A Detailed Airbnb Cleaning Checklist to Keep Your Property Pristine

The Benefits of Utilizing a Vacation Rental Cleaning Checklist

The expectations of travelers are becoming higher. This means that if you want to continue to meet the needs of your guests, you will need to prioritize cleaning. In fact, according to research, more than 80% of travelers reported that they feel more at ease booking accommodation that they know follows the enhanced cleaning protocol introduced by Airbnb. This is also important if you own a very large or multi-unit property, where it’s sensible to invest in commercial waste receptacles and have a set cleaning plan in place.

Not only will a clean property help you to attract more bookings, but it also offers a number of other advantages. Here are a few of the main benefits that a cleaning checklist can offer to Airbnb hosts:

Streamlined cleaning process:

No cleaning task will be missed or a hidden corner of your house forgotten.

Delegation:

You can easily delegate the cleaning process by handing over your cleaning instructions to an outsourced cleaner or a professional cleaning team.

Compliance:

A detailed checklist ensures that cleaning is always carried out in a specific manner. You can check the quality of cleaning as per the points in your checklist.

Saves time:

It helps Airbnb hosts to save valuable time by removing any guesswork. In other words, you and your team will always know which task should be tackled next.

Workload distribution:

It helps to distribute the workload evenly within your cleaning team.

Woman cleaning according to vacation rental cleaning checklists

An Airbnb Cleaning Checklist: General Rules

While it is crucial that you ensure that every inch of your property is sparkling clean, here are some general cleaning tasks that you or your cleaner must tackle every time before the next guest arrives:

Check your house for any left-behind items, remove and store them in safekeeping
Take out the trash
Wipe and sanitize high-touch areas like light switches, door handles and doorknobs, and the handles of cupboards
Vacuum and sanitize all the floors and carpets
Wash and change all the sheets and towels
Dust all the surfaces and furniture
Dust light fixtures
Clean shelves and wipe the dust off decorative items
Clean and sanitize toilets, bathtubs, and showers
Replenish supplies and cleaning products, such as hand soap, dish soap, toilet paper, paper towels, trash bags, and other supplies that you offer at your rental. Toilet paper and paper towels tend to depleat faster than other consumables, so it may be a good idea to stock up on extras and ask your cleaning service to restock them if necessary.

A Vacation Rental Cleaning Checklist by Room

From the exterior of your property to high-traffic areas like the kitchen, you need to have a cleaning strategy in place to tackle room by room. The kitchen and bathroom are particularly important. In addition to the general cleaning tasks, here are tasks per room to ensure you don’t miss a nook or cranny.

A clean home because of an Airbnb cleaning checklist

Living Room Cleaning

Living rooms are areas where guests spend most of their time while staying at your Airbnb. So, you’ll want to ensure that the area is inviting and creates a relaxing atmosphere. Here are the cleaning tasks to keep your living room tidy and spotless:

Clean the screen of the TV and disinfect the remote
Dust other electronics like a game console
Dust the coffee and side tables
Vacuum the sofa and armchairs (remember also to vacuum the space between the seating cushions as well as beneath the individual cushions)
Spot clean any carpet stains (leave a carpet cleaning kit for guests to use if they spill anything)
Wash throw blankets and the covers of throw pillows
Wash curtains and/or blinds
Dust any shelves
Dust any decorative items
Organize miscellaneous items
Clean all the mirrors
Vacuum and mop the floor (be sure to clean under the furniture and rugs as well)
Clean the blinds/curtains
Disinfect light switches and doorknobs.

Bedroom Cleaning

As the quality of your guests’ sleep will determine the quality of their stay, you’ll want to ensure that there are no nasty surprises. Here’s how to create the best sleeping environment:

Check the bedding for any rips or stains
Wash all the dirty linen and replace it with fresh linen
Make the bed
Check the laundry baskets and remove any dirty towels that your short-term rental cleaners may have missed
Clean between the headboard and mattress (this is a place where you’ll often find lost items)
Clean under the bed (this is another place you’ll need to check for left-behind items)
Wipe down and disinfect the bedside tables
Dust bedside lamps
Empty and clean all the closets, dressers, and drawers
Vacuum the carpet/mop the floor
Clean the blinds/curtains
Disinfect light switches.

