No matter how large or small your house may be, it can be difficult to reach the outside glass to wash your windows well. Enter a professional window cleaning service. Most likely locally owned, you could expect anywhere from one cleaner to a small crew to show up at your house. Before they perform any work, a manager or owner should evaluate your home and give you a cost estimate so you know exactly how much to pay.
The one major variable, however, is whether or not to add a tip to that final bill. After all, the crew probably spent a lot of time climbing up and down ladders. Assuming they did an excellent job, you may be tempted to tip. The good news is that this is a situation in which you can really use your gut feeling because there’s no set protocol. At the very least, offer the window cleaners some cold beverages and even some snacks, especially if it’s a hot summer day. If there’s only one window cleaner and it’s the owner of the company, you typically don’t need to give a tip. If you do, simply round up a bit on your bill total when it comes time to pay.
If the window cleaner isn’t the owner of the company or there’s a crew of workers, you can tip between $5 and $20. Go for $5 per person with a crew, or up to $20 if it’s just one person who did a great job in a reasonable amount of time. Alternatively, if you feel the price was on the higher side, or if the job didn’t take as long as you were quoted, you can feel comfortable not offering a tip at all. Since there’s no standard protocol for window cleaners, you probably don’t have to worry about any hard feelings if you opt out of tipping.
