House cleaning checklist
Every routine cleaning job, room by room. Switch on the deep cleaning checklist for the jobs that only come round every month or season.
Kitchen
Bathroom
Bedrooms
Living areas
Entry and laundry
Using the checklist with the family
Checklists turn "clean the bathroom" into steps a 10-year-old can follow and an adult can check in 30 seconds. Print one room per child, or add the jobs to your chore chart. For the timing of each job, see the cleaning schedule maker.
Safety note: keep bleach, oven cleaner and descalers for adults and older teens, never mix bleach with ammonia or acidic cleaners, and ventilate the room.
Cleaning checklist questions
What should be on a house cleaning checklist?
A regular checklist covers each room's routine jobs: kitchen surfaces and floor, bathroom toilet, sink and shower, bedroom linen and dusting, living-area dusting and vacuuming, plus entry and laundry. A deep cleaning checklist adds the jobs done monthly or seasonally, like the oven, grout, mattress and windows.
What is the difference between regular and deep cleaning?
Regular cleaning keeps visible surfaces clean and runs weekly. Deep cleaning reaches what regular cleaning skips (behind appliances, inside the oven, grout, vents, under furniture) and is usually done every one to three months or seasonally.
How often should smoke alarms be tested?
The US Fire Administration and NFPA recommend testing smoke alarms at least once a month using the test button. That is why the check is on the deep-clean list here.