People often compare house cleaning quotes by circling the lowest hourly rate. I understand the instinct. It is also how a CZK 1,400 offer quietly becomes a CZK 1,930 bill. The hourly number was genuine; it simply left out the journey, products, parking, and half the jobs the homeowner had in mind.
Four hours of cleaning can mean several things
“Standard clean” is not a fixed Czech trade term. I have seen it used for a quick pass over floors and bathrooms. Elsewhere, the same words covered bed linen, kitchen fronts, bins, and dust on reachable furniture. Neither version is necessarily wrong. Trouble starts when the client and cleaner carry different versions into the same flat.
Ovens, windows, blinds, fridge interiors, and old limescale usually sit outside routine work. Ask. An oven that was cleaned last month is a small job; one that has survived three Christmas dinners untouched is not. A quote that says “complete cleaning” without spelling this out tells you very little.
Count labour hours, not time on the clock. Two cleaners staying for two hours supply four hours of labour. They leave sooner, which may suit someone working from a Prague flat, but the labour has not disappeared.
For each offer, note the number of cleaners, time per person, included rooms, and exclusions. Also ask whether the first visit costs more. It often should. Once the old grease and limescale are gone, a fortnightly clean is quicker.
Put every cost on one line
Here is a quote pair I would not compare by the headline figures:
| Item | Quote A | Quote B | |---|---:|---:| | Labour | CZK 1,400 | included | | Travel | CZK 250 | included | | Products | CZK 180 | included | | Parking | CZK 100 | included | | Final first visit | CZK 1,930 | CZK 1,850 |
Quote B looked expensive at first. It was CZK 80 cheaper at the door.
Location changes the arithmetic. A cleaner may charge less per hour in Klatovy or Prostějov than in central Prague, yet travel farther and impose a minimum call-out. Ask for the total at your address. A website rate cannot account for your village, Saturday booking, or paid parking outside the building.
Write down labour, travel, products, equipment, parking, and surcharges. “Products included” needs one more question: which products? Basic sprays are not a steam cleaner, a step stool, or treatment suitable for limestone.
Check the minimum booking too. CZK 320 an hour is no bargain when four hours are compulsory and you only want a bathroom and kitchen. Weekend charges can be reasonable. Finding them for the first time on the invoice is not.
I would also ask whether the total includes tax and whether I get a receipt. That document matters if something breaks or the result has to be disputed.
Describe what must be clean
Time is easy to sell. A result is harder to define, so define it together.
A useful message might say: “Bathroom, kitchen worktop, and floors first. If there is time, wipe the doors and switches.” The cleaner knows where to stop. You know that a dusty switch is not evidence that the whole visit failed.
Square metres give only a rough estimate. A quiet 70 m² new-build and a 70 m² panel-block home with two children, a dog, and hard water are different jobs. Send honest photographs of the kitchen, bathroom, and floors. For a large one-off clean, a short walkthrough is worth the time.
Then ask what happens when four hours are not enough. I want one of three answers: stop at the agreed time, call before continuing, or quote a fixed amount for the result. “We carried on and here is the larger invoice” is not one of them.
A written ceiling keeps everyone calm: “Estimate CZK 1,800. Do not go above CZK 2,100 without calling me.” Plain, perhaps slightly boring, and very effective.
Insurance and reliable contact are part of the offer
Nobody enjoys discussing a scratched hob before anyone has picked up a cloth. Do it anyway. Ask whether the cleaner or company carries liability insurance for work in clients’ homes. Ask how damage is reported and whether an excess applies. The words “fully insured��” need a process behind them.
Reviews are more useful when the job resembles yours. Praise for window washing says little about regular visits to a flat with cats and an oiled wood floor. Look for comments about the same sort of home, surfaces, and schedule. With a company, I also expect a contact who answers when the assigned cleaner is ill.
Keys, alarm codes, pets, and cancellations deserve a few lines in writing. Can the dog stay home? Is the study out of bounds? Where does the key go after the visit? How much notice avoids a fee? None of this sounds glamorous. After a month, it matters as much as a shiny tap.
Use the first visit as a paid test
A trial house cleaning should be paid at the normal agreed rate. The homeowner gets to see the work and communication. The cleaner sees the real condition of the flat. If the fit is poor, both sides can stop without pretending that a six-month commitment ever made sense.
Keep the test manageable. In a three-room flat, I might choose the kitchen, bathroom, reachable dust, and floors, with a cap of five labour hours. Beforehand I would name a few points to check: limescale at the tap, grease on the hob, floor edges, and dust under movable furniture.
This is not permission to inspect the place with a torch. Check the agreement, not microscopic perfection. Spend ten minutes looking at the result together. “The bathroom is excellent; next time please keep universal detergent off the oiled bedroom floor” is useful. “Something feels off” is not.
Introductory discounts make a cleaning service quote comparison harder. Thirty per cent off says nothing about month two. Paying the ordinary price gives you the more honest trial.
When the higher quote earns its place
The dearer offer can be better when it buys work you need, liability cover, or a rescheduling rule that fits family life. A polished website by itself buys none of those things.
Very low prices deserve questions, not instant rejection. I become cautious when cheap labour arrives with an unclear scope, pressure to commit, no receipt, and no answer about damage. An expensive fixed fee can be just as weak when there is no task list, labour estimate, or explanation.
Before booking, send one final message. Include the date, arrival time, address, headcount, maximum labour hours, priorities, exclusions, total or spending ceiling, payment method, and the rule for extra work. Add the practical details about keys, pets, alarms, and parking. Ask the provider to reply that they agree.
That is the simplest answer to what is included in a house cleaning price: only what both sides can identify before the door opens. If you are deciding how to choose a cleaning service in Prague, ČistýKout is one local option. Send a no-obligation request through the contact form, then put the response beside your other quotes and compare the actual job, not the largest number on the page.
