A weekly cleaning schedule that keeps your house always clean

Do you want a clean house, but hate the idea of spending the weekend cleaning up?

I really love a clean house, but just can’t imagine spending entire weekends cleaning up!!😩

So, rather than going on a major cleaning drive every weekend, I have a weekly cleaning schedule that allows me to do just a little bit every day.

But remember, consistency is the key to success.

A consistent weekly cleaning schedule can ensure that your house is company ready at all times. CLICK TO TWEET

Let me tell you a short story.

After the birth of my little one, I had frequent episodes of back pain. During these episodes I would be in such excruciating pain, I couldn’t even turn in my sleep. So, I met with my physiotherapist who suggested some exercises.

After doing those exercises regularly, for about a week, I began to feel much better. Then, I made a huge mistake. I became inconsistent. I would do the exercises only when I remembered or was in the ‘mood’ to do.

Needless to say, the pain was soon back. Lesson well learned; I got back to doing my exercises regularly! 🙈

It’s the same with house cleaning; if you want your cleaning schedule to be a success, you.have.to. be.consistent.

Weekly cleaning includes only a brief pick up of your house to ensure that it is always presentable. These cleanups help to maintain your house in between deep cleanings and also help take the load off your monthly cleaning tasks.

(NOTE: your weekly cleaning schedule will be much easier if you also follow a daily house cleaning schedule.)

Now, there are 2 ways you could go about your weekly cleaning tasks

1) Chose 1 day of the week and do it all at one go, OR

2) Divide your tasks over the week (you can even take the weekends off if you like)

I prefer the second option.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that it is the only correct way to go. Whichever option works for you and in your current circumstances, is the right option.

Personally speaking, I sync up weekly and monthly/deep cleaning tasks. For example, Monday’s I clean up my kitchen. So, I do my weekly kitchen cleaning tasks and follow up with some monthly kitchen deep cleaning task. Similarly, on Tuesdays, after I’ve finished with my weekly bathroom cleaning, I follow it up with a monthly bathroom cleaning task.

Check out my house cleaning schedule here to see what I am talking about.

My weekly cleaning involves surface cleaning each room. This includes de-cluttering, dusting, sweeping, mopping, changing bed linen, wiping down counters and external surfaces of cupboards, cabinets, appliances etc.

If you aren’t sure what to include in your weekly cleaning schedule, check out my schedule below.

To download a FREE copy of this checklist, click here.

Now, don’t get overwhelmed by looking at the checklist!! These tasks are evenly distributed over the week. In addition many of these tasks are done daily and thus get done very quickly. This weekly cleaning is a good opportunity to catch up on anything you might have missed during daily clean ups.

For example, I do a quick pick up around the house, every day. As a result, there isn’t too much to pick up during my weekly room cleanup.

Weekly Cleaning Schedule for the Kitchen

1. Declutter

Quickly move through your kitchen and clear any trash from the floors, counters, cabinets, cupboards, shelves. For now do not worry about out of place items. Just focus on collecting all the trash. Now is also a good time to check your supplies. Throw away old/spoiled items, food, beverages and make a list of what needs to be restocked.
Next, gather all the items that do not belong in the kitchen and put them in a box/basket to deal with later. If you have a helper (get your children to help with house cleaning), you could have them put away their items. But, do not stop working in the kitchen to put away these items.
Finally, put away all of the items that belong in the kitchen into their proper places. Don’t get distracted and organize stuff. Just put them away quickly. We will deal with that on another day.

2. Do the dishes

I actually recommend doing the dishes after every meal. But, if there are any dishes that got away and are still lying in the sink, wash them now or at least load them in the dishwasher if you have one. Shine the sink at the end of your cleaning session.

3. Dust

Where I live, dust is a major issue and settles quickly on furniture. That’s why I do some quick dusting daily. I move quickly and do whatever I can in 5 minutes per day and do some detailed dusting during weekly cleanups. So, this is where I dust all that I miss during my daily sessions.

Dust furniture, doors, windows, shelves, fans, lights, fittings etc. Remember to do only as much as you can. You can do the rest next week.

4. Wipe down surfaces/appliances

Wipe down your counter top, exterior of appliances – toaster, mixer, grinder, oven, microwave, coffee maker and the refrigerator and stove too. Pay special attention to the door handles.

5. Clean small appliance interiors

Clean the inside of the microwave, oven, toaster (ideally, do it daily or after each use). How often you need to clean depends on how often you use them.

Most times I clean appliances immediately after each use. But, there are times when I put it off for later and then forget (You thought it was just you?!! Heck, No!!)