Short term rental hosts should always do a final scan

Bathroom Cleaning

Guests can be very critical of bathrooms. So, you’ll want to double-check that your bathroom is sparkling clean by completing the following tasks:

Clean and disinfect the whole toilet (in other words, the seat, bowl, lid, and tank)
Wash and disinfect the toilet brush
Clean and disinfect the shower (remember to check the shower curtain if you have one)
Clean and disinfect the sink
Check the drains for any hair
Use a stainless steel cleaner to ensure all the taps and showerhead are sparkling clean and free of any smudges
Clean all the mirrors
Wash and replace all the towels
Wash and replace the bath/shower mats
Mop the floor
Clean and restock the bathroom cabinets and drawers
Check for any signs of mold
Clean the blinds/curtains
Disinfect light switches.

Kitchen Cleaning

One of the advantages that short-term rentals offer over hotel accommodation is that they have a kitchen. You’ll want to use this feature to your advantage by ensuring that it meets all the cleaning standards. Plus, considering that this is where food gets prepared, it’s crucial that your kitchen is hygienic.

Clean the inside of all the kitchen appliances to remove leftover food and wipe down and disinfect the exterior (this includes the microwave, dishwasher, and oven)
Clean the oven wire racks and drip pans
Deep clean the stovetop
Clean the sink’s drain filter
Wipe down and disinfect the inside and outside of drawers and cupboards (ensure that there are no crumbs)
Wipe down and disinfect all countertops and backsplashes
Check that if all the dishes are clean and have been returned to the right cupboard/drawer
If you provide pantry essentials, double-check the use-by dates of all the food (this includes any spices, oil, and condiments)
Empty the refrigerator and wipe down and disinfect all the shelves
Ensure there are clean sponges and tea towels
Restock dish soap, trash bags, dishwasher fluid and any other consumables
Remove the garbage and line all the trash cans with a clean bag
Sweep and mop the floor
Clean the blinds/curtains
Disinfect light switches.

Man from professional cleaning service with Airbnb cleaning checklist

Utility and Laundry Room Cleaning

If you have a utility and laundry room that guests are welcome to use, you need to ensure that this space is guest-friendly and clean too. Here are what you’ll need to do:

Clean the interior and exterior of the washing machine (remember to check the laundry detergent tray of the washing machine specifically)
Clean the dryer lint of the dryer
Disinfect light switches and buttons/knobs of the appliances
Replenish the detergent
Clean behind and between the washing machine and dryer
Clean around any supplies.
Mop the floor.

Home Exterior Cleaning

Hosts often forget that the exterior of their property also needs regular attention. Plus, considering that this is what guests will see first, it’s even more important that you ensure that it’s properly maintained.

Clean the windows and the actual window frames
Clean and disinfect any outdoor eating areas
Clean the barbecue
Empty any trash bins and line them with a clean plastic bag
Wash and replace chair cushions
Clean any lawn furniture
Sweep the patio
Clean and disinfect safety railings
Wash and replace chair cushions
Remove weeds and other debris like sticks, branches, and leaves
Clean the swimming pool.

Ensure the exterior of your Airbnb rental is cleaned properly

Cleaning Supplies That You Might Need

Unless you work with a professional cleaning company that usually provides its own supplies, you should stock up the necessary supplies for a thorough cleaning. While you will need multiple tools and supplies, it will make your cleaning tasks much more efficient when you have the right products at hand.

It is also important that you keep the most essential cleaning items inside your vacation rental if your guests need to clean a spill or perform a quick surface clean. However, just make sure that these are stored well out of reach of children.

