Quick answer: For a standard single-storey Melbourne home, residential exterior cleaning typically runs from around $150 for a single service (like a window clean or driveway wash) up to $600–$900+ for a full exterior refresh covering windows, gutters, roof, and solar panels. Double-storey homes generally sit 30–60% higher due to access and safety requirements. The three biggest price drivers are property size/storeys, access difficulty, and how long it's been since the last clean.
If you've started collecting quotes for cleaning around your Melbourne property, you've probably noticed the numbers all over the place — one company quotes $180, another quotes $450, and neither explains why. That's not necessarily anyone padding a quote. Exterior cleaning pricing genuinely depends on a handful of specific variables, and once you know what they are, the quotes start to make a lot more sense.
This guide breaks down what Melbourne homeowners are actually paying in 2026 for the main residential exterior services — window cleaning, gutter cleaning, pressure washing, and solar panel cleaning — and what pushes a quote toward the top or bottom of each range.
Before the numbers, it's worth understanding the handful of factors that account for most of the price difference between two quotes for what sounds like the same job:
Window cleaning is usually priced per house (flat rate), per window, or per hour, and most residential jobs use a flat or per-window rate.
| Property type | Typical cost (2026) |
|---|---|
| Small apartment / unit | $125 – $180 |
| Single-storey, 2–3 bedroom | $150 – $250 |
| Single-storey, 4+ bedroom | $250 – $400 |
| Double-storey home | $300 – $500+ |
| Per standard window pane | $10 – $15 |
| Hourly rate (complex/heavy jobs) | $40 – $65/hr |
Exterior-only cleaning is generally around two-thirds the price of a combined interior and exterior clean, since interior work involves moving furniture and taking more care around the frame. Most Melbourne providers recommend a professional window clean every six months, timed either side of winter, to stay ahead of grime build-up and hard water spotting.
Gutter cleaning prices vary more than most services because condition matters so much — a lightly maintained gutter and a two-year neglected one are very different jobs even on an identical roof.
| Property type | Typical cost (2026) |
|---|---|
| Single-storey (3-bedroom, ~25–30m of guttering) | $150 – $350 |
| Single-storey, heavily blocked/neglected | $250 – $450 |
| Double-storey | $300 – $600 |
| Per linear metre (some providers) | $4 – $7 |
| Blocked downpipe flush (per downpipe) | $85 – $230 |
Leafy suburbs with established gum trees — think Kew, Camberwell, Doncaster, Ringwood — tend to sit toward the higher end simply because there's more debris to clear each visit. An annual clean is the general recommendation for most Melbourne homes; twice yearly if you're surrounded by trees.
Pressure washing is typically priced per square metre for flat surfaces like driveways, paths, and patios.
| Service | Typical cost (2026) |
|---|---|
| Per square metre (concrete, standard) | $1.50 – $5/m² |
| Small driveway (single car) | $150 – $250 |
| Standard driveway (double car) | $200 – $350 |
| Full single-storey house exterior wash | $500 – $750 |
| Roof pressure/soft wash | $250 – $1,000 |
| Hourly rate | $42 – $105/hr |
Surface material changes the price too — plain concrete is the cheapest to clean, while exposed aggregate, natural stone, and rendered walls need gentler techniques and more time, which shows up as a higher per-m² rate.
Solar cleaning is usually priced per panel, with a minimum call-out fee to cover smaller systems.
| System size | Typical cost (2026) |
|---|---|
| Per panel | $10 – $15 |
| Minimum call-out | $150 |
| 20-panel system | $240 – $440 |
| 40-panel system | $400 – $600 |
Whether solar cleaning is worth it depends on your situation — panels with a steep tilt often self-clean reasonably well in the rain, while flatter installations, or properties under trees or near flight paths with dust and bird activity, see a more noticeable performance drop and benefit more from regular cleaning. It's also worth checking your panel warranty, since some manufacturers specify professional cleaning to keep coverage valid.
Booking window, gutter, roof, and solar cleaning together in one visit is usually the better-value option if more than one is overdue, since it saves on the separate call-out and travel components of each job
| Property type | Bundled full exterior clean |
|---|---|
| Single-storey, standard home | $500 – $900 |
| Double-storey, standard home | $800 – $1,400+ |
The exact figure depends heavily on which services are combined and the condition of each — a bundled quote is still built from the same per-service factors above, just consolidated into one visit and one invoice.
The ranges above are genuinely useful for budgeting, but the only way to get a number you can rely on is a proper on-site or photo-based assessment. When you're comparing quotes, ask each provider:
A quote that's noticeably below every other one you've received is worth a second look — it often means a step is being skipped (no downpipe check, no screen wipe, blower-only gutter clearing that pushes debris further down the pipe) rather than the provider simply being cheaper for no reason.
Both models exist, but most providers quote a flat rate for standard jobs (a window clean, a gutter clean, a driveway wash) once they know the property size and condition. Hourly rates tend to apply to more variable or heavily soiled jobs where the scope isn't fixed upfront.
Expect roughly 30–60% more than an equivalent single-storey job across window, gutter, and pressure washing services, driven by the extra time and safety equipment (ladders, harnesses, or elevated access) required.
Generally yes. Combining two or more services into one visit reduces the fixed call-out and setup cost each job would otherwise carry on its own, so the combined price is usually lower than booking each service separately on different days.
As a general guide: windows every six months, gutters once a year (twice if surrounded by trees), pressure washing annually, and solar panels once a year unless your system is flat-mounted or in a high-debris location, where six-monthly may suit better.
Residential cleaning cost in Melbourne isn't a single number — it moves with property size, access, condition, and how many services you bundle into one visit. As a rough anchor: a single service on a standard single-storey home typically lands between $150 and $350, while a full bundled exterior clean (windows, gutters, roof, solar) for the same property usually falls between $500 and $900. The most reliable way to budget accurately is to get a quote based on your specific property rather than relying on averages alone.
A note on scope: this guide covers exterior residential cleaning — windows, gutters, roof, solar panels, and pressure washing — which is what Spotless Surfaces' residential cleaning service covers for homes across Melbourne. We also provide commercial cleaning services for offices and shopfronts. For an accurate, property-specific quote rather than a general estimate, get in touch via our contact page. You can find more maintenance guides like this one on our blog, or read more about our team on the About page.