Cleaning Service Keywords: 240+ Keywords by Niche for Google Ads and SEO

How to Use This List

These are the keywords cleaning customers actually type when they want to hire someone, grouped by niche. Each list is formatted so you can copy it straight into Google Ads or a spreadsheet. Replace [city] with each town, suburb or neighbourhood you serve. A list built for one metro with ten suburbs quickly turns into several hundred real keywords.

Three rules before you start:

1. Only bid on services you actually sell. If you don't do carpets, skip that list and add its terms to your negatives instead.
2. Keep each service in its own ad group, so the ad and the landing page match what was searched. Someone searching "move out cleaning" should see a move-out ad and land on a move-out page.
3. Pair this list with a negative list. Every cleaning keyword attracts job seekers, DIYers and people shopping for products. Our negative keyword list for cleaning companies blocks them.

The Three Intent Tiers

Not all keywords are worth the same. Before you look at the lists, it helps to know where each type of search sits.

The lists below are Tier 1 unless marked otherwise. Each one ends with the price-research terms for that niche.

House Cleaning and Maid Service Keywords

This is the biggest and most competitive group. Large franchises and lead marketplaces bid on the short versions, so the long versions with a frequency or a place name are usually where a local company wins. Why the shortest term is often the worst buy is covered in why "cleaning services near me" is the wrong keyword.

Watch out for: "housekeeping" also pulls in hotel housekeeping jobs, and "cleaning lady" pulls in job seekers. Run them in phrase or exact match only, with the employment negatives switched on.

Deep Cleaning Keywords

Deep clean searchers are often first-time customers, which makes them the best source of future recurring clients. Here's how to turn a deep clean into a recurring client.

Move-In and Move-Out Cleaning Keywords

These searchers have a deadline: a lease end, a closing date or a walk-through. That urgency makes move-out terms some of the most profitable in residential cleaning.

Real estate agents and property managers send repeat work. If they're a target for you, read how to get referrals from realtors and property managers.

Airbnb and Vacation Rental Cleaning Keywords

Hosts search differently from homeowners. They use platform names and the word "turnover," and many of them manage several properties.

Block: "airbnb cleaning checklist" and "airbnb cleaning jobs". The first is mostly hosts cleaning their own place, and the second is job seekers. Also block "how much to charge for airbnb cleaning", which is another cleaner pricing their own work.

Post-Construction Cleaning Keywords

The buyers here are builders, general contractors and renovating homeowners. Few people search, but each job is large. More on this niche in why post-construction leads cost more and are worth it.

Block: "post construction cleaning bid sheet", "how to price post construction cleaning" and "construction cleaning business". Those are other cleaners, not clients.

Commercial Cleaning and Janitorial Keywords

Facility managers and office managers often search by the type of building rather than by the word "cleaning." A dental office manager types "dental office cleaning," not "commercial cleaning services." Build an ad group for each building type you serve. For pricing these jobs, see how to bid commercial cleaning per square foot.

Block: "janitorial bids", "janitorial bidding", "cleaning contracts for small businesses" and "how to get commercial cleaning contracts". These are searched almost entirely by other cleaning companies looking for work. Also block "janitorial supplies" and "janitor jobs".

Window Cleaning Keywords

Block: "window cleaning solution", "squeegee", "window cleaning robot", "window cleaner spray", "how to clean windows without streaks" and "window cleaning jobs". DIY and product searches are a large share of this niche.

Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Keywords

Block: "carpet cleaner rental", "rug doctor", "carpet cleaner machine", "bissell", "carpet shampoo" (as a product) and "how to get stains out of carpet". Rentals and machines take a big share of carpet searches.

Kitchen Hood and Exhaust Cleaning Keywords

Hood cleaning is sold to restaurants, and the buyer usually has a reason: a fire inspection, an insurance requirement or grease buildup they can see. Keywords that mention compliance tend to convert well.

Block: "hood cleaning certification", "hood cleaning training", "hood cleaning equipment", "hood cleaning degreaser", "how to clean range hood filter" and "range hood" on its own. Certification and equipment searches come from other hood cleaners. "Range hood" is a homeowner with a kitchen appliance.

Match Types: How to Load These Into Google Ads

A keyword list only works with the right match type. For most cleaning companies:

• Exact match ([move out cleaning austin]) for your proven, highest-intent terms. Exact match gives you the most control.
• Phrase match ("move out cleaning") to catch longer variations, such as "move out cleaning for 2 bedroom apartment."
• Broad match only once conversion tracking is set up correctly and you are using a conversion-based bid strategy. Even then, check the search terms report every week. See how broad match drains a cleaning budget and how to set up conversion tracking.

A simple first account structure looks like this:

Splitting residential and commercial into separate campaigns lets you set separate budgets. Commercial searches are rarer and usually cost more per click, and you don't want residential searches using up their budget. How much to spend in total is covered in our 90-day Google Ads budget plan. Once your keywords are set, write ads that repeat the searched service. We have ad copy examples for cleaning companies.

How to Check Volume and Cost for Your City

Search volume and cost per click vary a lot from one city to another, so national averages are not much use. Check your own market in the free Google Keyword Planner (inside Google Ads, under Tools):

1. Choose Get search volume and forecasts and paste the lists you plan to use, with your city names filled in.
2. Set the location to your actual service area, not the whole country.
3. Look at the top of page bid range. That's a rough guide to what each click will cost.
4. Don't throw out keywords with low volume. Many of the best local terms show "0–10" searches a month but still bring in jobs, because their intent is so clear.

Keywords for Your Website (SEO)

The same research works for organic search, but the keywords are used differently:

• Service pages should target Tier 1 terms. Create one page per service ("Move-Out Cleaning in Austin"), plus pages for your main towns. Here's how to do that without creating thin, copy-paste pages: service area pages for cleaning companies.
• Your Google Business Profile is often a better route to "near me" searches than your website. Its categories and services list do the work there. See the Google Business Profile checklist, and if you work from home, how to rank on Google Maps without a storefront.
• Blog posts are where Tier 3 questions belong. They don't sell directly, but they answer the questions customers ask before they hire.

Customer questions that make good blog topics:

Keywords That Look Good but Rarely Book

• Single words: "cleaning", "cleaners", "maid". Too vague, and in broad match Google will match them to almost anything.
• Competitor brand names: expensive, and they often bring people looking for that company's customer service. Test them only with a separate, capped budget.
• "Cheap" and "affordable" terms: they get clicks, but the people searching tend to cancel more and compare on price alone. Use them only if low price really is your offer.
• Terms other cleaners search: "cleaning business," "cleaning contracts," "how to price," "bid sheet," "certification," "supplies." These people are your competitors, not your clients.

Your Next 30 Minutes

• [ ] Copy the lists for the services you actually sell into a spreadsheet.
• [ ] Replace [city] with your top 5–10 service towns.
• [ ] Check volume and top-of-page bids in Keyword Planner for your service area.
• [ ] Build one ad group per service, using exact and phrase match.
• [ ] Add the niche-specific blocks above, plus our full negative keyword list.
• [ ] Check the search terms report every week and keep refining.

If you'd like us to check your current keywords against what's actually triggering your ads, book a call using the calendar below.