How much does carpet cleaning cost in the UK?
Carpet cleaning costs £130 on average in the UK. Most jobs fall between £45 and £250 for a typical job. Number of rooms: One or two rooms £45 to £90, A few rooms and stairs £100 to £200, Whole house £125 to £250. Prices reviewed September 2026.
Professional carpet cleaning usually costs between £45 and £250 in the UK, with most people paying around £130 for a few rooms. The price is set mainly by how many rooms and stairs you have cleaned. Firms charge either per room, commonly £35 to £65 for a single room and less for each room when several are booked, or a set price for the whole house, and a minimum charge of about £50 to £60 usually applies.
Carpet cleaning cost calculator
Use the calculator to price your carpet cleaning in 2026. Adjust the options and area for a UK cost range. Nothing is sent anywhere.
Carpet cleaning cost breakdown
Typical carpet cleaning costs, by option:
| Number of rooms | Typical UK cost |
|---|---|
| One or two rooms | £45 to £90 |
| A few rooms and stairs | £100 to £200 |
| Whole house | £125 to £250 |
What's included in the price?
Typical carpet cleaning prices include:
- A visit from a professional carpet cleaner with commercial equipment
- Vacuuming and pre-treating stains and high-traffic areas
- Hot water extraction, often called steam cleaning, of the carpets
- Moving light furniture where needed and putting it back
- Deodorising and a final groom of the pile so it dries evenly
What changes the price?
The things that move carpet cleaning prices most:
How many rooms and flights of stairs are cleaned
The size of each room, since a large lounge costs more than a box room
How stained or heavily soiled the carpet is
Whether stain protection or deodorising is added
Your region and the firm's minimum charge
Access and parking, and whether furniture needs moving
These are why two quotes for the same job can differ, and the only way to know your price is to get prices from local firms.
How the price is built up
Cleaners usually quote either per room, typically £35 to £65 for a single room and less for each extra room, or a set price for the whole house, commonly £125 to £250. Stairs are charged separately at around £25 to £40 a flight, and a hallway is £15 to £25. A minimum call-out of about £50 to £60 covers the trip and setup on small jobs, and extras like stain protection or deodorising are added on top. Carpet cleaning is almost all labour and equipment time. The only materials are water, cleaning solution and any stain protector or deodoriser, which make up a small part of the bill.
Ways to keep the cost down
- Book several rooms in one visit so the minimum charge is spread across more work
- Vacuum thoroughly and move small furniture yourself before the cleaner arrives
- Ask for a whole-house price rather than paying per room when you have several carpets cleaned
- Treat stains early, since fresh marks are cheaper to remove than set-in ones
Does where you live change the cost?
In London, carpet cleaning typically costs around £160 for a typical job, about 20% above the UK average of £130. In the North, Scotland and Wales the guide figure is nearer £130.
| Region | From | Typical | Up to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Midlands / East (UK average) | £45 | £130 | £250 |
| London | £55 | £160 | £300 |
| South East / South West | £45 | £140 | £260 |
| North / Scotland / Wales | £45 | £130 | £240 |
Guide prices for a typical job, scaled with the same regional multipliers as the calculator. Not quotes.
Carpet cleaning cost in major UK cities
| City | From | Typical | Up to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belfast | £45 | £120 | £240 |
| Birmingham | £45 | £130 | £250 |
| Bristol | £45 | £140 | £260 |
| Cardiff | £45 | £130 | £240 |
| Edinburgh | £45 | £130 | £240 |
| Glasgow | £45 | £130 | £240 |
| Leeds | £45 | £130 | £240 |
| Liverpool | £45 | £130 | £240 |
| London | £55 | £160 | £300 |
| Manchester | £45 | £130 | £240 |
| Newcastle | £45 | £130 | £240 |
| Sheffield | £45 | £130 | £240 |
City guide estimates, scaled by local labour costs. Indicative averages for carpet cleaning, not quotes.
