10 Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Commercial Cleaning Company

Most facility managers evaluate cleaning companies the wrong way. They compare price quotes, look at marketing websites, and trust whoever sounds the most professional on a sales call. Three months later they're filing complaints about missed restrooms, no-show staff, and "surprise" charges that weren't in the original quote. The cleaning industry has a 70-75% client retention rate industry-wide, which means roughly 1 in 4 facility managers are actively looking to switch vendors at any given time. Asking the right questions upfront prevents that. Here are the 10 questions that separate professional cleaning companies from the rest — and the answers you should expect.

1. How Do You Verify Cleaning Was Actually Completed?

This is the single most revealing question you can ask. The honest answer is rarely "our supervisor checks." Supervisor checks happen during the day — your cleaning happens at 9 PM. A serious cleaning company will describe a real verification system: timestamped photos uploaded to a portal, GPS-verified clock-ins at your location, digital checklists with task-level confirmation, ATP bioluminescence testing for high-touch surfaces, and a dashboard you can log into and audit yourself. If the answer is vague, walk away. GreenPoint built JaniTrack specifically to solve this problem — every visit produces timestamped, GPS-tagged proof that lives in a dashboard you can review anytime. Less than 15% of cleaning companies use digital verification of any kind, so this question alone narrows your shortlist dramatically.

2. What Is Your Annual Employee Turnover Rate?

Industry-wide janitorial turnover runs 200-400% annually according to ISSA data. That means the average cleaning company replaces every employee 2-4 times per year. That's why your facility gets a different cleaner every other week, and why nobody seems to know your building. A well-run cleaning company will quote a specific number — and the number should be under 80%. GreenPoint's turnover rate runs in the 40-60% range because we pay above market, offer real benefits, and treat our cleaners like the professionals they are. Stable staff means consistent quality, and consistent quality is the only thing that matters in this industry. If a vendor refuses to give you a number, assume the worst.

3. Will the Same Crew Service My Building Every Visit?

Tied directly to turnover. Buildings serviced by rotating crews always perform worse than buildings with dedicated teams — there's no learning curve, no relationship with occupants, and no accountability. Ask specifically: "Will I have the same crew leader and same cleaners on every shift, and will I be notified if that changes?" The answer should be yes. If the cleaning company can't commit to crew consistency, you'll spend the next year onboarding new strangers every month. Want to talk through how GreenPoint structures dedicated crews for facilities like yours? Call us at 347-332-9348 or [request a walkthrough](/contact) — we'll explain exactly who will be in your building and when.

4. What Insurance Do You Carry, and Will You Add Me as Additional Insured?

This question filters out a surprising number of operators. A professional cleaning company should carry general liability of at least $2 million per occurrence, workers' compensation in every state where they have employees, commercial auto coverage if they drive to your site, and an umbrella policy of $5-10 million for larger contracts. They should also be willing to name you as additional insured on the certificate at no charge. If a vendor pushes back on additional insured status, that's a red flag — it usually means their policy limits are thin or their coverage has gaps. Always request the actual certificate of insurance (COI), not just verbal assurances, and verify it's current before signing anything.

5. Are You MBE/MWBE Certified or Otherwise Diverse-Owned?

If your organization has supplier diversity goals — and most government, education, and Fortune 500 buyers do — this question matters. MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) and MWBE certifications come from state and city agencies and require formal verification. They're not self-declared. Hiring a certified diverse vendor counts toward procurement diversity goals, can improve bid scores on government contracts, and supports community economic development. GreenPoint is MBE-certified with both NYS and NYC, NYC DOE Approved Vendor, and SAM.gov registered for federal contracting. If you're working in NYC public schools, NYC government, or any large institutional buyer, those credentials are non-optional.

6. Can You Provide References from Facilities Similar to Mine?

"References available on request" is meaningless. Ask for three references from the exact facility type you're hiring for — if you run a daycare, you want daycare references; if you run a medical office, you want healthcare references. Then actually call them. Ask the references how long they've used the vendor, whether quality has been consistent, how the vendor handles complaints, and whether they've had any contract changes or surprise charges. A vendor that can't produce relevant references probably hasn't done the work. A vendor whose references are lukewarm just told you everything you need to know without saying it directly.

