As a cleaner, it is your responsibility to ensure the building or buildings you're in charge of are spotless. From sweeping the floors and washing windows to cleaning the bathrooms and maybe even mowing the lawn, your goal is to make the building(s) shine.
A lot of your job is done after hours usually, as that's when everyone has gone home and will be out of your way. Some of the work may be unpleasant since there will be areas that are more dirty than others.
Luckily, the job isn't too demanding education wise, so you should be able to pick it up after a bit of on-the-job training. Other than training, you won't need any formal education. Another plus for this position is that you can essentially work anywhere. Everyone needs an exceptional cleaner.
How to Become a Cleaner
What is a Cleaner
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a Cleaner. For example, did you know that they make an average of $12.72 an hour? That's $26,466 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 7% and produce 159,800 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does a Cleaner Do
There are certain skills that many Cleaners have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed Interpersonal skills, Mechanical skills and Physical strength.
How To Become a Cleaner
If you're interested in becoming a Cleaner, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 11.6% of Cleaners have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 0.8% of Cleaners have master's degrees. Even though some Cleaners have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a Cleaner. When we researched the most common majors for a Cleaner, we found that they most commonly earn High School Diploma degrees or Associate Degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on Cleaner resumes include Diploma degrees or Bachelor's Degree degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a Cleaner. In fact, many Cleaner jobs require experience in a role such as Cashier. Meanwhile, many Cleaners also have previous career experience in roles such as Sales Associate or Customer Service Representative.
What is the right job for my career path?
Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the right jobs to get there.
And if you’re looking for a job, here are the five top employers hiring now:
Cleaner Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of Certified Nursing Assistant you might progress to a role such as Team Leader eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title Site Manager.
Cleaner Jobs You Might Like
What is the right job for my career path?
Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the rights job to get there.
Average Salary for a Cleaner
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Use Zippia's Salary Calculator to see how your pay matches up.
12 Cleaner Resume Examples
Build a professional cleaner resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 12+ resume templates to create your cleaner resume.
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Samantha Rivera Cleaner |
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Brian Walker Cleaner Experience Cleaner2019 - Present ABM Industries•Philadelphia, PA
Bell Cleaner2018 - 2019 PrimeFlight Aviation Services•Memphis, TN
Fry Cook2017 - 2018 McDonald's•Memphis, TN
Skills Safety GuidelinesMix IngredientsFood PreparationMenu ItemsBuilding FloorsCustomer ServiceFresh FoodGarbage CansSafety ProceduresPaper Products Education High School Diploma 2017 - 2017 |
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Learn How To Write a Cleaner Resume
At Zippia, we went through countless Cleaner resumes and compiled some information about how to optimize them. Here are some suggestions based on what we found, divided by the individual sections of the resume itself.
View Cleaner Resume Examples And TemplatesAnd if you’re looking for a job, here are the five top employers hiring now:
Choose From 10+ Customizable Cleaner Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Cleaner templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Cleaner resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Find the best Cleaner job for you
Cleaner Jobs You Might Like
- High Paying Cleaner Jobs - $32K and Up
- Entry Level Cleaner Jobs
- Part Time Cleaner Jobs
- Actively Hiring
- No Degree Cleaner Jobs
Online Courses For Cleaner That You May Like
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Many engineers are puzzled by questions such as: how to shift or reduce peak heating demand to obtain a better match with a smart grid or renewable energy system? What is thermally more efficient: a heavy concrete building or a light timber-frame building? How effective is night ventilation in warm periods? This course will provide you with the answers to these and many other questions related to dynamic thermal behavior in buildings. We start with a recap of the various heat transfer phenomena...
Learn How to Use Lighting in your Interior Design Like a Pro...
Top Skills For a Cleaner
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 9.6% of Cleaners listed Building Floors on their resume, but soft skills such as Interpersonal skills and Mechanical skills are important as well.
Best States For a Cleaner
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a Cleaner. The best states for people in this position are Washington, Massachusetts, California, and Vermont. Cleaners make the most in Washington with an average salary of $33,933. Whereas in Massachusetts and California, they would average $32,189 and $32,037, respectively. While Cleaners would only make an average of $31,680 in Vermont, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Alaska
$30,522
Avg. Salary
2. Vermont
$31,680
Avg. Salary
3. Washington
$33,933
Avg. Salary
How Do Cleaner Rate Their Jobs?
