A Different Question Needs to be Asked

It is not uncommon for homeowners to ask a question such as this. It could be something like “You’re going to charge me one-hundred fifty dollars to clean 2 windows??” There may be shock or outrage at the pure mathematics aspect of this. So, a window cleaner wants $75 for each window. In my experience that is a pretty high price to charge for the action of cleaning one typical window. However, there is far more to this than the full charge divided by the number of windows. A better question might be “what do you need to come over to do a few windows?”

What is the Real Cost Involved in Cleaning Windows?

While this might be a rhetorical question to homeowners, this exact question is at the crux of how professional window cleaners and all other service companies determine pricing. Consider this- when you pay $17.34 shipping for an item delivered to your door that has a retail price of $8.55 and weighs 3 oz, are you shocked? Probably not in 2026. Are you happy? Probably not and probably never. But it is accepted. When a plumber, electrician, HVAC, or appliance repairperson shows up at your house and perform what to them is a quick and simple fix, do you expect to pay $15 since it barely took any time? Of course not. Yes, you know you’re paying in part for their knowledge and expertise. But you are also paying whatever the amount is for their time, gas, wear and tear on the vehicle, insurance which mitigates YOUR risk as well as theirs, licenses, certifications, and maybe other things. These are all costs incurred by a serviceperson that need to be reasonably recouped among a number of recipients of their professional services.

Even though professional window cleaning isn’t usually viewed as a trade the way that those mentioned earlier are, the same real world facts are in place. I know that due to the rural nature that makes up much of northeastern PA and the southern tier of NY, some days one or more of our work vehicles log 100 or more miles. There is a lot of driving. That means a lot of unpaid ‘windshield’ time for one or more employees. While window cleaning itself does not have trade-related licenses, many states or municipalities require licenses to conduct business in general. Also, many states require sales tax to be collected for window cleaning, and thus the business needs to have a tax license. The big ones besides gas are supplies and insurance. Supplies are unavoidable. Window cleaning companies that choose to not carry General Liability Insurance are playing with fire. Both homeowner and business owner are at risk of big financial hurt if the rare, but ever-present mishap of property or personal damage occurs. Boiling this down, when you hire a window cleaning that is covered for such damages you are paying a small and reasonable price for peace of mind.

There is a Big Picture

So, there is a clearer and larger picture coming into focus. Running a service business cost money. Often a lot of money. Every thing and every function of window cleaning eats up the financial resources of the owner- vehicle use and fuel consumption, several insurances, cost of supplies, labor, the ‘time is money’ concept (meaning every hour we spend traveling is an hour we aren’t at a job site), and so forth. Add to this the often unspoken value of knowing that when you call a professional window cleaning company year after year, you are going to get true professionals who know what they’re doing and can do it safely and efficiently, and will always treat your personal property with the utmost respect. Good and loyal employees are not cheap and shouldn’t be cheap to share with homeowners. So the answer to a question such as “You want one-hundred fifty dollars to clean two windows?” is no, not just for cleaning two windows. It covers the time involved in making any stop and the expertise and peace of mind we provide with no risk to you.

Dan Wagner Window Cleaning

has been serving all of northeastern PA and parts of NY State since 1986. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at dan@danwagnerwindowcleaning.com

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