Building cleaner vs janitor

The differences between building cleaners and janitors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a janitor has an average salary of $27,954, which is higher than the $27,481 average annual salary of a building cleaner.

The top three skills for a building cleaner include polish furniture, clean bathrooms and cleanliness. The most important skills for a janitor are building floors, cleanliness, and patients.

Building cleaner vs janitor overview

	Building Cleaner	Janitor
Yearly salary	$27,481	$27,954
Hourly rate	$13.21	$13.44
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	48,271	57,146
Job satisfaction	5	3.67
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 51%	High School Diploma, 56%
Average age	49	49
Years of experience	-	-

Building cleaner vs janitor salary

Building cleaners and janitors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Building Cleaner	Janitor
Average salary	$27,481	$27,954
Salary range	Between $21,000 And $35,000	Between $21,000 And $35,000
Highest paying City	Minneapolis, MN	Lexington, MA
Highest paying state	Washington	Massachusetts
Best paying company	Robbinsdale Area Schools	Argonne National Laboratory
Best paying industry	Technology	Hospitality

Differences between building cleaner and janitor education

There are a few differences between a building cleaner and a janitor in terms of educational background:

	Building Cleaner	Janitor
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 51%	High School Diploma, 56%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Building cleaner vs janitor demographics

Here are the differences between building cleaners' and janitors' demographics:

	Building Cleaner	Janitor
Average age	49	49
Gender ratio	Male, 50.8% Female, 49.2%	Male, 63.1% Female, 36.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 18.9% Asian, 4.8% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 20.1% Asian, 4.4% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between building cleaner and janitor duties and responsibilities

Building cleaner example responsibilities.

Maintain cleanliness of all floors in apartment building, sweeping and mopping.
Respond appropriately to the physical, emotional and developmental needs of patients.
Disinfect equipment and supplies, using germicides or steam-operate sterilizers.

Janitor example responsibilities.

Clean private residents entire home, floors, windows, using soapy water and other cleaners, sponges, and squeegees.
Use of floor extractors machine to strip, scrub, wax, and buff floors.
Wash windows and mirrors, tables and counter tops using window cleaner and cloths or paper, sponges, squeegees.
Organize supplies such as broom, mop, sponges, cleaning supplies, etc.
Used solvent, such as carbon dioxide, rags, brushes, pads, and sponges.
Dust and vacuums shred rooms and personal cubicle areas.

Building cleaner vs janitor skills

Common building cleaner skills

Polish Furniture, 14%
Clean Bathrooms, 13%
Cleanliness, 13%
Clean Windows, 11%
Hot Water, 7%
Bathroom Fixtures, 7%

Common janitor skills

Building Floors, 12%
Cleanliness, 12%
Patients, 9%
Window Sills, 6%
Commercial Cleaning, 5%
Customer Service, 5%

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Building Cleaner vs Janitor

Updated January 8, 2025

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