Here are the essential cleaning supplies that you will need:

A vacuum cleaner
A microfiber mop
Microfiber cloths
Sponges
Scrub pads
A toilet brush
Rubber gloves
Spray bottles
An all-purpose cleaner
A stainless steel cleaner
A degreaser
Disinfectants
A cleaning product for glass surfaces
A quality wood polish
Dishwashing liquid
Air fresheners
Hand soap.

Simplifying the Vacation Rental Cleaning Process

In addition to these room-by-room checklists, automation can also help you to make the Airbnb cleaning process even more straightforward. Whether it is to trade in your broom for a robotic vacuum or sign up for vacation rental software, many hosts put their faith in these tools to make their vacation rental cleaning more efficient.

A clean surface and towel as instructed in an Airbnb cleaning checklist

1. Make use of smart home cleaning devices

Cleaning a property, even more so if it is used as a vacation rental, takes loads of time and energy. Luckily, introducing smart home devices in the cleaning process might be a smart move, especially if you clean your properties without the help of outsourced cleaners. Here are some of the smart home cleaning devices that are worthwhile investments:

A robot window cleaner
An automatic carpet cleaner that automatically sprays, brushes, and suctions
A robot mop
A robot vacuum
A microwave cleaner
A toilet bowl cleaning system
A SonicScrubber
An air purifier.

2. Use vacation rental software

If you have hired the services of a professional cleaning team or have your own cleaning crew in place, vacation rental software like iGMS can help to streamline the process by:

Sharing daily cleaning schedules with your cleaners.
Creating unique Airbnb cleaning checklists for a specific short-term rental or a specific purpose.
Auto-assigning cleaners to your properties.
Tracking the status of each cleaning task. The assigned cleaner will be able to mark the task as accepted, declined, or completed.
Notifying your cleaning team of last-minute changes by pinning to-do notes at the top of your guest requirements list.
Prioritizing subtasks in your Airbnb cleaning checklists to measure the workload against the hours assigned.

In addition to simplifying the cleaning routine, iGMS comes in handy to improve other operations such as:

Managing multiple accounts and listings on the top OTAs from a single interface
Synchronizing reservations across multiple platforms to eliminate the risk of double bookings
Organizing messages into a single feed with a unified inbox
Improving communication with automated templates and triggered messaging
Creating and coordinating cleaning tasks with live tracking to completion
Creating your own direct booking website
Managing direct bookings using a direct booking management toolkit
Processing payments securely via integration with Stripe.
Creating essential reports on your business results within minutes
Adjusting your pricing in a smart way through integrations with PriceLabs, DPGO, and Wheelhouse
Automating the process of guest reviews

3. Introduce a cleaning fee

A cleaning fee can also help Airbnb hosts to simplify the cleaning process further. By adding a cleaning fee to your listings, you will be able to hire a cleaning service or a subcontractor and save time and money on cleaning. What’s more, it will offer you and your property more protection.

While hosts have the freedom to set their own cleaning fees, the average cleaning fee on Airbnb can range anything from $65 to $105 per booking (or in some cases, less than 10% of the total reservation cost).

Factors like your location and property size will impact how much you should charge for a cleaning fee. If you will be using the services of a company, you will also need to consider the average hourly rate and then charge slightly more to cover unexpected costs.

Conclusion

While the cleanliness of your vacation rental was always a top priority, the COVID-19 pandemic placed it in a whole new spotlight. If you have not created an ultimate Airbnb cleaning checklist yet, it should be at the top of your current to-dos.

Then, by adding vacation rental software and even a robotic tool or two, you will be able not only to streamline your cleaning but also improve it. In fact, you will most likely find that it saves you valuable time that you can devote to other more business-scaling tasks such as marketing.

Try iGMS Now

About the Author
Olga Vasylieva is the Content and Social Media Team Lead at iGMS. Olga is on a mission to help hosts and property managers grow their businesses and deliver an excellent guest experience. She is a travel enthusiast and is inspired by life in all its aspects.

October 31, 2023