Cleaning industry statistics span businesses, occupations and household exposure measures, so definitions matter. The U.S. had 67,799 employer establishments classified as janitorial services in 2023, while BLS counted about 2.4 million janitors and building cleaners in 2025; those populations overlap but are not identical.
Key Cleaning Industry Statistics
The following figures summarize the most useful U.S. measures by period and population:
- In 2023, 67,799 U.S. employer establishments were classified as NAICS 561720 janitorial services.
- In May 2024, 2,199,900 U.S. jobs were held by janitors and cleaners except maids and housekeeping cleaners.
- In May 2024, 854,910 U.S. jobs were held by maids and housekeeping cleaners.
- In May 2023, the mean annual wage for U.S. janitors and cleaners was $36,250.
- In May 2023, the median hourly wage for U.S. janitors and cleaners was $16.84.
- In May 2023, the 90th-percentile hourly wage for U.S. janitors and cleaners was $23.18.
- In May 2023, California had 245,790 janitors and cleaners, the highest state employment listed.
- In May 2023, Nevada’s janitor-and-cleaner location quotient was 1.52, with 32,210 workers.
- In May 2023, New York had 186,630 janitors and cleaners.
- In May 2023, the New York metro area had 181,600 janitors and cleaners.
- In May 2023, Santa Rosa reported a $47,550 annual mean wage for 3,160 janitors and cleaners.
- In May 2023, the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area had a 1.83 location quotient for janitors and cleaners.
- From 2025 to 2035, BLS projects 2% employment growth for janitors and building cleaners in the United States.
- From 2025 to 2035, about 321,800 janitor and building-cleaner openings are projected each year in the United States.
- In May 2025, the median hourly wage for U.S. janitors and building cleaners was $17.71.
- In May 2025, the highest 10% of U.S. janitors and building cleaners earned more than $24.17 per hour.
- An EPA-cited survey found that 75% of U.S. households used at least one pesticide product indoors during the prior year.
Contents
- Cleaning industry business scale and scope
- Cleaning industry employment and occupational mix
- Cleaning worker wages and pay distribution
- Cleaning industry jobs by state and concentration
- Metropolitan and rural cleaning industry data
- Cleaning work outlook and indoor exposure
Cleaning Industry Business Scale and Scope
The Census Bureau’s 2023 County Business Patterns profile reports 67,799 employer establishments for NAICS 561720, Janitorial Services. This is a business-establishment count, not a count of workers, revenue or every cleaning-related business.
The Census Bureau’s Janitorial Services profile defines NAICS 561720 as establishments primarily cleaning building interiors, transportation-equipment interiors, and/or windows.
The classification includes several illustrative activities:
- Custodial services.
- Service-station cleaning and degreasing.
- Housekeeping services.
- Washroom sanitation services.
- Maid services.
These examples describe the classification’s scope, but they do not measure each activity’s share. Census classifies cleaning building exteriors other than sandblasting and window cleaning in NAICS 561790, so a classification boundary should not be treated as a revenue comparison.
Cleaning Industry Employment and Occupational Mix
BLS occupational data provide a broader labor view than the Census establishment count. In May 2024, janitors and cleaners except maids and housekeeping cleaners accounted for 2,199,900 jobs, while maids and housekeeping cleaners accounted for 854,910 jobs across U.S. industries.
| Occupation, May 2024 | U.S. jobs | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners | 2,199,900 | Core cleaning occupation across industries |
| Landscaping and groundskeeping workers | 943,430 | Related grounds occupation |
| Maids and housekeeping cleaners | 854,910 | Separate housekeeping occupation |
| First-line supervisors, housekeeping and janitorial | 174,660 | Supervisory role |
| Pest control workers | 96,110 | Adjacent service |
| Building cleaning workers, all other | 16,370 | Residual occupation |
The BLS May 2024 occupational tables also list 124,130 first-line supervisors of landscaping, lawn service and groundskeeping workers and 25,200 vegetation pesticide handlers, sprayers and applicators. Those related occupations add context but are not janitorial employment alone.
The core Census and BLS populations should not be added together. Census counts employer establishments in one industry, while BLS counts workers in occupations across multiple industries; BLS estimates generally exclude self-employed workers.
