Employed, self-employed, or something in between?
Most people searching for cleaning jobs in London find agency and contract roles: fixed shifts, someone else's clients, someone else's rate. There's a second route that doesn't show up in a normal job search — going self-employed and building your own round of private customers. You set your own hours and your own prices — nothing is deducted by an agency or a platform, though as a self-employed person you're still responsible for your own tax, National Insurance and business costs out of what you earn.
What "self-employed" actually means
Going self-employed as a cleaner means running your own small business rather than being on anyone's payroll. In practice:
- You register with HMRC as self-employed (or set up as a sole trader) and handle your own tax and National Insurance.
- You agree the price, the schedule and the scope of each job directly with the customer — nobody assigns you a rota.
- You're paid directly by the customer, not by an agency or a platform.
- You're responsible for your own equipment and travel, and — if you want it — your own public liability insurance.
This isn't tax or legal advice, and KleanTouch doesn't handle your registration. For the actual process, GOV.UK's guidance on becoming a sole trader is the right starting point, and it's worth speaking to an accountant if you're unsure what applies to you.
How to start as a self-employed cleaner
There's no licence required to clean houses in the UK, so the practical steps are more about setting yourself up properly than clearing a formal hurdle:
- Register as self-employed with HMRC (or set up as a sole trader) once you start earning from cleaning work — see the GOV.UK guidance above.
- Decide which services and areas you can realistically cover. It's usually easier to do a smaller number well than to spread yourself too thin from the start.
- Sort out your basic supplies and equipment, and decide whether you'll use your own cleaning products or the customer's — this varies by cleaner, and it's worth deciding your approach before you're asked.
- Keep simple records of what you earn and spend from the start. This isn't tax advice, but it makes the process at the end of the year far less stressful — an accountant or the HMRC helpline can advise on what you specifically need to keep.
How self-employed cleaners find their first customers
Most self-employed cleaners build up their customer base through a mix of:
- Word of mouth — friends, family and existing contacts, especially once you have even one or two regular clients who can recommend you.
- Local community groups — noticeboards, local Facebook groups and community WhatsApp groups often have people asking for cleaner recommendations.
- Leaflets or cards in the areas you want to work.
- Free directories, like KleanTouch, where customers actively searching for a cleaner in your area can find your profile and contact you directly, without you paying an agency for the introduction.
None of these guarantee work on their own, and most cleaners end up combining a few. Being listed somewhere customers are actually searching is usually the fastest of these to set up.
How KleanTouch fits in
KleanTouch is a free directory built for exactly this: customers searching for a cleaner in a London borough or neighbourhood see genuine, independent cleaners' profiles and contact them directly. There's no commission and no booking fee — what a customer pays goes straight to you, before your own tax and expenses.
What to include in your KleanTouch profile
A profile that gets contacted usually has:
- Specific areas, not just your borough — "Clapham, Battersea and Balham" tells a customer more than "South London."
- A clear list of services — domestic cleaning, end of tenancy, deep cleaning, Airbnb changeovers — so customers searching for a specific job find you.
- An honest description of your experience (at least 80 words) — how long you've been cleaning, what you specialise in, and anything that sets you apart. Generic descriptions are easy to skip past.
- A real photo of you or your work, not a stock image — profiles without one aren't shown.
- At least one way to be contacted — phone, WhatsApp, email or website.
Once your profile has these, add your business — it takes about ten minutes, and we check every listing before it goes live.
Self-employed cleaner vs cleaning agency
| Self-employed (e.g. via KleanTouch) | Cleaning agency | |
|---|---|---|
| Who sets the price | You, with each customer | Usually the agency |
| Who your clients are | Yours — you keep the relationship | The agency's — they can be reassigned |
| Who pays you | The customer, directly | Usually the agency |
| Commission or cut taken | None on KleanTouch | Often, by the agency |
| Who finds your work | You (a directory like KleanTouch can help) | The agency assigns it |
| Flexibility | You choose your hours and areas | Usually fixed shifts |
Neither is inherently better. An agency can mean steadier hours and less admin; going self-employed usually means more control over your price, your clients and your schedule, and keeping more of what you earn before your own costs and tax. Which suits you depends on what you're looking for.