The reference list a cleaning company hands you is never random. It’s the three happiest clients they have, picked to say nice things. So the way you check a cleaning company’s references has to be smart enough to get past the polish, and it only takes about twenty minutes.
Here’s the method. Ask for three references, and insist that one of them runs a building like yours and one is a former client, not just current ones. Then call them, never email, and ask five specific questions instead of “are you happy with them.” Two or three short calls, five real questions each, plus one open question at the end that a coached reference can’t answer smoothly. Twenty minutes total, and you’ll know more than the whole proposal told you.
The one question at the end is where a shaky company usually gives itself away, and we’ll get to exactly what it is.
How to check a cleaning company’s references the smart way
Every company gives you its best three. That’s ordinary sales, and it means the raw list tells you almost nothing. The questions you put to the company itself are one list; the questions for its references are another, and you fix the reference list by changing what you ask for.
Ask for two specific kinds of reference on top of whatever they offer:
- One client with a building like yours. A glowing review from a small law office means little if you run a 40,000 square foot medical building with three shifts. Cleaning a space like yours is the only reference that predicts how they’ll do for you.
- One former client. Ask for a client who left, and why. A confident company will give you one and explain the split (the client moved, went in-house, wanted a service they don’t offer). A company that swears it has never lost a client in fifteen years is either lying or brand new, and both belong on your list of hiring red flags.
If they can’t produce a reference with a building like yours, that’s information. If they flatly refuse a former client, that’s more. You haven’t even made a call yet and the list is already telling you something.
Once the reference calls are done, our office cleaning services guide covers the rest of vetting and what to do after you’ve picked someone.
Call, never email
Email a reference and you’ll get a sentence back that a marketing person could have written. “Great company, highly recommend.” That tells you nothing, and it strips out the part that matters most.
On the phone you hear the pause. You ask how the company handled a problem, and a genuinely happy client answers right away with a story. A lukewarm one goes quiet for a second, or hedges, or says “you know, mostly fine.” That hesitation is the whole signal, and it does not survive email. Budget seven minutes a call, catch people just after lunch or late morning, and keep it conversational.
Five questions that get a real answer, not a yes
The trick with every one of these is that a plain yes or no is impossible. Each forces the reference to describe something, and the description is where the truth lives.
- “Is it the same crew every week, or does it rotate a lot?” Turnover is the quiet killer of cleaning quality. A good answer names the crew or the lead. A bad one is “it’s usually different people,” which means training and accountability restart every week.
- “When something got missed, what happened after you told them?” This is the most useful question in the set. A strong company gets a story: “I emailed, the supervisor called back that day, it was fixed by the next visit.” A weak one gets a sigh and “well, it took a few tries.”
- “Have there been any billing surprises or price jumps you didn’t expect?” You’re checking whether the number on your proposal is the number you’ll actually pay. Listen for mid contract increases with no notice.
- “What’s one thing you wish they did better?” Everybody has an answer to this, and a reference who insists on “nothing, they’re perfect” is either not paying attention or was told what to say. A real client will give you something small and honest.
- “How much do you have to stay on top of them?” The best cleaning is the kind you forget about. If the reference describes weekly babysitting to keep standards up, that’s the workload you’re signing up for too.
Write down the answers, and write down how they came out. The tone tells you as much as the words.
The one question that outs a shaky reference
End every call with this, in these words: “If you were in my shoes, is there anything you’d want to know before you signed?”
It works because it isn’t a yes or no and it isn’t about the company directly. It hands the reference an open door. A genuinely happy client walks through it warmly: “Honestly, they’re great, just make sure you nail down the holiday schedule up front.” That little caveat is the sound of a real customer.
A coached reference, or a lukewarm one, stalls here. You’ll hear “um, no, I think you’ll be fine” with no specifics, or a fast subject change, or a too perfect “I can’t think of a single thing.” A person who actually uses a service every week always has one thing. When they don’t, you’re either talking to a friend of the owner or to someone who was prepped for your call. Either way, that reference just told you what you needed to know.
What the answers add up to
Two references who run buildings like yours, who answer straight, who each name one honest flaw and describe a problem that got fixed fast: that’s a company worth taking to the last step of hiring a commercial cleaning company. The picture is consistent, the answers are specific, and nobody sounds rehearsed.
Walk away when the pattern breaks the other way. No reference with a building like yours. No former client they’ll name. Every answer vague, every reference suspiciously thrilled, a stall on the last question from all of them. One weak call can be a busy person having an off day. A whole set of them is the company showing you its ceiling.
A reference check like this tells you more than a stack of credentials or a certification seal on the proposal ever could, because it’s the only source that isn’t controlled by the company selling to you. Twenty minutes on the phone, before you sign, is the cheapest insurance you’ll ever buy on a cleaning contract. Make the calls, and let the answers, and the pauses, decide.
Frequently asked questions
How many references should I ask a cleaning company for?
Three is the right number. Ask that at least one runs a building similar to yours in size and type, and that at least one is a former client. Three good calls take about twenty minutes total and give you enough of a pattern to trust.
What questions should I ask a cleaning company’s references?
Ask questions that can’t be answered with a yes. Good ones: is it the same crew every week, what happened the last time something got missed, were there any billing surprises, what’s one thing you wish they did better, and how much do you have to manage them. End with an open one: if you were me, what would you want to know before signing?
Should I call references or is email fine?
Call them. An emailed reply gets sanitized into a one line rave that tells you nothing. On the phone you hear tone and hesitation, and the pause after a hard question is often the most honest answer you’ll get.
What if a cleaning company won’t give references?
Treat it as a serious warning. An established company with happy clients has references ready and offers them without friction. Refusing, stalling, or producing only vague “we can’t share client info” answers is a reason to keep looking, not a technicality to excuse.
Are online reviews enough, or do I still need references?
Reviews and references do different jobs. Reviews are public and often months old. A reference is a live person you can ask pointed, specific questions and press for a real answer. Use reviews to build a shortlist, then use reference calls to actually vet the company you’re about to hire.
Can I ask to visit a building they currently clean?
Yes, and it’s one of the strongest checks available. A company proud of its work will arrange a quick walkthrough of a comparable site. Seeing a floor they maintain, especially after hours when the daily cleaning shows, tells you more than any answer on a call.