DIY vs Hire Window Cleaning: Which Costs Less in 2026?

Is $115.00 the right DIY cost for 20 windows?

On the defaults — 20 windows, a $10.00 pro rate, $25.00 of supplies, 3 hours and your time at $30.00 an hour — DIY costs $115.00 ($5.75 a window), the pro costs $200.00 ($10.00 a window), and DIY wins by $85.00. A professional window cleaner typically charges $5–$15 per window for exterior cleaning, with $10 a window a common middle quote for a standard home; interior plus exterior runs higher. A first-timer’s DIY kit — squeegee, bucket, extension pole and solution — typically runs about $25. A homeowner typically spends about 3 hours on 20 windows. The comparison only makes sense when your own hours have a price: value them at what your time is worth to you.

Three things about the model are worth stating plainly. First, the DIY cost is the supplies plus the time — $25.00 + 3 × $30.00 = $115.00. Second, the pro cost is the windows times the pro rate — 20 × $10.00 = $200.00. And third, the winner is the lower total — $200.00 − $115.00 = $85.00 to DIY, or $5.75 a window against the $10.00 pro rate; all listed in Accuracy & limitations.

The worked example, line by line

Setup: 20 windows, pro rate $10.00 a window, supplies $25.00, 3 hours, hourly value $30.00.

Line 1 — the time cost. The time cost is 3 hours × $30.00 an hour = $90.00.

Line 2 — the DIY total. The DIY total is $25.00 + $90.00 = $115.00, or $5.75 a window.

Line 3 — the pro total. The pro total is 20 × $10.00 = $200.00, or $10.00 a window.

Line 4 — the winner. The pro total minus the DIY total is $200.00 − $115.00 = $85.00, so DIY wins by $85.00.

Line 5 — the check. $115.00 + $85.00 = $200.00, the pro quote; and $5.75 × 20 = $115.00, the DIY total exactly, because $5.75 is the per-window cost to the cent.

Every branch, checked

Pro rate $5/window: DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $100.00 ($5.00/window) — Hiring wins by $15.00 — Against a $5.00-a-window quote the pro total is only $100.00 — at the bottom of the typical $5–$15 range — and hiring wins by $15.00, because the pro total is below the $115.00 DIY total. A pro rate below the $5.75 DIY per-window cost still has to cover the fixed $25.00 of supplies — check the totals, not the per-window rates.

40 windows, 5 hours: DIY $175.00 ($4.38/window); pro $400.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $225.00 — With 40 windows the supplies are spread thinner — the DIY cost falls to $4.38 a window — and the pro quote rises to $400.00, so DIY wins by $225.00.

6 windows, 1.5 hours: DIY $70.00 ($11.67/window); pro $60.00 ($10.00/window) — Hiring wins by $10.00 — With a small job of 6 windows the fixed $25.00 of supplies sits on six windows, so DIY costs $70.00 — $11.67 a window — against a $60.00 quote, and hiring wins by $10.00. The small job flips to hiring.

Hourly value $60: DIY $205.00 ($10.25/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — Hiring wins by $5.00 — Valuing your time at $60.00 an hour doubles the time cost to $180.00, so DIY costs $205.00 — $10.25 a window — and hiring wins by $5.00. The only input that flips the answer without changing the window count.

Supplies $60: DIY $150.00 ($7.50/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $50.00 — Doubling the supplies to $60.00 lifts DIY to $150.00 — $7.50 a window — and DIY still wins by $50.00. The supplies are only one part of the DIY cost, and the $200.00 quote leaves room for them.

Pro rate $15/window: DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $300.00 ($15.00/window) — DIY wins by $185.00 — Against a $15.00-a-window quote the pro total is $300.00, and DIY wins by $185.00 — the quote is at the top of the typical $5–$15 range, and DIY wins by more than the whole supplies and time put together.

Hours 1.5: DIY $70.00 ($3.50/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $130.00 — If the job takes only 1.5 hours, the time cost falls to $45.00, so DIY costs $70.00 — $3.50 a window — and DIY wins by $130.00.

The reverses, worked backwards

Smallest whole-cent pro rate where DIY wins: At the displayed $5.76 the figures are DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $115.20 ($5.76/window) — DIY wins by $0.20. At the displayed $5.76 the pro total is $115.20 and DIY wins by $0.20. At $5.75 a window the pro total is $115.00 — an exact tie with the DIY cost. Note: at $5.75 the pro rate EQUALS the DIY per-window cost of $5.75, yet the totals tie exactly — check the totals, not the rates. The exact tie is at $5.75 a window.

Smallest whole-dollar hourly value where hiring WINS: At the displayed $59.00 the figures are DIY $202.00 ($10.10/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — Hiring wins by $2.00. At the displayed $59.00 the DIY cost is $202.00 and hiring wins by $2.00. At $58.00 an hour the DIY cost is $199.00 and DIY wins by $1.00, so $59.00 is the smallest whole-dollar hourly value where hiring wins — the exact tie is at $58.33 an hour.

