Your little one finally went down for a nap. Or the in-laws are coming over shortly. Or perhaps you just want to clean your house quickly so you can turn on the TV and relax.
Cleaning your house doesn’t need to be a full-day activity. There are ways to speed it up. Here’s how to clean your house fast so that you can get back to the activities you love.
We’ve put together 15 hacks for cleaning as well as a one-hour, 30-minute and five-minute cleaning plan. Time to change your cleaning routine for life!
Key Takeaways
- Choose a cleaning order and stick to it, like cleaning rooms in sequence, to develop a routine.
- Organize clutter with storage solutions like containers, boxes, baskets, and hampers.
- Invest in the right tools, like a durable vacuum, high-quality detergents, and microfiber cloths.
- Go by task, not by room, to get into a cleaning flow and save time with supplies.
How to Clean Your House Fast
Check out these 15 hacks and tips for cleaning your house, speedy style!
1. Clean in Order
A good way to get into a rapid cleaning routine is to choose a cleaning order and stick to that every time. Soon it will be like muscle memory and you won’t even have to think twice about what you’re doing.
So choose a working order and stick to that every time. Personally, we love starting with our kitchen since it usually takes the longest. Getting it over and done with is a reward in itself.
Top Tip
Go in order of rooms in your home so that you aren’t running around. First, do the downstairs, working from the back to front. Then go upstairs and work front to back.
2. Organize the Clutter
One of the first things you should aim to do when cleaning your house fast is to remove the clutter. The best way to do that is to have a storage plan in place already. Everything should have a place in your home, even the random mail that gets shoved through your letterbox.
Use storage solutions such as containers, boxes, baskets and hampers. These don’t need to be expensive, but they can make your house look super clean — and speed up tidying time.
3. Use the Right Tools
You can speed up your cleaning time by investing in the right tools. Things like buying a durable vacuum, using high-quality detergents and sprays, and investing in effective microfiber cloths, go a long way.
It may cost you a little extra money, but in the long run, it’s worth it.
4. Go By Task, Not By Room
Although you can go room by room if that works best for you, another time-saving tip is to go by task. If you’re vacuuming, vacuum in every room. Then mop in every room. Then wipe surfaces in every room, and so on. This gets you into a flow and means you can keep your cleaning supplies out for that task.
5. Get Rid of Trash
Something you’ll want to do right initially is to get rid of the trash around the house. We all snack and drink in our bedrooms, let’s not deny it. But how long are you leaving packaging in there for?
Get a trash bag and get rid of trash and recycling. Take this as an opportunity to empty garbage cans throughout the house, too.
6. Create a Cleaning Caddy
Cleaning caddies are a great way to stay organized and motivated. Put all your cleaning supplies together in a caddy and take them with you to each room.
Spoiler alert: you don’t need dozens of different cleaning products. We only have three surface sprays in our house: a multi-surface spray, a glass cleaner, and a bathroom cleaner.
So your cleaning caddy doesn’t need to weigh 100 pounds; it can be small and easy to carry.
7. Stay Focused and Set Timers
It’s so easy to get distracted while cleaning the house. That’s because, let’s face it, cleaning can be boring. But if you stay focused, you’ll get everything done a lot quicker.
Set a timer, either with a stopwatch or by playing a favorite album and aiming to get everything done before it’s finished.
Now is also a great time to listen to audiobooks and podcasts.
8. Get the Family Involved
We can’t emphasize enough how much quicker the housework will be if everyone is involved. Whether you live with a partner or have a whole army of kids, it’s essential to get everyone involved. Not just because it speeds things up, but it teaches responsibility.
Create a chore chart, split up the rooms, or just work together in one room. Whoever tidies the most can even earn a reward if the kids (or husband) need an incentive!
9. Dust Then Vacuum
When dusting and vacuuming, it’s important to go in that order. If you dust then vacuum, any dust that has come off the shelves or knick-knacks will land on the floor. You can then vacuum it up, creating a much cleaner home.
Don’t Forget
Make sure you dust your blinds and other corners of the room. You can use a good microfiber cloth to do so.
10. Keep the Dishwasher Empty
This is our number one hack for cleaning our house, especially if we want a clean kitchen. As soon as the cycle is finished, empty that dishwasher.
This allows you to have an immediate place for dirty dishes, so they don’t stack up and clutter your countertops. It also leaves countertops clean, so you’re more motivated to wipe them down, keeping them clean and hygienic too.
11. Tackle Bathroom Mold
Bathroom mold can build up fast, especially in the shower. If you don’t want to spend tons of time scrubbing this away, try spraying hydrogen peroxide onto the area, waiting a few minutes, and letting it kill the fungus.
Mold Tip
When showering, turn on the extractor fan. After each shower, use a squeegee to remove water from the shower doors and walls. This will prevent mold buildup.
12. One Minute Rule
Another hack we love in our house is the one-minute rule. If a task takes less than a minute, do it right away. This prevents a build-up of mess and chores.
This includes rinsing out a breakfast bowl, putting a plate in the dishwasher, hanging up a few clothing items, bringing laundry upstairs, and more.
