Quick answer: In 2026, a UK window cleaner typically charges £15–£30 per visit on a regular monthly round for an average semi (exterior only), £40–£70 for a one-off exterior clean, and £60–£150+ for conservatories or inside-and-out jobs. That's roughly £250–£500 a year for a standard home. A one-off £150–£300 robot window cleaner covering the same reachable glass pays for itself in 6–12 months.
Window cleaning is one of those outgoings that feels small because it arrives in £20 slices. Nobody budgets for it. It's just… £20 here, £25 there, the knock on the door, the "leave it by the gate, mate."
Then one January you look at the year's bank statements and there it is: a few hundred quid, every year, forever, for the outside of your windows only.
Let's price the whole thing properly — what cleaners charge, why, and where the maths tips.
UK window cleaning prices in 2026
Typical ranges (prices vary by region — London and the South East run 20–40% higher):
| Job | Typical price |
|---|---|
| Regular monthly round — terraced/semi, exterior | £15–£25 per visit |
| Regular round — detached, exterior | £20–£35 per visit |
| One-off exterior clean, average house | £40–£70 |
| Inside and out, whole house | £70–£130 |
| Conservatory (with roof) | £60–£150 |
| Solar panels, gutters & fascias add-ons | £40–£100 each |
Per window, one-off jobs often price at £3–£8 a pane. First visits on a new round frequently carry a "first clean" premium (double the regular rate) because neglected glass takes twice the work.
So what's the annual damage?
- Monthly exterior round at £20: £240/year
- Add inside twice a year (~£60 extra each): ~£360/year
- Add the conservatory twice a year: £480–£600/year
Over five years, a fairly ordinary "we have a window cleaner" arrangement costs £1,200–£3,000. That's not a criticism of window cleaners — it's skilled work at fair rates, and their water-fed poles genuinely earn it on high, unreachable exteriors. The question is whether all of that glass needs a human on a rota.
The subscription vs the appliance
Here's the reframe: a window cleaner is a subscription. A robot is an appliance. You wouldn't subscribe to a man who comes round monthly to microwave your dinners — you bought the microwave.
The CleanBot R1 costs £173, once. It handles every pane you can reach to place it on — interior faces (which your window cleaner probably doesn't touch anyway), patio and bifold doors, balcony and conservatory side glass, ground-floor exteriors, openable upstairs panes. 6,500Pa suction, automatic N/Z-path cleaning, 8-layer safety with a tether, 24-month warranty.
Break-even against a £20 monthly round: about 9 visits. Against a £360/year inside-and-out arrangement: under 6 months. Everything after that is money that stays in your account — the full worth-it analysis (including who shouldn't buy one) is here.
The honest hybrid (what most people should actually do)
A robot can't do panes you can't reach to place it on — a second-storey fixed exterior pane is still pole-or-professional territory (your options).
So the cost-optimised setup for a typical UK house:
- Robot owns everything reachable — inside faces, doors, conservatory glass, ground floor: the 70–80% of the job that was costing you the recurring money
- A professional twice a year for the high fixed exteriors only: 2 × £40 instead of 12 × £20
New annual cost: ~£80/year after the robot pays itself off — versus £240–£600. Same clean windows. You keep £150–£500 a year, every year.
FAQ
How much does a window cleaner cost per month in the UK?
Typically £15–£30 per visit on a monthly round for an average house, exterior only. London and the South East trend higher; detached homes and add-ons (conservatory, gutters) increase it.
Why do window cleaners charge more for the first clean?
Neglected glass takes far longer — baked-on grime often needs double passes. Many cleaners charge 1.5–2× the regular rate for a first visit.
Is it cheaper to buy a robot window cleaner than hire a window cleaner?
Usually, yes. A £173 robot breaks even against a £20/month round in about 9 visits, and it also cleans interior glass most rounds exclude. High fixed exterior panes still need a pole or an occasional professional.
Do window cleaners do the inside of windows?
Standard rounds are exterior-only. Interior cleaning is normally a separate, dearer job — or the part you're still doing yourself.
Turn a subscription into an appliance: CleanBot R1 — £173 once, 24-month warranty, free UK delivery over £75.