Chartered Financial Analyst specializing in small service business finance.
Find out how many cleaning jobs your service must complete per month to cover all costs. Enter any three variables—Monthly Fixed Costs, Avg. Price per Job, Avg. Variable Cost per Job, or Breakeven Jobs—to solve for the fourth.
Cleaning Service Breakeven Calculator
Cleaning Service Breakeven Formula
The breakeven formula for a cleaning business finds the number of jobs (Q) it must complete for total monthly revenue to equal all fixed and variable costs.
Q = F / (P – V)
Solve for Monthly Fixed Costs (F):
F = Q * (P – V)
Solve for Avg. Price per Job (P):
P = (F / Q) + V
Solve for Avg. Variable Cost per Job (V):
V = P – (F / Q)
Variables Explained
- Monthly Fixed Costs (F): Your total, recurring monthly overhead (e.g., vehicle payments, insurance, storage rent, marketing, software).
- Avg. Price per Job (P): The average amount you charge for a single cleaning appointment.
- Avg. Variable Cost per Job (V): The average cost of labor (hourly pay for cleaners) and supplies (chemicals, paper towels, gas) directly tied to one job.
- Breakeven Jobs (Q): The total number of jobs you need to complete to reach $0 in monthly profit.
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What is a Cleaning Service’s Breakeven Point?
A **Cleaning Service Breakeven Point** is the number of cleaning jobs (Q) your business must complete in a month to cover all your total expenses. This is the minimum sales volume you need to achieve to start being profitable.
**Fixed Costs (F)** are your monthly “overhead.” These are the expenses you pay regardless of how many jobs you do. This includes your van/car payments, business insurance, scheduling software, website hosting, and any marketing or office rent.
**Variable Costs (V)** are the costs tied *directly* to each job. This primarily includes two things: (1) The hourly wages paid to the cleaners *for the time they are at the job*, and (2) The cost of consumable supplies (chemicals, sponges, paper towels) and gas used for that job.
The **Contribution Margin** (P – V) is the profit from a single job that goes toward paying off your large monthly fixed costs. This calculator finds how many jobs you need to complete to cover your total overhead. Every job completed *after* this point generates your net profit.
How to Calculate Cleaning Service Breakeven (Example)
Let’s calculate the breakeven point for a small cleaning company.
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Identify Monthly Fixed Costs (F):
The company has $3,000 in monthly van payments, insurance, and marketing costs.
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Identify Avg. Price per Job (P):
The average residential cleaning job is billed at $180.
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Identify Avg. Variable Cost (V):
The average cost of labor (2 hours at $25/hr) and supplies/gas per job is $60.
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Apply the Formula: Q = F / (P – V)
First, calculate the contribution margin per job: $180 (P) – $60 (V) = $120.
Next, divide the fixed costs by this margin:
Q = $3,000 / $120 = 25 -
Conclusion:
The cleaning company must complete 25 jobs each month to cover all costs and start making a profit.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
It’s almost always a **Variable Cost (V)**. You pay your cleaners their hourly wage *for the time they are cleaning*. If there are no jobs, you don’t pay them (unlike a salaried office manager, which would be a Fixed Cost).
Consumable supplies (chemicals, sponges, etc.) are a **Variable Cost (V)**. You can estimate this by dividing your total monthly supply bill by the number of jobs you did that month (e.g., $300 in supplies / 50 jobs = $6/job).
You must find your “average” job. At the end of the month, divide your total revenue by the total number of jobs to get your (P). Divide your total variable costs (all cleaning labor, supplies, gas) by the total number of jobs to get your (V).
Let’s say your (F) is $3,000/mo and you want to work 100 billable hours (Q). Your (V) is $10/hr (supplies/gas). Solve for (P): `P = ($3,000 / 100) + $10 = $30 + $10 = $40`. This means your hourly rate (P) must be at least $40/hr to break even at 100 hours.