7. What Cleaning Products Do You Use and Are They Green-Certified?

If your facility serves children, vulnerable populations, or anyone with respiratory sensitivities, this is critical. Look for Green Seal or EPA Safer Choice certifications on chemical products — these are independent third-party certifications, not marketing labels. "Eco-friendly" and "plant-based" mean nothing without certification. The vendor should be able to produce SDS (Safety Data Sheets) for every product they use, and they should match what's listed in their proposal. GreenPoint uses Green Seal certified, EPA-registered, allergy-safe products as our default — we're particularly mindful of this in schools, daycares, and healthcare environments where chemical sensitivity matters. Browse [our service approach for daycares](/blog/daycare-cleaning-health-department-inspection) for more on how product selection drives outcomes in sensitive facilities.

8. How Do You Handle Quality Complaints and What's Your Response Time?

Every cleaning company has off nights. The difference between a good vendor and a bad one is how they respond. The professional answer should include a single named point of contact for your facility (not a generic 1-800 number), a guaranteed response time for complaints (4 business hours is the industry standard, 1 hour for emergencies), a documented re-clean policy at no additional charge, and a tracking system showing how complaints were resolved. If the answer is "call us and we'll send someone," that's not a process — that's a hope. GreenPoint contracts include defined SLAs (service level agreements) with response times, re-clean guarantees, and credits for missed performance. Hold every vendor you evaluate to that same standard.

9. What's Included in Your Pricing — and What's Extra?

This is where most cleaning contracts go sideways. The initial quote looks reasonable, then six months in you're getting invoiced for "deep cleans," "restroom emergencies," "weekend coverage," and "supply replenishment" that you assumed were standard. Ask for a written scope of work that itemizes exactly what's included — frequencies for every task, supplies provided, response to spills and incidents, holiday coverage, and what triggers an extra charge. A professional vendor will give you fixed monthly pricing with no hourly billing, no surprise invoices, and a clearly defined change order process for genuinely new work. If the answer is "we'll work it out as we go," you've just signed up for unpredictable monthly costs. GreenPoint contracts use fixed pricing with no hidden fees and no hourly billing — request a written proposal at 347-332-9348 to see exactly how transparent the scope can be.

10. What Happens If I'm Not Satisfied After 90 Days?

The answer to this question reveals how confident the vendor really is. A serious cleaning company will offer a 30, 60, or 90-day satisfaction guarantee with the right to terminate the contract for any reason. Anything less suggests the vendor knows they don't perform consistently and want you locked in regardless. Read the termination clause carefully before signing — you want a 30-day termination-for-cause clause and ideally a 60 or 90-day termination-for-convenience clause. If the contract requires a year of payments regardless of performance, you don't have a partner — you have a creditor. GreenPoint structures contracts with performance-based termination rights specifically because our 98% client retention rate means we rarely need them invoked. Confidence in the work creates fair contract terms.

Bonus Question: Can I See Your Verification Dashboard Right Now?

Save this for the end of the sales conversation. Ask the salesperson to log into their actual operations dashboard — on the spot — and show you a live cleaning verification from a current client. If they can do it, you're talking to a real operator. If they fumble around, promise to send a screenshot later, or claim it's confidential, the verification system either doesn't exist or doesn't work the way they described. The answer to this single question often tells you more than the previous 10 combined.

How to Use These Questions in a Bid Process

Don't ask all 10 in your initial RFP — that's overwhelming and most vendors will give boilerplate answers. Instead, structure your evaluation in three stages. In the written proposal, require answers to questions 4 (insurance), 5 (certifications), 6 (references), and 9 (pricing scope). In the in-person walkthrough or sales meeting, ask questions 1 (verification), 2 (turnover), 3 (crew consistency), and 7 (products). In the final negotiation, address questions 8 (complaint handling) and 10 (termination rights), plus the bonus dashboard question. This staging filters bad vendors out at each step without requiring you to read 50 long-form proposals. The vendors who reach your final round will have already proven they're operating at a different level than the rest of the market.