Largest whole-dollar hourly value where DIY still wins by at least $50.00: At the displayed $41.00 the figures are DIY $148.00 ($7.40/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $52.00. At the displayed $41.00 the DIY cost is $148.00 and DIY wins by $52.00. At $42.00 an hour the DIY cost is $151.00 and DIY wins by $49.00 — below $50.00 — so $41.00 is the largest whole-dollar hourly value where DIY still wins by at least $50.00.

Smallest whole-cent pro rate where DIY wins by at least $50.00: At the displayed $8.25 the figures are DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $165.00 ($8.25/window) — DIY wins by $50.00. At the displayed $8.25 the pro total is $165.00 and DIY wins by $50.00 exactly. At $8.24 a window the pro total is $164.80 and DIY wins by $49.80 — below $50.00 — so $8.25 is the smallest whole-cent pro rate where DIY wins by at least $50.00. The exact rate is $8.25 a window.

Smallest whole-dollar supplies where hiring WINS: At the displayed $111.00 the figures are DIY $201.00 ($10.05/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — Hiring wins by $1.00. At the displayed $111.00 the DIY cost is $201.00 and hiring wins by $1.00. At $110.00 the DIY cost is $200.00 — an exact tie with the $200.00 quote — so $111.00 is the smallest whole-dollar supplies where hiring wins.

Smallest whole-cent pro rate where DIY wins by at least $100.00: At the displayed $10.75 the figures are DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $215.00 ($10.75/window) — DIY wins by $100.00. At the displayed $10.75 the pro total is $215.00 and DIY wins by $100.00 exactly. At $10.74 a window the pro total is $214.80 and DIY wins by $99.80 — below $100.00 — so $10.75 is the smallest whole-cent pro rate where DIY wins by at least $100.00. The exact rate is $10.75 a window.

What the defaults assume

The defaults are 20 windows, a $10.00 pro rate, $25.00 of supplies, 3 hours and your time at $30.00 an hour — DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $85.00. With Pro rate $5/window, DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $100.00 ($5.00/window) — Hiring wins by $15.00. With 40 windows, 5 hours, DIY $175.00 ($4.38/window); pro $400.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $225.00. With 6 windows, 1.5 hours, DIY $70.00 ($11.67/window); pro $60.00 ($10.00/window) — Hiring wins by $10.00. With Hourly value $60, DIY $205.00 ($10.25/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — Hiring wins by $5.00. With Supplies $60, DIY $150.00 ($7.50/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $50.00. With Pro rate $15/window, DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $300.00 ($15.00/window) — DIY wins by $185.00. With Hours 1.5, DIY $70.00 ($3.50/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $130.00. With 0 windows, 0 hours, DIY $25.00 (—/window); pro $0.00 ($10.00/window) — Hiring wins by $25.00 — the supplies are spent with no windows to clean, and the per-window cost is “—”, never NaN. With 50 windows, 8 hours, DIY $265.00 ($5.30/window); pro $500.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $235.00. With Hourly value $0, DIY $25.00 ($1.25/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $175.00 — your time is free, so DIY is just the supplies. With Supplies $0, DIY $90.00 ($4.50/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $110.00. With Pro rate $5.75/window, DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $115.00 ($5.75/window) — exact tie — the same as the R1 reverse. With Hours 0, DIY $25.00 ($1.25/window); pro $200.00 ($10.00/window) — DIY wins by $175.00. With Pro rate $20/window, DIY $115.00 ($5.75/window); pro $400.00 ($20.00/window) — DIY wins by $285.00.

Output · formula · meaning

Who uses this

• The homeowner with 20 windows and a $200.00 quote: they learn DIY costs $115.00 and wins by $85.00 — and they check the $5.76 reverse to see the smallest pro rate where DIY still wins.
• The homeowner with only 6 windows: they learn DIY costs $70.00 against a $60.00 quote, so hiring wins by $10.00 — and they check the $59.00 reverse to see the hourly value where hiring first wins.
• The busy professional valuing time at $60.00 an hour: they learn DIY costs $205.00 and hiring wins by $5.00 — and they check the $41.00 reverse to see the hourly value where DIY still wins by at least $50.00.
• The homeowner with 50 windows: they learn DIY costs $265.00 against a $500.00 quote, so DIY wins by $235.00 — and they check the $10.75 reverse to see the pro rate where DIY wins by at least $100.00.

Accuracy & limitations

The math is first-principles: the DIY cost is the supplies plus the hours times your hourly value, rounded to cents half-up; the pro cost is the windows times the pro rate per window; the winner is the lower total, and the page prints the absolute gap with the winner — never a signed number. The per-window figures are computed in whole cents — the DIY cost times 100 divided by the windows, rounded to the nearest cent — so $115.00 over 20 windows is $5.75 a window, and $175.00 over 40 windows is $4.38 a window. The reverses are step reverses on whole cents, whole dollars and whole hours: the displayed answer is the smallest (or largest) whole value that reaches the target, and the neighbour one step away is printed in full so you can see the crossing. What the model cannot do is price your real job: the $5–$15 per-window range, the $25.00 kit, and the 3 hours on 20 windows are typical values, not quotes, and a real quote depends on the window size, the stories, the access and whether the inside is included; the model counts no drying time, no moving furniture, and no value for the pro’s guarantee. Use it to see which way wins on the numbers — then get a real quote before you decide.

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