Cleaning Company - by Northfields Clean - July 10, 2026

I run Northfield Clean, a cleaning company based in West London, and unlike a lot of companies in this space, we don’t employ staff directly. Every cleaner we work with is an independent contractor. That puts us in an odd position: we’re a “company,” but we understand the independent cleaner’s side of things just as well, because we work with them every day.

So when people ask me whether they should hire an independent cleaner or go with a company, I don’t have a one-size-fits-all answer. But I do have a lot of real experience with the trade-offs, and I want to walk you through them honestly, including the parts that don’t necessarily benefit my own business.

The Story I Hear Over and Over Again

A huge number of the clients who come to us tell me some version of the same story. They had a cleaner they loved. Reliable, thorough, trustworthy, someone they’d had in their home for years. Then, for one reason or another, that person moved away, retired, or simply stopped working. And suddenly the client was back to square one, trying to find someone just as good.

That search is harder than people expect. Finding one individual cleaner who does a genuinely great job, shows up when they say they will, and that you trust in your home, often takes going through several people first. Even we go through that same process when we’re recruiting contractors. It’s not easy work, and it doesn’t happen overnight.

That’s usually the moment people start looking at cleaning companies instead. Not because their old cleaner was bad, quite the opposite, but because they don’t want to repeat that whole trial-and-error process on their own.

The Biggest Misconception: “Companies Just Skim Off the Top”

The single most common thing I hear from potential clients is a version of this: “If I go through a company, doesn’t the actual cleaner just get paid peanuts?”

It’s an understandable assumption, but in my experience it’s usually not true. Cleaners don’t want to work for companies that underpay them, and companies that underpay their contractors don’t keep good cleaners for long. If the pay isn’t fair, the good people leave, and the company is left scrambling to fill jobs with whoever’s available. That’s bad for everyone, including the business. So most companies worth using are paying their cleaners properly, because it’s the only way the model actually works long-term.

Where the Money Actually Goes

I’ll be transparent about this because I think most companies aren’t, and it leaves customers guessing.

When you pay a cleaning company, that money isn’t just going to the cleaner and then straight into the owner’s pocket. From my own experience running Northfield Clean, here’s roughly where it goes:

The cleaner’s pay, which needs to be fair enough that good contractors want to keep working with you
Insurance, so you’re covered if something in your home gets damaged
DBS checks and vetting costs, so you know who’s actually coming into your property
Marketing and admin, so the business can keep finding and booking clients
Accounting, taxes, and general running costs
A margin for the business itself

By the time all of that is accounted for, the owner’s actual take-home is usually only around 10% of what you pay. The rest goes into the infrastructure that makes the service reliable and safe. Overall, a company’s total margin above what an independent cleaner might charge you directly tends to sit somewhere between 10% and 30%, occasionally reaching a bit higher.

So yes, you’ll typically pay somewhat more going through a company than hiring an independent cleaner directly. But that difference is buying you something specific: insurance, vetting, and reliability, rather than disappearing as pure profit.

Reliability Is the Real Deciding Factor

If I had to name the single biggest reason clients choose a company over an independent cleaner, it’s reliability.

Independent cleaners are often juggling several clients at once, and when something better comes along, whether that’s a higher-paying job or a scheduling conflict, it’s not uncommon for a booking to get bumped or rearranged. That’s not true of every independent cleaner, but it’s a common enough pattern that it’s the top complaint I hear from people switching to us.

With a company, if your usual cleaner is unwell, moves house, or leaves, there’s someone else who can step in. You’re not left starting your search from scratch. That continuity is really the core of what you’re paying the extra margin for.

When an Independent Cleaner Is Genuinely the Better Choice

I don’t think the honest answer is “always use a company,” and I’d rather tell you the truth than oversell my own business.

If you find an independent cleaner who’s reliable, trustworthy, and does great work, you can absolutely save money by working with them directly. You’re cutting out the margin that goes toward a company’s overheads, and if that person turns out to be consistent, there’s nothing wrong with sticking with them long term.

The catch is that all of the due diligence becomes your responsibility. A company has already done the vetting for you. If you go independent, you need to do it yourself, and that takes real effort.

What Due Diligence Actually Looks Like

If you’re going to hire an independent cleaner directly, here’s what I’d genuinely check, because these are the same things we check before we bring a contractor onto our books at Northfield Clean:

A valid DBS check, so you know who is coming into your home
Proof of insurance, so you’re covered if anything is damaged during a clean
Real references from previous clients, not just a couple of names but people you can actually contact
Clarity on exactly who will be coming to your property, especially if the person sometimes brings help
A clear understanding of what happens if something is missed or goes wrong

Red Flags to Watch For

Based on what I’ve seen over the years, I’d be cautious of an independent cleaner if:

They can’t produce a DBS check when asked
They have no insurance, or are vague about whether they do
They can’t give you genuine references
They’re not upfront about exactly who will be in your home
They assume the price will automatically be lower simply because they’re independent, without justifying it

That last one catches people out more than you’d think. Going independent doesn’t automatically mean cheaper. It’s worth actually comparing the number, not just assuming.

Who This Decision Really Matters For

In my experience, this question comes up most with busy professionals and families with kids. These are people who value their time and want a service they don’t have to think about twice. They’re also the people most likely to have absorbed the misconception that independent always means better value, without factoring in the time cost of finding, vetting, and eventually replacing that person.

My Honest Take

If you’ve got the time to vet someone properly, and you’re willing to accept that you might need to repeat that process again down the line, hiring an independent cleaner directly can work out well and save you some money.

But if you’re busy, you want reliability from day one, and you don’t want to spend your evenings chasing references and checking insurance documents, that’s exactly the gap a company is built to fill. At Northfield Clean, we’ve already done that groundwork with every contractor we work with, and we back it with a guarantee: if anything is missed, we’ll come back and put it right within seven days. If that sounds like what you need, you can book a reliable cleaner with Northfield Clean and skip the vetting process entirely.

Either path can work. The important thing is going in with your eyes open about what you’re actually paying for, and what you’re taking on yourself if you skip it.