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How big is the US cleaning industry? As of the latest Census County Business Patterns data, the United States has 67,799 employer cleaning business establishments employing 1,088,193 people, with a combined annual payroll of $32.7 billion. This page compiles the key statistics on the industry — market size, state-by-state distribution, wages, and new business formation — every number sourced directly to federal data.
Figures in the market-size tables cover employer establishments (janitorial businesses with at least one paid employee). Solo cleaners without payroll are counted separately in the solo operators section below.
Key Cleaning Industry Statistics
- There are 67,799 employer cleaning business establishments in the United States (Census County Business Patterns, 2023).
- Employer firms are the minority form: 1,095,927 solo cleaners operate as nonemployer businesses (2023 Census Nonemployer Statistics) — 16.2 for every employer establishment.
- The industry employs 1,088,193 people with a combined annual payroll of $32.7 billion.
- Average pay works out to $30,089 per employee per year; the average establishment has 16.1 employees and carries $483k in annual payroll.
- California has the most establishments of any state — 6,956, or 10.3% of the national total.
- Relative to population, Montana is the most saturated market (44.8 establishments per 100,000 residents) and West Virginia the least (11.0).
- Pay is highest in Alaska ($43,343 per employee per year) and lowest in Mississippi ($20,979).
- The industry accounts for 0.81% of all US employer establishments.
- Americans filed 422,124 new business applications in the broader Administrative & Support and Waste Management sector in the twelve months from Aug-2025 through Jul-2026 — a +16.3% change year over year (Census Business Formation Statistics).
Market Size
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Employer establishments | 67,799 |
| Employees | 1,088,193 |
| Annual payroll | $32.7 billion |
| Average pay per employee | $30,089/year |
| Average employees per establishment | 16.1 |
| Average payroll per establishment | $483k/year |
| Share of all US employer establishments | 0.81% |
The Biggest States
| State | Establishments | Employees |
|---|---|---|
| California | 6,956 | 116,330 |
| Florida | 6,675 | 65,978 |
| Texas | 3,858 | 82,256 |
| New York | 3,762 | 76,457 |
| Illinois | 2,520 | 50,936 |
Market size is not market opportunity: relative to population, Montana is the most saturated state (44.8 establishments per 100,000 residents) while West Virginia is the thinnest (11.0). We rank every state on saturation, revenue proxies, labor cost, and formation momentum in the Best States to Start a Cleaning Business index.
Wages by State
| Highest pay per employee | Annual |
|---|---|
| Alaska | $43,343 |
| New York | $39,426 |
| Washington | $36,308 |
| California | $36,126 |
| Massachusetts | $32,432 |
| Lowest pay per employee | Annual |
|---|---|
| Mississippi | $20,979 |
| South Dakota | $20,983 |
| Arkansas | $21,840 |
| West Virginia | $22,862 |
| Louisiana | $23,373 |
Solo Operators: The Nonemployer Side of the Industry
The employer figures above are only part of the picture. The Census Bureau counts businesses with no paid employees separately, as nonemployers — and in this industry they are the majority: 1,095,927 solo cleaners filed as nonemployer businesses in 2023, about 16.2 for every employer establishment. Together they took in $22.8 billion in receipts — an average of $20,785 per solo business per year.
States With the Most Solo Cleaners
| State | Nonemployer businesses | Avg annual receipts | Solo per employer firm |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 166,471 | $20,849 | 24.9 |
| Texas | 128,126 | $18,613 | 33.2 |
| California | 111,227 | $23,465 | 16.0 |
| Georgia | 53,596 | $21,575 | 26.6 |
| New York | 50,876 | $17,612 | 13.5 |
Solo operation dominates most in Mississippi (33.3 nonemployers per employer establishment) and least in Alaska (6.2), where a larger share of the industry runs on payroll.
How Much Do Cleaning Businesses Make?
The honest federal answer comes in two parts. For solo operators, the Census reports actual revenue: the average nonemployer cleaning business grossed $20,785 in annual receipts in 2023 — gross revenue before expenses, not take-home income. For employer firms, the Census does not publish revenue at the state level, but payroll gives the scale: the average establishment carries $483k in annual payroll across 16.1 employees.
Where Solo Solo Cleaners Gross the Most
| State | Avg annual receipts (solo) | Solo businesses |
|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | $34,034 | 16,439 |
| Hawaii | $32,216 | 4,473 |
| Colorado | $26,738 | 17,628 |
| Washington | $26,570 | 14,511 |
| Utah | $26,287 | 7,671 |
States with fewer than 1,000 nonemployer businesses excluded to avoid small-sample noise. Receipts are gross revenue as reported to the IRS, before any expenses.
New Business Formation
The Census Bureau tracks new business applications weekly. In the twelve months from Aug-2025 through Jul-2026, Americans filed 422,124 applications in the Administrative & Support and Waste Management sector (the broader NAICS sector containing cleaning business businesses) — a +16.3% change from the prior twelve months. State-by-state application counts, per-capita rates, and trends are on our business formation statistics page, updated monthly. For how new ventures fare once launched — 1-, 5-, and 10-year odds in every state — see business survival rates by state; for what they borrow to get started, SBA loan statistics. For insurance requirements state by state, see the cleaning business insurance guide.
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Thinking about joining these numbers?
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many cleaning business businesses are there in the US?
There are 67,799 employer cleaning business establishments in the United States as of the 2023 Census County Business Patterns, employing 1,088,193 people. Figures in the market-size tables cover employer establishments (janitorial businesses with at least one paid employee). Solo cleaners without payroll are counted separately in the solo operators section below.
How big is the US cleaning industry?
Measured by payroll, employer establishments in the industry pay $32.7 billion in annual wages across 1,088,193 employees — an average of $30,089 per employee per year.
Which state has the most cleaning business businesses?
California leads with 6,956 employer establishments (10.3% of the US total), followed by Florida (6,675) and Texas (3,858).
How many self-employed solo cleaners are there in the US?
The Census Bureau’s 2023 Nonemployer Statistics count 1,095,927 cleaning business businesses with no paid employees — solo cleaners operating alone — averaging $20,785 in annual receipts. That is about 16.2 solo businesses for every employer establishment in the industry.
How much does a cleaning business make?
For solo operators the Census reports actual revenue: the average nonemployer cleaning business grossed $20,785 in 2023 — gross receipts before expenses, not profit. Employer firms are larger: the average establishment carries $483k in annual payroll across 16.1 employees; the Census does not publish their revenue at the state level.
Sources & Citation
| Data | Source | Vintage |
|---|---|---|
| Establishments, employment, payroll (NAICS 561720, Janitorial Services) | U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns | 2023 |
| Business applications | U.S. Census Bureau, Business Formation Statistics | Aug-2025 through Jul-2026 |
| Solo operators (nonemployer businesses, NAICS 56172, Janitorial Services) | U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics | 2023 |
| State population (per-capita rates) | U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates | 2024 |
You are welcome to cite these statistics with attribution and a link to this page.