How to Share Cleaning Chores Fairly

Houseshares can be great for bringing a mix of people, backgrounds and habits under one roof. However, if not managed from the offset, bad habits and lacklustered cleaning routines can lead to arguments and unnecessary stress. Instead of practicing regular breathing exercises or leaving passive aggressive notes on the fridge, follow our top tips on what, and how, to clean in your rental home. 

#1 Complete a Cleaning Rota and Stick To It 

Start as you mean to go on. Before you move in or shortly after, sit down as a group and create a cleaning rota. By splitting out the chores fairly and evenly, people will be more encouraged to do their share. Even if it is through fear of letting the side down. 

We’ve made it super easy for you by creating weekly or monthly cleaning schedules to download and print. We’ve also created a chore list for you to lay out what needs to be done and how frequently.

First, fill out all the cleaning tasks that you need to complete and the frequency they need to be done.  Keep reading to see our one-pager on help with this. 

Next, as a group, allocate the tasks to each housemate on either a weekly or monthly basis. You might even want to do both. To ensure this itself doesn’t end up in a row, ask if anyone wants to volunteer for particular tasks and then rotate them. 

The last bit, is to keep to it. Pin it on the fridge or other communal area and tick off when you’re done. 

Top tip: If you have a laminator, this is the perfect time to use it. You can then use a marker to edit every week. If you don’t have a laminator, try popping the rota in a polly pocket. Put a thin t-shirt or tea-towel over the pocket and iron it until it seals. 

#2 What To Clean and How Often

It might come very naturally to some people, but for a lot of people (especially first time renters and students) it’s not always as obvious. 

What should be cleaned daily?

• The shower. Wipe this down after every use with a shower squeegee to avoid hard water build up. 
• The toilet. Especially after a full use. You know what we mean. 
• Kitchen surfaces. Wipe kitchen surfaces down after you’ve used them. 
• Kitchen hob. If you wipe this down when the food is fresh, you won’t need to scrub it later.
• Sweep the kitchen floor. This is also to keep away rodents such as mice. 
• Wash up dishes or run the dishwasher. If filled up, the dishwasher is actually more economical. 
• Remove any clutter from each housemate. Its very easy for everyone’s things to congregate in communal areas. A daily clear away will avoid this. 

What should be cleaned weekly?

• Wash the bed sheets and towels and bath mats
• Dust the household surfaces. Use pledge to make your dusting last longer. 
• Vacuum all floors 
• Mop any hard floors. We recommend using the E-cloth mop as you can use it with just water. 
• Clean the bathroom. A deeper clean of floors, sink, shower, toilet and tiles. 
• Clean the mirrors. Use a microfibre cloth for a streak free finish. 
• Clean toothbrush cups. You put those things in your mouth, make sure they’re clean. 
• Inside of microwave. To loosen grub, pop some hot water and lemon in there first to steam it out. 
• Wipe kitchen appliances such as toaster and kettle. 
• Bleach the toilet and toilet brush
• Wash your bedsheets. We recommend allocating each person to their ‘sheets day’. 

What should be cleaned monthly?

• Wash the windows
• Vacuum hard to clean areas such as sofas and under furniture
• Clean blinds. Read our top tip on how to do this easily here 
• Clean dishwasher and washing machine. You can buy special cleaners and run this on an empty wash. 
• Wipe cupboards and cupboard handles down. 

What should be cleaned every 3-6 months?

• Vacuum mattress. Sprinkle bicarbonate of soda and leave for an hour before vacuuming for a deeper clean. 
• Wash pillows and duvets. Yes, do this more often. 
• Deep clean the fridge. Why not pop the shelves in the dishwasher if you’re feeling lazy. 
• Clean the oven. 
• Wipe down internal paintwork

Ready to put it into action and start cleaning? Read our Top 8 Cleaning Tips From Mrs Hinch

Not sure what products to buy? We can help. Discover our Top 10 Cleaning Products, including some DIY ones!