13. Dirty and Clean Laundry Basket
If you ever feel overwhelmed by laundry, then this hack will change your life.
First, have multiple dirty laundry baskets around the house. We like to have separate ones for each person. Take time every day to make sure that all dirty clothes are in their designated laundry bakers.
Secondly, have clean laundry baskets. Once clothes are clean and dry, put them in laundry baskets. This keeps everything looking neat and tidy before you have time to put them away properly. Life-changing, right?
14. Speed Clean Often
If you hate deep-cleaning sessions every weekend, try speed-cleaning more often. Set a timer for 15 minutes every morning and night to do a quick tidy of your house. You may even find you beat the timer, giving you more time to relax in a much cleaner home.
15. Steam the Floors
If you’re in a rush to clean quickly, a floor steamer is a must-have product. It’s much quicker than preparing a mop and bucket and then waiting for the floors to dry.
With a steam cleaner, you can simply fill it with water, turn it on, wait about 30 seconds for it to heat up, and then get to cleaning. It deep cleans and sanitizes your floors.
1-Hour House Cleaning Plan
What if you have one hour before guests are coming round? Here’s a handy plan to use to make sure that everything is done and dusted before they ring the bell.
| Task | What To Do | Time |
| Dishes | It’s important to start with the dishes. They can make a house look — and smell — pretty gross. So load the dishwasher or quickly do them by hand. Now your counters and table should be mostly clear. | 10 min |
| Wipe kitchen surfaces | Use a high-quality spray and microfiber cloth to wipe down kitchen surfaces quickly | 2 min |
| Remove clutter | Go around the house and remove clutter. This is easier if you have people to help you. Remember to put things in baskets if you don’t have time to put everything away right now. | 15 min |
| Dust surfaces | If you have time or need to, dust down the surfaces now before moving onto any other steps. | 5 min |
| Wipe down other surfaces | Now that clutter is cleared and the dust has settled, wipe down other surfaces throughout the home such as coffee and end tables, TVs, bookshelves, and more. | 2 min |
| Sweep or vacuum floors | It’s important to sweep and vacuum floors. This protects the floors and makes the whole house look a lot cleaner. | 10 min |
| Mop or steam floors | Once the floors are vacuumed or swept, mop or steam them for a nice clean finish. | 10 min |
| Clean bathroom(s) | Quickly go around each bathroom and give it a quick clean. If you don’t have time, just choose one bathroom that gets used the most. Wipe down the sink and toilet, especially, and don’t forget to scrub the toilet bowl. | 7 min |
This routine takes 61 minutes, so if you can save a minute somewhere, it’s within the hour, and your house is already a lot cleaner. If you have little helpers, you can get this done a lot faster or use the rest of your hour for another cleaning task.
30-Minute House Cleaning Plan
A good way to stay on top of the mess is to dedicate 30 minutes each day to cleaning. You can do this at once, or you can do 15-minute cleaning blocks.
Here are some daily cleaning schedules you can achieve in 30 minutes.
The Basic Clean
If you want to quickly clean the whole house so that it looks a bit neater, try this schedule:
- Declutter (10 minutes): Remove everything from the floor and surfaces. Put it away if you can, or pop it in baskets for later.
- Dishes (5 minutes): Load dishes in the dishwasher or quickly wash them if you have time.
- Clean surfaces (5 minutes): Go around the whole home and wipe down surfaces with your favorite cleaning spray and cloth combo.
- Clean bathroom (5 minutes): Quickly clean the toilet and sink in the bathroom that gets used the most. If you have extra time, do the other bathrooms.
- Vacuum or sweep (5 minutes): Spend the last 5 minutes vacuuming or sweeping a designated area. You won’t be able to do the whole house but focus on the dirtiest floors, such as the kitchen or entryway.
Kitchen and Dining Room
You should do the dishes, wipe down the counters and disinfect the sink every day. However, you may want to have a set day each week to do a 30-minute kitchen cleaning routine to stay on top of the grime and grease that builds up.
- Empty the dishwasher (4 minutes): If the dishwasher is full, get it empty. Keeping it empty when possible is key to keeping a clean kitchen.
- Fill the dishwasher back up (3 minutes): Fill it back up with dirty dishes. If you have to wash dishes by hand, do that instead and factor in the time for that.
- Clean clutter (5 minutes): Clear clutter from the countertops and dining table. If you can put it away, great. If not, have a basket where you can store it until later.
- Put food away (2 minutes): Spend a couple of minutes putting food away that people have left out. This will give you more space and keep things organized and fresh.
- Clear out fridge (5 minutes): Get rid of any expired or rotting food. Wipe down the surfaces with a surface cleaner and cloth. You don’t need to deep clean the fridge now, but it’s good to keep the fridge organized and clean as you go.
- Wipe down surfaces (2 minutes): Use your favorite surface cleaner and cloth to wipe down the surfaces. Don’t forget the table, drawer handles, and the area surrounding the sink.
- Wipe down appliances (3 minutes): Use a dampened cloth to wipe down appliances. This includes the stovetop, the top of the toaster, inside the microwave, and down the front of the fridge, washing machine, and dryer.