Cleaners in London and the South East charge the most; the North, Wales and Scotland are usually a little cheaper. Almost everywhere a minimum charge of around £50 to £60 applies to small jobs.
Compare this with a real quote
The figures above are guide prices. Two or three quotes for your carpet cleaning tell you what it costs where you live.
Common questions
How much does carpet cleaning cost in 2026?
Most professional carpet cleaning jobs cost between £45 and £250, with a typical few-room clean around £130. Firms usually charge £35 to £65 for a single room, less for each room when several are booked, or a set price for a whole house, and most have a minimum charge of about £50 to £60.
What changes the price of carpet cleaning?
The main factors are how many rooms and stairs you have cleaned, the size of each room, and how soiled the carpet is. Stairs are usually charged separately at around £25 to £40 a flight, and extras like stain protection or deodorising add to the total.
Is professional carpet cleaning worth it?
For most people, yes. A clean typically costs £45 to £250 and lifts dirt, allergens and stains that a domestic vacuum leaves behind, which can add years to a carpet that costs far more to replace. It is especially worth it before a house sale or at the end of a tenancy.
Can I clean my carpets myself?
You can. Hiring a machine like a Rug Doctor costs around £25 to £35 a day plus about £15 for solution. It does a reasonable job on light dirt, but domestic machines have weaker suction, so carpets stay wetter for longer and set-in stains often still need a professional hot water extraction machine.
How long does carpet cleaning take and how long does it take to dry?
A single room takes about 30 to 45 minutes, and a few rooms take a couple of hours. Carpets are usually walkable in a few hours and fully dry within 4 to 12 hours, faster with windows open or the heating on.
How often should carpets be cleaned?
Once every 12 to 18 months is enough for most homes. Every 6 to 12 months makes sense with pets, young children or a busy household, and many landlords have carpets cleaned at the end of each tenancy. Regular cleaning also helps keep the manufacturer's warranty valid on newer carpets.
Can my landlord make me pay for a professional carpet clean when I move out?
No, not in England or Wales. Section 1(3) of the Tenant Fees Act 2019 bars a landlord in England from requiring a tenant to enter into a contract with a third party for a service, such as a carpet cleaning firm, and in Wales section 2(2) of the Renting Homes (Fees, Discrimination etc.) (Wales) Act 2019 makes that an offence where the occupation contract requires it. You still have to return the carpets in the condition your agreement requires, and if you do not, the landlord can keep some of the deposit to cover it. Cleaning them yourself is allowed.
Official guidance and sources
The rules and schemes referenced on this page come from these official UK sources. The price figures are Costwise's own; see how we price.
- Tenant Fees Act 2019, section 1 legislation.gov.uk · A landlord in England may not require a tenant to enter into a contract with a third party for a service, such as a professional cleaning firm.
- Renting Homes (Fees, Discrimination etc.) (Wales) Act 2019, section 2 legislation.gov.uk · In Wales it is an offence for a landlord to require a contract for services under a term of the occupation contract.
- Private renting: deposits GOV.UK · When a landlord can keep part of a deposit, including for damage or for not keeping to the tenancy agreement.
Cite this data
These figures are free to use in articles, reports and research under a CC BY 4.0 licence. All we ask is a credit to Costwise, and online a link. Where your style allows, please make "Costwise" the linked word so readers can check the figure for their own region.
Costwise (2026): Carpet cleaning typically costs £130 in the UK, ranging from £45 to £250 for a typical job. Reviewed September 2026. costwiseuk.co.ukSource: Costwise (costwiseuk.co.uk)Costwise (2026). Carpet cleaning cost. Costwise UK cost data, version 2026-10-12. https://costwiseuk.co.uk/carpet-cleaning-cost/2026-10-12 (158 jobs)Dataset DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.21159943 · also on Kaggle, Hugging Face and Figshare. Method: how we price. Downloadable CSV.
These are independent guide prices based on typical UK jobs in 2026. Your actual cost depends on your property, spec, access and where you live. Always get at least three written quotes before committing.