How long does it take to clean windows professionally?

At ground floor level with moderate soiling, an experienced window cleaner averages 3–4 minutes per standard window pane including wetting, squeegeeing and detailing. First-floor windows with ladder access add 30–50% to that time. Heavily soiled windows can take up to 6 minutes per pane. This calculator accounts for all those variables to give you an accurate job estimate.

How much cleaning solution do I need for windows?

A lightly soiled window requires around 30 ml of solution per square metre, while a heavily soiled window needs up to 90 ml/m². For a typical domestic job of 20 medium windows (0.54 m² each) with moderate soiling, you would need approximately 0.6 litres of mixed solution. Always mix solution fresh and avoid leaving excess on frames to prevent streaking.

How many squeegee passes are needed per window?

Lightly soiled windows typically need 2 squeegee passes (a fanning stroke and a detail stroke). Moderately dirty windows usually require 3 passes. Heavily soiled windows may need 4–5 passes to remove all residue without smearing. More passes mean more solution consumption and longer job times.

Does floor level significantly affect cleaning time?

Yes. Moving from ground floor to first floor typically increases time per window by around 40% due to ladder setup, repositioning and reduced working speed at height. Second-floor or specialist-access windows can take up to 2.5 times longer than equivalent ground-floor windows. Always factor access difficulty into your quoting.

CleanCalcs

Window Cleaning Time Calculator — Time, Solution & Squeegee Passes

Calculate cleaning time, solution volume and squeegee passes for any window cleaning job based on window count, size, floor level and dirt level.

Number of Windows

Total number of window panes to clean

Dirt Level

Overall soiling level of the windows

Average Window Width

Average width of a single window pane

Average Window Height

Average height of a single window pane

Floor Level

Access difficulty based on floor level

How We Calculate This

How the calculation works

Cleaning time is calculated from the base minutes per pane for the selected dirt level, multiplied by the floor-level access factor:

Cleaning time = Base min/pane × Floor multiplier × Window count

Total time = Cleaning time + Setup time

Base minutes per pane by dirt level

Light: 2.0 min/pane
Moderate: 3.5 min/pane
Heavy: 6.0 min/pane

Floor level multipliers

Ground floor: 1.0×
First floor: 1.4×
Second floor: 1.8×
Third floor+: 2.5×

Solution volume

Solution (L) = Solution ml/m² × Total glass area (m²) ÷ 1000

Frequently Asked Questions

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Last updated: March 2026

All calculations are estimates. Always verify quantities and timings for your specific situation.