Why a move-out costs more
An empty home exposes everything a lived-in home hides: inside every cabinet and drawer, inside the oven, fridge and dishwasher, inside closets, behind appliances and floors edge to edge. The move-out checklist lists it all. That is roughly twice the work of a standard clean of the same home.
The method
Work out the hours for a standard clean of the home (bedrooms, bathrooms, size, condition), multiply by two, then multiply by your hourly rate. Round to the nearest $5 and check it clears your minimum charge.
The price calculator does this when you set the clean type to Move-out.
A worked example
These are example numbers only. Swap in your own rate and timings.
A 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom, 1,800 square foot home in average condition with no pets: 3 × 0.4 + 2 × 0.6 + (1,800 / 500) × 0.35 + 0.5 = 4.16 standard hours. As a move-out, × 2 = 8.3 hours. At a $45 hourly rate, that is about $375. The same home as a standard clean would be about $185.
Ask before you quote
Will the home be completely empty on the day? Are the oven and fridge included or extra? Is there power and water? Are there stains or damage the client expects you to fix? Put the answers in the quote as assumptions, so a surprise on the day is a change to the price, not an argument.
Put it in writing
List what's included and what isn't, take a deposit to book the date, and put an expiry date on the quote. The free quote pack has a template that does all three.