6. Wash all cleaning rags

Cleaning rags need to be rinsed well after each use and washed properly after each use. Once a week give them a proper soaking and wash and disinfect them.

7. Sweep/vacuum and mop floors

Like daily dusting, I need to sweep and mop the entire house daily and I am lucky enough to have a maid who comes in to do that, albeit not as well as I like it!

So, on a weekly basis I do a more thorough sweeping and mopping of each room.

8. Wash garbage cans

Wash, disinfect, deodorize and dry your trash cans inside and outside.

9. Check Supplies

If you haven’t checked them while de-cluttering, do it now.

Weekly Cleaning of the Bathroom & toilet

1. Declutter

Clear out all trash from the bathroom. Throw away old/useless/expired items such as cleaning supplies and toiletries. Check supplies while doing so and make a note of what needs to be restocked or replaced.

Gather all the items that do not belong in the bathroom (ahem…newspapers, books, toys?? OR does that happen in just my house?!) and put them in a box/basket, to put away later.

Return items that belong in the bathroom to their proper places. (Yes, put that hair dryer away please)

2. Dust

Dust furniture, doors, windows, shelves, fans, lights, fittings etc. Do only as much as you can and complete the rest next week.

3. Wipe down the shower and tub areas

Although, we quickly spray down and squeegee shower walls after a bath, I do it with more attention to detail during weekly cleaning.

4. Clean the toilet

Pour some toilet cleaner inside the toilet and allow it to sit for a while. Briefly scrub the inside and flush. Also remember to wipe down the outside surface of the toilet.

5. Wipe down all surfaces and mirror

Wipe down all surfaces such as your bathroom counter, shelves, cabinet exteriors etc.

Dampen a microfiber cloth with any cleaner of your choice and wipe down the mirror. Finally polish it off by wiping with a crumpled-up sheet of newspaper.

6. Tidy counter

Neatly arrange all items on the bathroom counter. Try to keep these items to a minimum to save on cleaning time!

7. Wash and Squeegee the floor

Quickly sweep and mop the bathroom floor. Alternatively you can spray the floor and squeegee the floor.

8. Clean the waste bin

Empty and wash the waste bin

9. Check Supplies

If you haven’t checked them while de-cluttering, do it now.

Weekly Cleaning of Living Room & Entrance

1. Declutter

Start with clearing any trash from the floors, counters, cabinets, cupboards, shelves. For now, do not bother about items that are out of place and just focus on collecting all the trash.

Next, gather all the items that do not belong in the room and put them in a box/basket to deal with later.

(TIP: If you find it convenient, you could move around the room with a laundry basket and a garbage bag. Put the thrash in the bag and items that do not belong in the room into the basket)

Finally, put away all out of place items back into their respective places. For example, books and magazines back on the shelves, shoes back on the shoe rack etc. Don’t bother to organize them for now.

2. Dust

Dust all furniture, fan , lights, windows, doors, electronics (TV, music system etc). Do as much as you can and start with whatever you had to skip (if at all you do), the following week.

3. Tidy up couch

Remove the cushions and retrieve items hidden in the depths of the couch(That pen you’ve been searching for is probably in there!). Remove surface debris, such as dust, crumbs, fur etc from the couch using a vacuum. If you don’t have a vacuum, just brush off the dirt onto the floor and sweep away later. Brush off the cushions and replace onto the couch.

4. Wipe down surfaces

Wipe down all surfaces, such as table tops, window sills, shelves, exterior surfaces of cupboards, drawers, shoe rack etc. You don’t need to shine your surfaces. Quickly wipe them down and move on.

5. Neaten shelves, tables

Neatly arrange the contents of any open shelves, table tops, coffee table etc. quickly. Don’t spend time trying to organize items.

6. Arrange furniture

I don’t know about yours, but my furniture actually makes use of its legs!! 😝 If you have the same problem, put your wandering furniture back in place

7. Vacuum upholstery, curtains

Dust or vacuum your curtain and any upholstery. If you do not have a vacuum, you could use a feather duster or a dusting cloth. Here are some great ideas and tips for cleaning curtains

8. Vacuum/Sweep and mop floors

Finally sweep and mop the floor or vacuum it.

Weekly Cleaning of the Bedrooms

1. Declutter

Gather any trash and put it in the trash can. Don’t worry about anything other than trash at the moment.

Pickup all the toys from around the room and put them in a toy box. Keep it aside and get your kids to sort it. (Younger children could use some help. Eventually they’ll learn to do it themselves). Here are some great ideas to get your kids to help clean up.