Cleaner Videos
Becoming a Cleaner FAQs
How long does it take to become a Cleaner?
It takes 2 years of professional experience to become a cleaner. That is the time it takes to learn specific cleaner skills, but does not account for time spent in formal education.
Can anyone become a cleaner?
Yes, anyone can become a cleaner. A high school diploma or equivalent is preferred but not usually required to become a cleaner.
Though there are not any formal educational requirements, cleaners should have experience with general cleaning and maintenance. Employers typically look to hire detail-oriented cleaners who can carry out physically demanding work and have a working knowledge of cleaning substances.
Most, if not all, of a cleaner's training, takes place after they are hired. On-the-job training typically includes instruction on which cleaning products are most effective, how to handle chemicals, general maintenance guidelines, and how to use certain pieces of equipment.
Certifications are not required for this entry-level role; however, gaining certifications may be advantageous if a person pursues a higher-paying position.
The International Janitorial Cleaning Services Association (IJCSA) offers several subjects such as Biohazard Cleaning Certification, Carpet Cleaning Certification, Green Cleaning Certification, Chemical Hazards Certification, and Customer Service Certification.
If a cleaner has passed all IJCSA certification courses, they are eligible to study for an examination for this comprehensive cleaning and janitorial certification.
Do cleaners make good money?
No, cleaners do not typically make good money. Cleaners earn an average salary of around $30,000 in a year. This amount is an hourly wage of approximately $15 to $17 an hour.
Salaries for cleaners are often determined by the candidate's experience, relevant certifications, skill set, the position's specific job responsibilities, and whether they are independent cleaners or hired by a company.
Some cleaner jobs have more responsibility and require greater skill levels. These typically require additional certifications and higher wages. Some cleaners can make around $50,000 a year.
Salaries can vary somewhat depending on the level of experience. Entry-level cleaners might only be expected to take care of simple custodial matters such as regular cleaning as quickly as possible.
More experienced cleaners, on the other hand, might be expected to take responsibility for the overall cleaning quality of the building (or multiple buildings) and report problems to the proper supervisor or department.
They may even start their own business, allowing them to make more income by setting their rates for various services. Therefore the more highly experienced cleaners can make significantly more than entry-level individuals.
How much money does a cleaner make?
Cleaners make $30,000 in a year typically. This amount is an hourly rate of around $15 to $17 an hour.
Salaries for cleaners are often determined by the candidate's experience, relevant certifications and skill set, the position's specific job responsibilities, and whether they are independent cleaners or hired by a company.
Some cleaner jobs have more responsibility and require greater skill levels. These typically require additional certifications and pay higher wages. Some cleaners can make around $50,000 a year.
Salaries can vary somewhat depending on the level of experience. Entry-level cleaners might only be expected to take care of simple custodial matters such as regular cleaning as quickly as possible.
More experienced cleaners, on the other hand, might be expected to take responsibility for the overall cleaning quality of the building (or multiple buildings) and report problems to the proper supervisor or department.
They may even start their own business, allowing them to make more income by setting their rates for various services. Therefore the more highly experienced cleaners can make significantly more than entry-level individuals.
What qualifications do you need to be a cleaner?
The qualifications you need to be a cleaner are a high school diploma or its equivalent. Though there are not any formal educational requirements, cleaners should have experience with general cleaning and maintenance.
Employers typically look to hire detail-oriented cleaners who can carry out physically demanding work and who have a working knowledge of cleaning substances.
Most, if not all, of a cleaner's training, takes place after they are hired. On-the-job training typically includes instruction on which cleaning products are most effective, how to handle chemicals, general maintenance guidelines, and how to use certain pieces of equipment.
Certifications are not required for this entry-level role; however, gaining certifications may be advantageous if a person is pursuing a higher-paying position.
The International Janitorial Cleaning Services Association (IJCSA) offers several subjects such as Biohazard Cleaning Certification, Carpet Cleaning Certification, Green Cleaning Certification, Chemical Hazards Certification, and Customer Service Certification.
If a cleaner has passed all IJCSA certification courses, they are eligible to study for an examination for this comprehensive cleaning and janitorial certification.