- Sweep or vacuum floors (4 minutes): Quickly sweep or vacuum floors to remove crumbs and debris.
- Take out the trash (2 minutes): Finally, take out the trash. Don’t forget to put a new bag in. Voila! Your kitchen is super clean, and it only took 30 minutes.
Bedroom and Bathroom
We’ve combined these two because it’s super satisfying. Plus, if your kids have their own bathroom, they can learn this routine too.
- Laundry (5 minutes): Laundry is definitely what clutters up our room the most, so deal with that first. Put away clean clothes and toss dirty clothes into the hamper. This may take longer than five minutes, but it should start only to take a few minutes each time if you manage to stay on top of it.
- Remove other clutter (5 minutes): Once the laundry is sorted, remove other clutter preventing your room from looking tidy. This could include plates, cups, snack packaging, and other random things.
- Make the bed (2 minutes): Such a short task that will make your room look 10 times tidier instantly!
- Dust (2 minutes): Quickly dust your bedroom, including the windowsills, bedside tables and TV if you have one in there.
- Vacuum (3 minutes): Give your floors a quick vacuum to get rid of dust and debris.
- Clean bathroom (5 minutes): Spray and scrub the toilet, sink, and shower.
- Swap out towels (2 minute): Swap out the used towels, toss them in the hamper and replace them with new ones.
- Clean windows (3 minutes): Spray your windows with a glass cleaner and wipe them down.
- Open windows (1 minute): Air out your room and bathroom by opening the windows. Light a candle if you have time.
- Take out trash (2 minutes): Take out both the bedroom and bathroom trash.
30 minutes and your room should look a lot tidier. Of course, this is more of a maintenance routine than deep cleaning. But do this every few days, and your room won’t get super messy and cluttered.
Living Room and Hallway
The last 30-minute daily chunk we’ll cover is the living room and hallway.
- Remove clutter from floors (5 minutes): If your kids play in the living room, there might be a lot of clutter on your floors. Spend a good chunk of time cleaning that up, putting it away properly, if possible.
- Remove other clutter (5 minutes): Spend another five minutes cleaning clutter from other areas like shelves, tables, and furniture. Don’t forget to toss out any trash that might be lying around. Make sure to do this in the hallway too.
- Dust (2 minutes): Dust down surfaces.
- Vacuum (5 minutes): Do a nice thorough vacuum of the living room, getting into nooks, crannies, and under furniture.
- Wipe down surfaces (5 minutes): It might take a little longer to wipe down surfaces in the living room since they’re extra dirty. Focus on windowsills, coffee and end tables, bookshelves, TVs, TV tables, and more.
- Put away shoes and jackets (3 minutes): Shoes and jackets can clutter up the front hallway, so put that away in its designated area.
- Mop or steam floors (5 minutes): Use the last five minutes to deep clean the floors with your mop or steamer.
Top Tip
If you have any time left over at all, it’s a good idea to wipe down doors and door handles, just for extra hygiene!
5-Minute House Cleaning Plan
If you have five free minutes and don’t want to scroll on your phone, here are some tasks that don’t take long at all.
- Emptying the dishwasher — you may even have time to fill it back up again.
- Dust a room.
- Clean your garbage disposal.
- Take out the trash.
- Clearing out mail that’s cluttering up a table.
- Making your bed.
- Sweeping floors in one room.
- Wiping down a surface.
- Cleaning a bathroom (if you’re speedy!).
- Decluttering a room.
Why not make your own list of cleaning tasks that only take five minutes? Hang it on the fridge and do a couple while you’re waiting for the kettle to boil or food to cook.
FAQs
How Do People Keep Their Houses So Clean?
People keep their houses so clean because they perform small cleaning tasks every day. They make the bed, vacuum, dust, do the dishes, and do the laundry on specific days.
How Often Should I Clean My House?
Knowing how often you should clean your house depends on how dirty it gets. You should break the tasks into daily, weekly, and monthly so that you can stay organized.
Which Chores Take the Most Time?
The chores that take the most time include washing the laundry, gardening, mopping floors, and cooking. Other culprits include doing the weekly shopping, ironing, and folding laundry.
How Do You Clean When You are Overwhelmed?
The best way to clean when you are overwhelmed is to start with tiny projects, never look at the room as a whole, and never be afraid to ask for help. Taking small steps is the best way to gain back control.
What Do Guests Notice First About Your Home?
The first things guests notice about your home includes the smell, the temperature, whether you’ve done the washing up, and how comfortable the furniture is. They also spot whether you have vacuumed or not.
How Often Should You Change Your Sheets?
You should change your sheets at least weekly if you are allergic to dust mites or suffer from asthma and other breathing conditions.
Quickly Cleaning
You don’t need to spend hours and hours at the weekend cleaning your house. Instead, you can clean as you go and stay on top of the housework. Even if you feel the house is a mess, there are easy ways to get it clean in about an hour.
For quick cleaning tips, refer back to our 15 awesome hacks so that your house is neat, clutter-free, and hygienic.
