How to Create a Cleaning Routine

Learn how to create a cleaning routine for your home that works for you! With a realistic cleaning schedule, your house never has to be dirty again!

Get your home decluttered, cleaned, and organized initially, and then you can simply maintain that level of clean with your cleaning routine.

Need to declutter first? Take the 31-Day Home Decluttering Challenge!

What is a Cleaning Routine?

Do you ever look around your house and feel overwhelmed by clutter and disorder?

Do you ever wonder where to start first with the cleaning?

That’s what makes a cleaning routine so valuable. With a cleaning routine, you’ll know what to clean, and when.

And you won’t need to reinvent a cleaning plan every time. You’ll already have a plan to follow, which helps remove so much of that feeling of overwhelm.

Related Post: How to Declutter When You’re Overwhelmed

Why You Need a Cleaning Routine

The beauty of routine is that it eliminates feelings of confusion and overwhelm. With a plan in place, you never need to feel that feeling again about your home.

You’ll simply follow the routine that you’ve already put in place.

And as you work on those daily tasks that are part of your plan, you’ll be maintaining a clean and orderly home without those periods of chaos that used to happen.

How to Create a Cleaning Routine for Your Home

Many homemakers don’t know where to start to set up a cleaning routine. So many of us (myself included!) didn’t grow up learning how to manage a home.

We’ve had to learn as we go, which can make everything feel so much more stressful!

Most people don’t realize how much time and energy goes into managing a household. I know I didn’t, and I felt constantly surprised by how complex homemaking actually is!

It takes so much time, energy, and careful planning to keep a home running smoothly.

When you set up homemaking routines, these tasks become habits, and good habits make everything in life simpler.

Today I’m going to share what’s worked for me in our home, and how I came up with my own home management routine.

I’ll share my routine with you, and you’re welcome to try my routine as your own. However, since we all have different life situations, you may want to come up with a more personalized plan.

With that in mind, we’ll also talk about how you can create a cleaning routine tailored to your unique home and family.

What to Clean and When

Based on my own personal experience of over twenty years of homemaking, and also taking into consideration the ideas of others, here’s a list of suggestions of what to clean and when to clean it.

Daily Tasks

The daily tasks are things that need to be done every day in order to keep the home in an orderly state.

• Make the bed and straighten bedroom
• Wipe bathroom counters and sink
• Do a load of laundry (or two) from start to finish
• Wash the dishes
• Wipe down the kitchen counters and table
• Clean and wipe out kitchen sink
• Sweep the kitchen floor
• Do a five-minute pick-up
• Spend fifteen minutes decluttering something

Weekly Tasks

Weekly tasks are generally done once a week.

• Dust
• Clean mirrors and doors
• Vacuum
• Change sheets
• Clean bathrooms
• Mop kitchen and bathrooms
• Empty all trashcans

Monthly Tasks

These are tasks that typically are done once a month, depending on personal preference. Some of these tasks could be done seasonally rather than monthly.

• Dust light fixtures
• Dust baseboards
• Wipe down walls
• Clean and organize refrigerator and freezer
• Clean out and organize drawers and cabinets
• Clean oven
• Wipe down appliances

Related Post: How to Deep Clean Your House Free Checklist

Seasonal Tasks

Seasonal tasks are usually done once or twice a year. This could be during spring cleaning or fall cleaning.

• Clean and dust bedframes and vacuum mattresses
• Clean curtains and window treatments
• Vacuum under beds and furniture
• Clean out and straighten all closets
• Dust and vacuum closets
• Clean windows and window screens
• Wash blankets, quilts, comforters, and other bedding
• Clean light fixtures
• Deep clean refrigerator and freezer

Related Post: Spring Cleaning Checklist and Free Printable

Tips for Creating a Personalized Cleaning Plan

The key to creating a personalized cleaning routine is to figure out what works for you and your home and family.

I know it goes without saying, but what works for one homemaker may not work as well for another.

To come up with your own plan, first look at how much time you have available to devote to cleaning.

Also, consider how clean things need to be for you to be able to feel comfortable in your own home. For instance, some families like to change the sheets on the bed every week. But others may be fine with every other week or even once a month.

Some people like to iron everything, including sheets (like my great-grandmother). Others may not even own an iron.

A lot depends upon your home and lifestyle. For instance, if you live in a dusty area, you may want to dust more often.

If you live alone or with just one other person, things may not need to be cleaned as often. However, if you have a larger family (especially if you have young children), messes will probably occur more frequently.

Some of these things are just personal preference. Figure out what is important to you, and then find a way to fit those cleaning tasks into your routine.

What to Do If You Work Outside the Home

If you work outside the home full-time, finding time to keep up with a cleaning routine can be a challenge. During the years I worked a full-time corporate job, I broke up the homemaking tasks to make them more manageable.

In the morning, I would make my bed, tidy my room, and try to leave the kitchen somewhat presentable before heading out the door for work.

When I got home from work, each day had a particular chore to focus on:

1. Monday: Water plants
2. Tuesday: Dust
3. Wednesday: Vacuum
4. Thursday: Mop
5. Friday: Clean bathroom and change sheets

I usually did all the laundry on Saturday and/or Sunday (depending on how much there was to do). But you could also do a load or two in the evenings if you prefer to keep the weekends free for other things.

I also tried to keep the dishes washed, kitchen counters and table wiped down, and floor swept every evening.

My Current Personal Cleaning Routine

Here is my current personal cleaning routine.

You’ll see that in addition to cleaning, I’ve also included time for decluttering, which is so important. It makes cleaning so much easier when the clutter is gone!

Also, I’ve added in a fifteen-minute zone cleaning time. Zone cleaning is where you divide your house into different zones, and you spend a little bit of time each day in the current zone for the week.

Daily Cleaning Routine

1. Make the bed and straighten bedroom
2. Wipe bathroom counters and sink
3. Do two loads of laundry
4. Wash the dishes
5. Wipe down the kitchen counters and table and clean out sink
6. Sweep the kitchen floor
7. Do a 5-minute pick-up
8. 15-minute declutter
9. Zone clean for 15 minutes in the current zone

Weekly Cleaning

1. Dust
2. Clean mirrors and doors
3. Vacuum
4. Change sheets
5. Clean bathrooms
6. Mop kitchen and bathrooms
7. Empty all trashcans

Monthly Cleaning

1. Dust light fixtures
2. Dust and wipe down baseboards
3. Wipe down walls
4. Quick-clean and organize refrigerator and freezer
5. Clean out and organize drawers and cabinets
6. Clean oven
7. Wipe down appliances

Seasonal Cleaning

1. Clean and dust bed frames and vacuum mattresses
2. Wash all curtains
3. Vacuum under beds and furniture
4. Clean out and straighten all closets + dust and vacuum
5. Clean windows
6. Clean garage
7. Wash blankets, quilts, comforters, and other bedding
8. Clean light fixtures
9. Deep clean refrigerator and freezer

The monthly and seasonal cleaning tasks are done during the daily zone cleaning time.

More Home Management Ideas

• How to Declutter When You’re Overwhelmed
• Spring Cleaning Checklist and Free Printable
• How to Deep Clean Your House Free Checklist
• 31-Day Home Decluttering Challenge with Free Checklist
• Homemaking 101: Home Management for Beginners

Printable Cleaning Routine Worksheets

Due to popular request, I’ve included a copy of my personal cleaning plan as well as a simple blank form you can use to personalize your own. I hope this is helpful to you!

Get the cleaning routine printables here!