cleaning (offices, medical suites, schools and retail sites), residential cleaning (regular home and end-of-lease cleans) and specialist services such as carpet, window or washroom hygiene work.
• The median cleaning system on the Register reported 12 franchisees (65 profiles), so many systems are small and the depth of support varies.
• Contract terms follow the franchising norm: 60 of 65 cleaning profiles include a restraint of trade, and only 10 of 59 say franchisees have any rights to goodwill they generate.
• If you employ cleaners, the Cleaning Services Award 2020 is the award most likely to apply, and from 1 July 2026 super must be paid at the same time as wages.
• If you engage cleaners as contractors, the Fair Work whole of relationship test looks at how the work is really done, not just what the contract says.

The models share a brand and a system, but the daily work, the customers and the risks are different. Decide which one you are buying before you compare prices.

• Commercial cleaning: regular contracts with offices, medical suites, schools, gyms or retail sites, often worked early in the morning or after hours. Income can be steady, but losing one large contract can remove a big share of your revenue.
• Residential cleaning: regular home cleans, spring cleans and end-of-lease jobs, usually booked through the franchisor's website or call centre. Jobs are smaller and more frequent, so cancellations and travel time between jobs matter more.
• Specialist cleaning: carpet and upholstery, windows, tiles and grout, pressure washing or washroom hygiene. These services need more equipment and training, and often more chemicals that come with safety duties.
• Owner-operator systems assume you do most of the cleaning yourself. Costs stay low, but your income is tied to your own hours and health.
• Management systems expect you to run a team. You earn a margin on staff time, so wages, rosters and quality control become your main job.
• Mixed models let you start as an operator and add staff or contractors later. Ask the franchisor how many of its franchisees have actually made that step.

How you get work matters as much as the price you pay. These are the common arrangements, and some systems combine several.

• Franchisor-held contracts: the franchisor signs the client, invoices them and passes the work to you, paying you after deducting its fees. Ask who owns the client relationship and what happens to your income if the client cancels.
• Purchased client base: you pay for a book of contracts with a stated weekly or monthly value. Ask for the invoices behind that value and what happens if clients leave in the first few months.
• Lead referral: the franchisor passes on enquiries from its website or call centre, and you quote and win the work yourself, sometimes paying a fee for each lead.
• Local marketing: you build your own customer base in a territory. Check whether the territory is exclusive and whether the franchisor can also sell into it online.
• Work or income guarantees: some offers promise a minimum value of work or income for a period. Get the exact terms in writing and read our guide to guaranteed income offers before you rely on one.
• Payment flow: if the franchisor collects client payments and then pays you, ask for its payment timetable and confirm with current franchisees that it pays on time.

FranchiseScope analysed 67 cleaning franchisors' profiles on the Franchise Disclosure Register, captured on 19 August 2026. The answers are self-reported by franchisors, and not every profile answers every question.

• Setup costs: of 55 profiles that disclosed them, the median low estimate was $27,500 and the median high estimate was $79,890. Across every category, the medians were $146,984 (low, 937 profiles) and $400,000 (high, 923 profiles).
• System size: the median cleaning system reported 12 franchisees (65 profiles), compared with a median of 9 across all profiles.
• Restraint of trade: 60 of 65 profiles (92.3%) say the agreement includes a restraint of trade or similar clause.
• Goodwill: 10 of 59 profiles (16.9%) say franchisees have any rights to goodwill they generate, compared with 10.5% across all categories.
• Supply restrictions: 29 of 66 profiles (43.9%) restrict where you can buy goods or services, compared with 70.2% across all categories.
• One-sided changes: 16 of 66 profiles (24.2%) say the franchisor can vary the agreement on its own.
• Arbitration: 37 of 51 profiles (72.5%) say the agreement provides for arbitration of disputes.

The setup estimate on the Register is only part of the picture. Ask the franchisor for a full cost list, then check it against what current franchisees actually spend.

• Equipment and first stock: vacuums, floor machines, trolleys, extraction machines for carpet work, chemicals and consumables.
• A vehicle that can carry your equipment safely, plus fuel, servicing, registration and insurance.
• Insurance: ask what cover the franchisor requires, such as public liability, and what your target clients will ask to see before they sign.
• Ongoing fees: royalties or management fees, marketing levies, software and booking fees, and any fee per lead or per job.
• Working capital to cover wages, fuel and fees until clients pay. Ask current franchisees how long commercial clients actually take to pay.
• Staff costs if you employ cleaners: award wages, casual loading, penalty rates, super and workers compensation cover. From 1 July 2026 employers must pay super at the same time as wages.

The Fair Work Ombudsman runs compliance work across the cleaning industry, including on underpayments and sham contracting. Get the status of every worker right from day one.

• From 26 August 2024, constitutionally covered businesses, which usually includes a Pty Ltd company, use the whole of relationship test to decide whether a worker is an employee or a contractor.
• The test looks at the real substance, practical reality and true nature of the relationship, including how the contract works in practice.
• The factors include control over how work is done, financial risk, who supplies tools and equipment, the ability to delegate or subcontract, hours of work and the expectation of ongoing work.
• Having an ABN or issuing invoices doesn't automatically make someone a contractor.
• Telling a worker they are a contractor when you don't reasonably believe it can be sham contracting. Maximum penalties per contravention are $21,840 for individuals, $109,200 for businesses with fewer than 15 employees and $546,000 for businesses with 15 or more employees.
• Employees of contract cleaning businesses are most likely covered by the Cleaning Services Award 2020, which sets minimum rates, penalty rates for weekends and after hours, and allowances such as for toilet cleaning or using your own vehicle.
• If your business pays contractors for cleaning services, you must report those payments to the ATO in a taxable payments annual report by 28 August each year.
• A franchisor can be held responsible for a franchisee's underpayments if it knew or could reasonably have known and didn't take reasonable steps to prevent them, so expect a careful franchisor to check your payroll.

• A promise of guaranteed income or work that appears only in advertising or conversation, not in the disclosure document and the agreement.
• A price for a client base that you can't trace to real invoices, contract dates and cancellation terms.
• No clear answer on who owns the client contracts, or on what happens to your income if a client leaves or complains.
• A franchisor that collects client payments but can't show a reliable record of paying franchisees on time.
• Pressure to commit quickly. The franchisor can't sign the agreement until 14 days after you receive the disclosure document, a copy of the Code and the agreement in its final form, and any payment in that window must be refunded within 14 days of your written request.
• Many former franchisees in the last three years, or contact details that don't work. The disclosure document must give former franchisees' contact details unless they have asked not to be listed.
• Chemicals supplied without safety data sheets. Safe Work Australia's guidance is to keep them easy to access for workers who use, handle or store hazardous chemicals.

• Read the franchisor's Register profile and compare its setup cost, restraint and goodwill answers with the disclosure document.
• Find out exactly how you will get work: allocated contracts, purchased clients, referred leads or your own marketing.
• Ask for de-identified statements showing what current franchisees in your area are paid, and when.
• Call former franchisees listed in the disclosure document and ask why they left.
• Check what happens to your clients if you sell, leave or are terminated.
• Decide whether you will employ staff or engage contractors, and test that plan against the award and the whole of relationship test with an adviser.
• Get insurance quotes and a full equipment list before you commit.
• Get independent legal and accounting advice before you sign anything.