If your building needs someone on site all day, every day, to handle spills, restock washrooms, and respond to requests on the spot, an in house janitorial team can make sense. If you need a clean, well kept space without hiring, training, supervising, and equipping staff yourself, outsourcing to a commercial cleaning company is usually the simpler and more cost predictable choice. Both approaches can keep a workplace spotless. The difference is how much of the work behind the cleaning your business wants to own.
Many business owners compare the two by looking only at wages versus a monthly contract, and that’s where the decision often goes wrong. The true cost of an in house team includes recruiting, payroll, benefits, sick days, turnover, supplies, equipment, and safety training. An outsourced contract bundles most of that into a single invoice. The real question is not “which one is cheaper per hour?” but “which one gives us the standard we need with the least risk and management time?”
Quick Answer: In house janitorial means your business hires and manages its own cleaning staff, which gives you maximum control and on site availability but adds payroll, training, equipment, and supervision to your workload. Outsourced commercial cleaning means a professional company supplies trained, insured cleaners, products, and equipment under a contract, which trades some day to day control for predictable costs, built in backup staff, and far less admin. Most small and mid sized businesses find outsourcing more efficient, while large facilities with constant daytime needs sometimes benefit from in house staff or a mix of both.
Key Takeaways
- Control vs convenience. In house staff answer only to you. An outsourced team follows a contract, but you don’t have to manage them day to day.
- Hidden costs sit with in house teams. Wages are only part of the picture. Benefits, turnover, supplies, equipment, and training all add up.
- Coverage is built into outsourcing. When an outsourced cleaner is sick, the company sends someone else. With an in house team, gaps are your problem to fill.
- Specialized work favours outsourcing. Carpet extraction, floor care, and deep cleans usually need equipment and expertise most in house teams don’t have.
- Safety training is a legal duty. Across Canada, employers must provide WHMIS education and training to workers who handle hazardous products, which includes many commercial cleaning chemicals.
What In House Janitorial Actually Means
An in house janitorial team is made up of your own employees. You write the job descriptions, hire the staff, set their schedules, buy the chemicals and machines, and make sure they’re trained to use them safely. In return, your cleaners are fully part of your operation. They know the building, the people, and the priorities, and they can drop what they’re doing to deal with an urgent mess during business hours.
That level of control works best for large sites with steady, all day demand, such as manufacturing plants, big campuses, or facilities where cleaning is closely tied to daily operations.
What Outsourced Commercial Cleaning Actually Means
Outsourcing means signing an agreement with a professional cleaning company to handle your space on a set schedule, often after hours so work isn’t interrupted. The company recruits, screens, trains, insures, and supervises its cleaners, and it brings its own products and equipment. You agree on a scope of work and a frequency, and the company is responsible for delivering it.
If you’re still working out how often your space should be serviced, our guide on how often a commercial office should be cleaned is a good place to start before requesting quotes.
In House Janitorial vs Outsourced Cleaning: Side by Side
| What You’re Comparing | In House Janitorial | Outsourced Commercial Cleaning |
| Who employs the cleaners | Your business | The cleaning company |
| Cost structure | Wages, benefits, supplies, equipment, training | One contracted fee, usually monthly or per visit |
| Day to day control | Full control over tasks and priorities | Set by the agreed scope of work |
| Coverage for sick days and turnover | You find and train replacements | Company provides backup staff |
| Equipment and supplies | Purchased and maintained by you | Supplied by the company |
| Safety training and insurance | Your responsibility | Handled by the company |
| Specialized services | Limited unless you invest in gear and training | Usually available as add ons |
READ MORE: How Often Should a Commercial Office Be Cleaned?
When In House Janitorial Makes More Sense
You need someone on site all day. Facilities with constant foot traffic, frequent spills, or strict hygiene checkpoints may need a cleaner available at every hour of operation.
Cleaning is tied closely to your operations. In some industries, cleaning tasks are part of the production process itself, and it helps to have staff who report directly to your own supervisors.
Your facility is large enough to justify the overhead. When you need several full time cleaners year round, the cost of building and running your own team can start to balance out.
When Outsourced Commercial Cleaning Makes More Sense
You want predictable costs. A fixed contract makes budgeting simple, with no surprise expenses for new equipment, replacement hires, or overtime.
You don’t want to manage a cleaning team. Hiring, scheduling, training, and supervising janitors takes time away from running your business. Outsourcing takes it off your plate.
You need specialized or periodic services. Deep cleans, floor care, and professional carpet cleaning need commercial grade equipment. Property managers handling move in and move out cleaning between tenants or turnover cleaning for rental units also benefit from a team that can scale up when the schedule gets busy.
Did You Know? According to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS), every Canadian jurisdiction requires employers to develop, implement, and maintain a WHMIS education and training program for workers, and employers remain legally responsible for worker protection no matter who delivers the training. For businesses running their own janitorial staff, that means chemical safety training, labelling, and safety data sheets are all your responsibility. With an outsourced cleaning company, those obligations for the cleaning crew sit with the company that employs them.
READ MORE: Is a Cleaning Service Worth It? A Cost vs Time Breakdown
How to Decide Which One Is Right for Your Business
Calculate the full cost of an in house team. Add wages, benefits, payroll costs, supplies, equipment, training time, and the cost of covering absences. Compare that total, not just hourly pay, against contract quotes.
Map out when and how often you need cleaning. If most of the work can happen after hours on a regular schedule, outsourcing fits well. Recurring commercial service is priced much like recurring residential service, as our weekly cleaning cost guide shows. If you need someone on call during business hours, in house or a hybrid setup may be better.
Consider a hybrid model. Some businesses keep one in house day porter for quick tasks and outsource nightly cleaning and periodic deep cleans. Planning those deeper visits works a lot like a room by room deep cleaning schedule at home, just on a larger scale.
Weighing your options for your office or commercial space? Request a free commercial cleaning quote from Sweepy Maids and we’ll build a scope and schedule that fits your business.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is outsourcing commercial cleaning cheaper than hiring in house staff?
For most small and mid sized businesses, yes. Once you include benefits, supplies, equipment, training, and covering absences, an in house team often costs more than a contract that bundles all of it into one fee.
Do I lose control over quality if I outsource?
Not if you set clear expectations. A detailed scope of work, regular check ins, and a named contact at the cleaning company give you strong control over results without managing the cleaners yourself.
Can a cleaning company handle deep cleans as well as routine service?
Yes. Most commercial cleaning companies offer periodic deep cleans alongside regular visits. To see how pricing changes between service levels, read our guide on the deep cleaning vs standard cleaning price difference in Canada.
Who is responsible if an outsourced cleaner is injured or causes damage?
In most cases, a reputable cleaning company carries its own liability insurance and workers’ compensation coverage for its staff. Always ask for proof of both before signing a contract.
Can I combine in house and outsourced cleaning?
Absolutely. Many businesses keep a small in house team or a day porter for daytime needs and outsource after hours cleaning, floor care, and deep cleans to a professional company.
About the Author
Parth Katyal is the founder of Sweepy Maids and has more than 10 years of experience helping Canadian homes and businesses stay clean, safe, and welcoming. Founded in Surrey, BC, Sweepy Maids has grown into a trusted residential and commercial cleaning company serving Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Vancouver Island, Kelowna, Calgary, Brampton, Edmonton, and Montreal, including our popular Vancity Newton branch. Parth’s focus on eco friendly products, bonded and background checked cleaners, and transparent pricing has made Sweepy Maids a reliable partner for business owners who want a spotless workplace without the hassle of managing it themselves.