Pickup all the items that don’t belong in the room and place them in another basket.

Return out of place items to their respective places. Like, that book you were reading before bed? And however, did that pillow get onto the floor?

2. Dust

Quickly dust all surfaces, furniture, fan, lights, windows, doors and all fixtures. Do as much as you can today and continue where you left off, next week.

3. Vacuum mattress, curtains

Take off all the bed linen, fold it and keep it aside to be washed on laundry day. Vacuum the mattress, pillows, curtains and any other upholstery in the bedroom. If you do not use a vacuum cleaner, try a feather duster or a dusting cloth.

Regular vacuuming will keep the mattress clean and fresh by getting rid of dust, skin flakes and dust mites.

4. Wipe down surfaces

Wipe down all surfaces, such as the dresser table, bed frames/posts, shelves, exteriors of cupboard or drawers, etc. Just wipe everything down quickly. Don’t waste time trying to shine them. You can do that later, if you have extra time, or on another day.

5. Replace Bed Linen

Put on fresh linen and put away the current one to be washed on laundry day. I suggest you having at least two sets of linen so you can rotate them weekly.

6. Neaten shelves, tables

Tidy up any open shelves, table tops, bookshelves etc. quickly. Don’t spend time trying to organize items. Just arrange items neatly and move on.

8. Arrange furniture

If you have any furniture, like chairs or stools or tables, that tends to move around in your bedroom, put them back in place!

9. Sweep and mop floors

Don’t move around any furniture to do this. Just quickly sweep and mop as well as you can.

Notes on cleaning the Kid’s Bedroom

1. Get young children to join you during your clean up sessions. This way you can teach them how to clean at an early age. Eventually they will be capable of cleaning by themselves and all you need to do is keep a check on things.

2. Use picture charts for children to follow, to make it easier for them to understand what needs to be done.

3. Offer rewards and incentives to motivate children to clean. Visual reward charts using stickers to track their progress can be pretty effective. Remember to make it interesting and attainable. For example, earning 5 stars to earn a toy will be more motivating than having to earn 20! Similarly, children will not be inclined to earn any stars if the reward is a bowl of veggies!! 😆 (If they are, thank your lucky stars. And God Bless them angels.)

Weekly cleaning of the Balcony

1. Declutter

Gather any trash and put it in the trash can.

Pickup items that don’t belong int he balcony and place them in a basket, to sort later.

Return out of place items to their rightful places

2. Dust

Quickly dust all balcony surfaces, any furniture, grills, railings, doors, windows, fixtures etc. Do as much as you can today and continue where you left off, next week.

3. Wipe down surfaces

Wipe all balcony shelves, cabinet exteriors, furniture, railings, etc. Remember, you do not need to shine them, just wipe everything down quickly. You can shine them later, if you have time, or do it on another day.

4. Tidy balcony rack

Tidy up the balcony rack or any shelves or tables that you have in the balcony.

5. Sweep and mop floors

Clean the floor by vacuuming, sweeping, or damp-mopping. If you have plants on the balcony floor, move them around and sweep. Some weeks I simply sweep and mop as best as I can and skip moving plants or furniture around and catch up the following week. If I get really lazy, it gets done during my monthly clean up. 🙈

6. Check supplies

Check gardening supplies and restock or replace if needed. Throw away useless stuff.

Well, that’s it!

Now, I know it seems like a ton of stuff to be done, but relax! It really isn’t.

Once you actually start doing these tasks, you will realize that they aren’t as bad as they look on paper… or should I say on screen?!

For starters, you don’t have to do it all in one day. Just the thought of cleaning up the entire house overwhelms me!

So, I prefer spending just 15 minutes on just one room in a week. I use a timer and make sure that I stop in 15. If there’s anything left, it gets done the following day/week. This decision came after one instance where I was so engrossed in my cleaning that I forgot to cook lunch!! (Please tell me I’m not the only one)

Begin your weekly sessions with de-cluttering. (TIP: De-cluttering will go a lot quicker if there’s less of it! So, always put stuff away after use and don’t generate clutter).

Do all the important tasks first and leave the less critical ones for later. Then, when your timer goes off you can happily leave whatever is left (if anything) for the following week and the place still looks clean.

Once you go through one week of this schedule, you can decide if you want to go at it all on one day by spending more time cleaning.

It’s really all up to you and nothing is set in stone. Feel free to change things as necessary.

Well, that’s it for my Weekly Cleaning Schedule. I do hope it inspires you to follow one too.

Do you already follow a weekly cleaning schedule? Do share your experiences, ideas and tips in the comments below. I love learning from you guys.

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