Costs and pricing
What does cleaning a short-term rental cost in Portugal?
A turnover clean for a short-term rental south of Lisbon costs between €48 and €95 excluding VAT for a flat, depending on the property type, and from €140 for a house. The price should cover the post-departure inspection with photo report, the full clean, the linen change and restocking of base consumables.
It is every owner's first question, and the honest answer has two halves: what it costs, and what has to be inside it for the price to mean anything.
What does cleaning cost by property type?
| Property type | Clean per turnover | Average duration |
|---|---|---|
| T0 / T1 | €48 | 60–90 min |
| T2 | €60 | 90–120 min |
| T3 | €78 | 120–150 min |
| T4 | €95 | 150–180 min |
| House | from €140 | 180–240 min |
These prices apply across our whole coverage area, with no geographic variation. The house figure stays indicative until the visit.
What the price must cover
A turnover price that does not include these seven points is not comparable with any other:
- Post-departure inspection with a photo report, carried out before any cleaning starts. It is what evidences the state the guest left the property in.
- Record of damage and left-behind items, reported the same day.
- Full clean: kitchen, bathrooms, bedrooms, living areas and private outdoor space.
- Disinfection of contact surfaces and kitchen appliances.
- Bed and bath linen change, beds made to the same standard every time.
- Restocking of base consumables: toilet paper, soap, bin bags, dishwasher tablets.
- Final check with a second photo set, sent before the next guest arrives.
If a quote does not mention the photo report, you are not comparing the same service. And when you live 1,800 km away, the photo report is the service.
How long does it actually take?
| Property type | Average duration |
|---|---|
| Studio / 1-bed | 60 to 90 minutes |
| 2-bed | 90 to 120 minutes |
| 3-bed | 120 to 150 minutes |
| 4-bed | 150 to 180 minutes |
| House | from 180 minutes |
These are measured times, including the initial inspection and the final check. Two things stretch them noticeably: a building with no lift, because of linen logistics, and outdoor space with a pool, because of the extra checks.
What surcharges apply?
| Situation | Surcharge |
|---|---|
| Less than 48 hours' notice | +30 % |
| Sunday or public holiday | +25 % |
| Beyond 25 minutes from base | +15 % |
| Check-in after 22:00 | +€20 per arrival |
| Combined cap | +50 % |
The 50 % cap is what stops three simultaneous situations — short notice, Sunday and outside the radius — from producing a 70 % surcharge.
What does it come to per month?
The most common mistake is to reason about a single turnover. The real monthly cost is the plan fee plus the month's turnovers.
A worked example, a two-bedroom in August with 7 turnovers, 3 in-person check-ins, 7 welcome kits and 2 hours of technical work: €659.40 excluding VAT, or €811.06 including VAT.
If the cleaning fee charged to guests comes to €407.40, the net cost to the owner drops to roughly €404. That is the number that matters.
The line-by-line breakdown is in the price table, and you can run the numbers for your own case in the calculator.
What ratio should you aim for?
A rule of thumb we use internally: if the net cost exceeds 35 % of the property's revenue, something is wrongly sized — the plan, the turnover volume or the nightly rate. Above that threshold the arrangement does not survive the second month.
Below 30 %, the operation is sustainable.
What the price does not cover
- Laundry and ironing, unless the linen service is taken at €9 per bed and €4 per bathroom
- End-of-season deep clean, from €120
- External window cleaning above ground floor
- Removal of rubble or bulky items
- Pest control and fumigation
Frequently asked questions
Isn't it cheaper to hire someone directly?
By the hour, yes. Overall, almost never — and least of all if you are non-resident. A single cleaner has no cover when they fall ill in August, issues no photo report, and leaves you handling scheduling, linen and consumables. The real cost shows up on the first missed turnover on a peak Saturday.
Does the cleaning fee charged to guests cover this?
Usually yes, and that is the point. The cleaning fee charged to the guest is revenue that offsets the expense: the net cost to the owner is the total invoiced minus that fee. That figure, not the gross total, is what you should compare against your revenue.
Why does a house cost more than twice a two-bedroom flat?
Because the time goes from 90–120 minutes to three hours or more, and because there are extra bathrooms, outdoor space to tidy and often a pool to check. For houses the price stays indicative until the visit, precisely because the spread between two houses is so wide.
Sources
Data verified on 15 September 2026. Municipal regulations change. Always check the city council portal before making a decision.