Cleaning Worker Wages and Pay Distribution
The May 2023 BLS profile shows a wide pay distribution for janitors and cleaners except maids and housekeeping cleaners. The mean annual wage was $36,250, and the mean hourly wage was $17.43.
| May 2023 wage measure | Amount |
|---|---|
| 10th-percentile hourly wage | $12.39 |
| 25th-percentile hourly wage | $14.22 |
| Median hourly wage | $16.84 |
| 75th-percentile hourly wage | $19.05 |
| 90th-percentile hourly wage | $23.18 |
| 10th-percentile annual wage | $25,770 |
| Median annual wage | $35,020 |
| 90th-percentile annual wage | $48,210 |
The BLS May 2023 janitor and cleaner profile notes that OEWS estimates are employer-reported and exclude self-employed workers; annual figures are annualized measures and are not interchangeable with hourly medians.
For May 2024, BLS reported annual mean wages of $37,460 for janitors and cleaners except maids and housekeeping cleaners, $36,180 for maids and housekeeping cleaners, and $51,170 for first-line supervisors of housekeeping and janitorial workers. Pest control workers had a $45,800 annual mean wage, while all building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations combined had a $39,540 annual mean wage.
Cleaning Industry Jobs by State and Concentration
Employment is concentrated in large states, while location quotients identify places where the occupation represents a relatively larger share of local employment. In May 2023, the largest listed state employment counts were:
- California: 245,790 janitors and cleaners.
- New York: 186,630.
- Texas: 174,690.
- Florida: 126,070.
- Illinois: 97,850.
The BLS location quotient compares occupational concentration with the national average; it is not market share or cleaning-industry revenue.
| State, May 2023 | Janitors and cleaners | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|
| Nevada | 32,210 | 1.52 |
| District of Columbia | 14,640 | 1.46 |
| Connecticut | 30,460 | 1.28 |
| South Dakota | 8,110 | 1.28 |
The BLS state estimates also report annual mean wages of $43,420 in New York, $43,380 in Washington, $42,080 in Massachusetts and $40,200 in Rhode Island. These are state occupational estimates for May 2023, not wages for every cleaning worker or every cleaning business.
Metropolitan and Rural Cleaning Industry Data
Large metropolitan areas account for many cleaning jobs in absolute terms, while smaller areas can show higher location quotients because the occupation is more concentrated within a smaller employment base.
| Area, May 2023 | Janitors and cleaners | Measure |
|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City metro | 181,600 | Employment |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim metro | 89,630 | Employment |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro | 72,950 | Employment |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro | 53,920 | Employment |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise metro | 25,710 | Location quotient 1.66 |
| Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro | 2,250 | Location quotient 1.83 |
The New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington figures are BLS May 2023 metro employment estimates. BLS metro and nonmetropolitan data show that the Northeast Louisiana nonmetropolitan area had a 1.84 location quotient with 1,650 janitors and cleaners, while the Border Region of Texas had a 1.76 location quotient with 1,500.
Among the published top-paying metro entries, San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward had a $46,540 annual mean wage. Santa Rosa reported $47,550 for 3,160 janitors and cleaners, a high wage estimate attached to a much smaller employment base than the largest metros.
Cleaning Work Outlook and Indoor Exposure Statistics
BLS projects 2% employment growth for janitors and building cleaners from 2025 to 2035 and about 321,800 openings per year over that period. Most projected openings reflect replacement demand rather than net new jobs.
The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook estimates that janitors and building cleaners held about 2.4 million U.S. jobs in 2025. It reports a May 2025 median hourly wage of $17.71, with the lowest 10% earning less than $13.77 and the highest 10% earning more than $24.17.
| May 2025 setting | Median hourly wage |
|---|---|
| Government, excluding state and local education and hospitals | $20.76 |
| Educational services | $18.63 |
| Healthcare and social assistance | $18.35 |
| Services to buildings and dwellings | $17.21 |
These industry-specific figures are occupational medians, not overall industry averages. They also belong to the BLS janitors-and-building-cleaners occupation and should not be substituted for the May 2023 OEWS mean or percentile measures.
Indoor exposure figures provide household context, not direct commercial-cleaning workforce outcomes. An EPA-cited survey found that 75% of U.S. households used at least one pesticide product indoors during the prior year, while an EPA-cited study suggested that 80% of most people’s pesticide exposure occurs indoors.
The EPA’s indoor-air-quality page describes the survey as recent but does not identify its year in the displayed passage. The American Association of Poison Control Centers reported about 79,000 children involved in common household pesticide poisonings or exposures in 1990; that historical household figure is not a current cleaning-industry injury count.