Cleaners in Melbourne: what customers search, and what it takes to rank

Five things we found

1. “carpet cleaning” is the biggest single search. About 9,900 a month in Greater Melbourne, and advertisers pay US$4.34 a click for it.
2. Distance decides a lot. In 9 of the 9 areas we checked, the #1 cleaner showed a street address in or near that area.
3. Nobody owns Melbourne. 27 different businesses filled the 27 top-3 spots across 9 areas.
4. The bar can be very low. In Werribee, Broadmeadows and Box Hill, a business with no reviews made the top 3.
5. Job searches add up. Searches for house cleaning add up to about 13,700 a month, led by “home cleaners melbourne”.

What Melbourne customers search for

About 82,900 Google searches a month in Greater Melbourne are people looking for a cleaner. Phrases Google treats as the same are counted once. Searches for jobs, products, brands and other cities are left out.

Cost per click is the average advertisers pay, weighted by searches (US$, as Google reports it).

What a click is worth. Buying 100 clicks a month for “cleaners near me” through Google Ads would cost about US$900 at today’s prices (100 × US$9.24). A top-3 spot on Google Maps earns clicks from the same searches without paying for each one.

The jobs people search for

• Carpet and upholstery: about 24,500 a month, led by “carpet cleaning”.
• House cleaning: about 13,700 a month, led by “home cleaners melbourne”.
• End of lease: about 12,100 a month, led by “end of lease cleaning”.
• Windows and pressure cleaning: about 9,900 a month, led by “gutter cleaning”.
• Office and commercial: about 8,500 a month, led by “office cleaners melbourne”.

When people search

Busiest in September. Quietest in June (13% below an average month).

Suburbs people search by name

Searches like “cleaning service point cook”. A page for each suburb you serve can win these.

What it takes to rank top 3 on Google Maps in Melbourne

We searched Google Maps for “cleaning service” from 9 suburbs across Greater Melbourne on 25 September 2026, on a mobile phone, and compared the profiles that came up.

Typical = the middle value (median). Near the city centre, our national benchmarks put the typical top-3 cleaner at 88 reviews: busy central areas need more.

Area by area

Entry bar = reviews held by the weakest business in the top 3. On the map = businesses Google listed for that search (up to 20).

Extra categories the top 10 use: Carpet cleaning service (16 of 90), Window cleaning service (16 of 90), Cleaners (14 of 90), Upholstery cleaning service (11 of 90), Janitorial service (6 of 90), Tile cleaning service (6 of 90).

Six steps to win more of these searches

Based on what the top-3 cleaners in Melbourne have in common. Do the ones that fit your business.

1. Use “House cleaning service” as your main category19 of the 27 top-3 businesses do. Then add extras only for work you really do: Carpet cleaning service, Window cleaning service and Cleaners.
2. Aim for 20+ genuine reviewsTypical for the top 3 is 15. Ask every customer with a direct review link, and never offer rewards.
3. List the jobs people searchCarpet and upholstery, house cleaning, end of lease and windows and pressure cleaning: as services on your profile and pages on your website.
4. Add 15+ real photosTop-3 profiles typically have 15. Real jobs, your van and your team, added every month.
5. Pick your battlesMelbourne CBD, Footscray, Werribee and Broadmeadows had low entry bars. Busier areas need a strong review count.
6. Time your pushesSearches peak in September. Have your profile, photos and pages ready a month before. June is the quietest month.