17 REALISTIC Cleaning Checklists & Schedules I Might Actually Stick To
House a TOTAL Mess? I feel ya! Below are the 17 Realistic house cleaning schedules, checklists and printable PDF templates I’ve tried and used that kinda work for me – plus the ONE that made a big difference.
You can print most of these cleaning checklists to use for YOUR daily, weekly and monthly room by room cleaning chores. Maybe they’ll help YOU keep your house clean WITHOUT losing your mind – even if you’re a VERY busy working mom.
Updated on June 21, 2024
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I’ve been on a search for a simple, repeatable and realistic cleaning checklist to follow to keep my house clean WITHOUT feeling totally overwhelmed.
The hubs and I talked about hiring someone who would offer basic cleaning services twice a month like this:
Turns out, in my area, that would cost around $200 – $250 each clean so we’re talking $500 a month.
We’d rather save that money and clean on our own…
But good golly, I am so NOT motivated to clean anything at ALL haha!
Realistic Cleaning Schedules
Whether it’s a daily, weekly, monthly or a room by room house cleaning schedule, I’ve had such a hard time finding a cleaning schedule or checklist that is REALISTIC for my working mom life.
I’ve used this Daily Cleaning Checklist below with pretty good success, but that whole clean SOMETHING every, single, stinkin’ day of the week kinda lost me along the way.
While I LOVE checking things OFF a list, having a ton of items NOT checked makes me feel kinda defeated, so – I don’t stick to it.
What good is a cleaning schedule if I won’t stick to it, right?
It’s gotta be realistic – as in, totally “do-able” AND repeatable.
For example, I really REALLY wanted to take 30-40 days to declutter, clean AND organize those random problem spots in my home.
You know what I mean by “problem spots”, right?
I’ve heard them called “Hot Spots“, too.
Those are places like the junk drawer and under the beds and my pantry etc…. but I did NOT want to make it this EXTREME declutter and clean SPRINT – I just wanted to do one little spot a day WITHOUT overwhelming myself.
Enter this checklist – it was LIFE-changing:
Just use that as an example template kinda thing, grab a notepad and starting listing out your own 40 day list.
Easy enough to do AND checking things off is SO satisfying!
Be sure to check out that decluttering challenge info above… but in the meantime, let’s keep looking at more of the most realistic cleaning schedule examples and printable checklists I could find that simplify my cleaning process.
Weekly House Cleaning Schedule
Need a cleaning schedule that is simple and just shows you a few chores to do each day of the week to keep up with your housework?
This weekly cleaning schedule below is VERY good and easy to use.
There are also a LOT of other cleaning schedules and checklists on this page, too.
Cleaning Routine Checklist
The hardest part of housekeeping for me is knowing where to start and then having a simple cleaning routine that is fast to do (and shows me immediate results without a lot of work – hey, I’m all about that instant gratification thing haha!)
This cleaning routine checklist is perfect for me!
Cleaning Flowchart
Since I tend to get distracted and overwhelmed VERY easily, I am more of a cleaning FLOWCHART type of gal as opposed to a step by step cleaning SCHEDULE.
This house cleaning flowchart helps me get my house clean, top to bottom, in ONE hour.
NOTE: If your house is a TOTAL mess, just clean what you can in the amount of time shown. Then, do that same amount of time in that space.
This is NOT about feeling like a failure – this IS about getting a little done each day and seeing your progress.
Monthly House Cleaning Schedule
Here’s a really helpful monthly cleaning schedule to help you keep track of your monthly housekeeping chores you should do throughout the year to keep your house really clean all year long.
You can print it out here.
Daily Weekly and Monthly Cleaning Schedule
When it comes to a simple and REALISTIC cleaning checklist of daily, weekly and monthly chores to keep my house clean, I really like this printable below:
It’s simple… it’s easy enough and I really like that I can just print it out and organize it on my refrigerator.
You can print it out here.
Everyday Cleaning List
I really, REALLY like this everyday cleaning checklist below… you know WHY? Because it gives me a day OFF from cleaning my house! YAY!
Daily House Cleaning Schedule Printable
This is what I consider a “normal mom” cleaning schedule and housekeeping routine to follow every day.
Obviously, it’s not for over-achievers, but it’s right up my alley with simple chores – and only a FEW chores – to do each day to keep my house neat, tidy and clean enough.
You can print the cleaning routine above here…
Or you can print a blank template to fill in here.
I also like this cleaning schedule of daily cleaning chores below – it’s great for keeping your apartment clean.
Daily Cleaning ROTA
Have a roommate or two (or 3)? Need a rotating cleaning schedule (ie, a daily ROTA cleaning schedule) to help you AND your roommates all keep up with the chores needed to be done in order to keep your apartment or house clean?
This page below has a great daily ROTA cleaning schedule to print.
Deep Cleaning Checklist
Deep cleaning your home is an (unfortunate) reality – it’s just something we have do no matter HOW well we keep up with our daily housework.
Below is a really good free deep cleaning checklist you can print and use for your Spring Cleaning or anytime you get the motivation to deep clean your home.
Speed Clean Checklist
The biggest problem for a busy mom is: HOW to keep a clean house while WORKING.
It’s hard enough keeping a clean house with KIDS – but if you work too, it is all SO overwhelming and NEVER-ending.
The solution? SPEED cleaning!
There’s a whole art to “speed cleaning” – and if you’ve ever been in the situation where people are coming to your house NOW, you’re probably familiar with the concept of speed cleaning your house (like I am! haha!)
In short, speed cleaning comes down to: Stash It and Trash It!
Here’s a simple speed cleaning checklist that shows how working moms can get their house clean in 10 minutes.
More Cleaning Hacks, Tips and Tricks
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